How does Columbia Middle compare to other middle schools in Sunnyvale?

Columbia Middle has a Scope Score of 50/100, ranked #847 among California middle schools. 14% of students exceed standard, with a total of 1,337 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at Columbia Middle?

13.8% of students at Columbia Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 35.6% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

Is Columbia Middle improving or declining?

Based on CAASPP data, Columbia Middle's proficiency rate decreases by 2.5 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth. This pattern in test scores may reflect a variety of factors beyond the school itself.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at Columbia Middle?

6.9% of students at Columbia 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 the Scope Score.

Columbia Middle

Middle School

SunnyvaleSunnyvale, Santa Clara County94085

📍 739 Morse Avenue 📞 (408) 522-8247

Scope Score

out of 100

State Rank

of 1,714 California middle schools

🌱

Building Momentum

Every school has strengths the data doesn’t fully capture. Visit and see for yourself.

Resources alone aren't driving results yet — deeper challenges may be at play

Scope Scores are SchoolScope's analysis of public data from the California Dept. of Education (CAASPP, chronic absenteeism, suspension rates). They are not official CDE ratings and should not be the sole basis for school decisions. See methodology.

Score Factors

Helping

✓Chronic absenteeism: 6.9%

12.4pp below state avg (state avg 19.3%)

15% weight

Holding Back

▼Exceeded standard: 13.8%

3.5pp below state avg (state avg 17.3%)

30% weight

▼Met or exceeded: 35.6%

3.9pp below state avg (state avg 39.5%)

20% weight

▼Growth (G6→G8): -2.5pp

Scores decline across grades (state avg +0.8pp)

15% weight

▼Baseline proficiency: 35.6%

Below state baseline (state avg 39.5%)

10% weight

▼Suspension rate: 6.8%

2.7pp above state avg (state avg 4.1%)

10% weight

Unlike traditional school ratings, we show our work. Every factor, its weight, and how this school compares to the state average — so you can decide what matters most to your family. The middle school Scope Score is weighted across 6 dimensions. See full methodology →

5-year trend

↑ 7.2 points since 2019

Rank: #941 → #615 → #632 → #757 → #847Exceeded: 10% → 13% → 13% → 14% → 14%

2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · No testing 2020–21 (COVID) · Scope Score based on CAASPP, absenteeism & suspension data

Key metrics

% Exceeded Standard

13.8%

Students scoring above proficient

% Met or Above

35.6%

Students meeting standard

Growth (G6→G8)

-2.5pp

Change in proficiency rate

Chronic Absenteeism

6.9%

Students missing 10%+ of days

Suspension Rate

6.8%

Students suspended at least once

Total Tested

1,337

Across all grades & subjects

Grade trajectory

How proficiency compares across grade levels this year (different students, same test year)

ELA Trajectory

Math Trajectory

ELA scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	210	11.9%	28.1%	22.4%	37.6%	40.0%
7th	232	11.2%	29.7%	22.4%	36.6%	41.0%
8th	219	8.7%	27.9%	30.6%	32.9%	36.5%

Math scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	215	13.0%	18.6%	24.2%	44.2%	31.6%
7th	238	18.1%	16.4%	19.8%	45.8%	34.5%
8th	223	20.2%	9.9%	26.9%	43.0%	30.0%

Science (CAST)

Level	%
Exceeded	7.1%
Met	20.1%
Nearly Met	56.7%
Not Met	16.1%
Met+	27.2%

224 students tested · CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually like ELA/Math. Not included in the Scope Score. · Data source: CDE CAST 2025

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "36% proficient" for Columbia Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

13.8% of students exceeded standard while 21.8% met it. That exceeded rate is 3.5 points below the state average of 17.3%. That's 17.8 points below the Sunnyvale district average of 31.6%. The 1 nearby schools within ~3 miles average 42.9% exceeded — 29.0 points higher. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

Proficiency drops by 2.5 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 maintained and Math increased significantly year-over-year. 14.2% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 6.9%, better than the state average of 19.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →

School profile

Enrollment

672 students

Free/Reduced Lunch

40%

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

14.2%

Level 4 (Well Developed) · District avg: 16.6% · CA avg: 16.8% · 183 tested

Teachers & staff

Student-Teacher Ratio

19:1

CA avg: ~21:1 · 36 full-time teachers

Teacher Salary Range

$80,296 – $150,834

District schedule · CA median ~$98K

Principal

Daniel Poo

District-level salary data from CDE Form J-90 (2024–25). Individual school salaries may vary.

Student demographics

Hispanic

56.3%

District 42.3%

State 55.4%

White

12.7%

District 17.5%

State 20.8%

Asian

9.1%

District 23.8%

State 9.9%

Black

1.5%

District 1.4%

State 5.0%

Other

20.5%

District 15.0%

State 8.9%

Free/Reduced Lunch40%

District 29%

State 64%

Gender

Female 49.4%Male 50.5%Non-binary 0.1%

Data source: California Department of Education · District and state averages for comparison

School Funding

$24,718

per student (school-level spending)

District avg:$24,087

This school receives $631 more per student

$5,731 more than state average

$12,024$30,514

California district range

Spending Breakdown

Instruction 60%Support 36%Other 3%

2018–2023 Trend

↑ 52.9%

$15,758 → $24,087

Score per $1K

2.04

Scope Score / $1K spent

Full district breakdown →Source: CDE ESSA School-Level Expenditure, 2023–24

Neighborhood profile

Median Household Income

$168K

$83K above CA median

Median Home Value

$1.50M

Bachelor's Degree+

59%

Adults age 25+ in this ZIP

Despite high neighborhood income, this school’s outcomes trail expectations

U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates (2022) · ZIP 94085

Nearby schools

Nearby Middle Schools

1 within ~3 mi · avg 77

Sunnyvale Middle

Sunnyvale · 2.9 mi

See more on map →

Nearby Elementary Schools

11 within ~3 mi · avg 68

Cherry Chase Elementary

Sunnyvale · 2.7 mi

Cumberland Elementary

Nearby High Schools

4 within ~3 mi · avg 58

Mission Early College High

Santa Clara Unified · 2 mi

Adrian Wilcox High

Santa Clara Unified · 2.5 mi

Fremont High

Fremont Union High · 2.9 mi

See more on map →

All schools in Sunnyvale →

K-12 Feeder PathBoundary data

Elementary

San Miguel Elementary

56/100

Bishop Elementary

49/100

▼

Middle

Columbia Middle

50/100

This school

▼

High School

No feeder data available for this level

Feeder patterns derived from NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries are approximate and may have changed — verify with your school district for current assignments.