How does Bud Carson Middle compare to other middle schools in Hawthorne?

Bud Carson Middle has a SchoolScope composite score of 36.4/100, placing it at the 33rd percentile statewide. 14% of students exceed standard, with a total of 1,099 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at Bud Carson Middle?

14.0% of students at Bud Carson Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 33.1% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

Is Bud Carson Middle improving or declining?

Bud Carson Middle's proficiency rate decreases by 8.9 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth, suggesting the school is not sustaining early academic gains.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at Bud Carson Middle?

25.7% of students at Bud Carson Middle are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days). This metric reflects school culture and family engagement, and is weighted at 15% in our composite score.

Bud Carson Middle

Middle School

Hawthorne HawthorneLos Angeles County90250

Composite Score

out of 100

State Percentile

of middle schools

State Rank

of 1,714 California middle schools

School overview

Enrollment

635 students

Student-Teacher Ratio

26:1

Free/Reduced Lunch

83%

Teachers

24 full-time

Dashboard indicators

ELA Year-over-Year

Increased

+5.2 pts DFS change

Math Year-over-Year

Maintained

-0.3 pts DFS change

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

13.5%

English learners at Level 4 (Well Developed) · 134 tested

Data source: California School Dashboard 2025, ELPAC 2024

Student demographics

Hispanic61.4%

White1.1%

Asian0.9%

Black33.4%

Other3.1%

Performance breakdown

Performance breakdown for Bud Carson Middle
Category	Percentage
Exceeded Standard	14.0%
Met Standard	19.1%
Below Standard	66.9%

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "33% proficient" for Bud Carson Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

14.0% of students exceeded standard while 19.1% merely met it. That exceeded rate is 3.3 points below the state average of 17.3%. That's 4.4 points below the Hawthorne district average of 18.4%. The 8 nearby schools within ~3 miles average 19.1% exceeded — 5.1 points higher. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" is the difference between a school that clears the bar and one that raises it.

Proficiency drops by 8.9 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth — a signal that the school may not be sustaining early gains.

California's Dashboard shows ELA performance increased and Math maintained year-over-year. 13.5% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 25.7%, above the state average of 19.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →

A low score doesn't tell the whole story. Read: Your School Scored Low — Here's What That Actually Means

Key metrics

% Exceeded Standard

14.0%

Students scoring above proficient

% Met or Above

33.1%

Students meeting standard

Growth (G6→G8)

-8.9pp

Change in proficiency rate

Chronic Absenteeism

25.7%

Students missing 10%+ of days

Suspension Rate

4.4%

Students suspended at least once

Total Tested

1,099

Across all grades & subjects

Grade trajectory

ELA Trajectory

G6 → G7 → G8

Math Trajectory

G6 → G7 → G8

ELA scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	175	13.7%	25.7%	16.0%	44.6%	39.4%
7th	183	12.6%	21.3%	22.4%	43.7%	33.9%
8th	190	7.9%	27.4%	21.6%	43.2%	35.3%

Math scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	176	20.4%	17.6%	14.2%	47.7%	38.1%
7th	183	16.4%	10.9%	15.8%	56.8%	27.3%
8th	192	13.0%	11.5%	19.3%	56.3%	24.5%

K-12 Feeder PathBoundary data

Elementary

Zoned

Also serves area

▼

Middle

Bud Carson Middle

36.433rd pctile

This school

▼

High School

Hawthorne Math and Science Aca…

72.593rd pctile

Nearest

Feeder patterns derived from 2015-16 NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries may have changed. Contact your school district for current information.