School Profile · Pine Valley
JCS - Pine Valley: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.
JCS - Pine Valley posts 37% meeting the standard and 14.8% exceeding it, against 39% and 16.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.
28876 Old Highway 80, 91962 (opens in new tab)·Mountain Empire Unified·Pine Valley·Grades K-12·184 students·46% low-income·Charter·2024–25 CAASPP·(619) 473-1300·Website
Charter school — publicly funded, independently operated, open enrollment via lottery. Learn more
Scope Score
39
📈 On the Rise · Developing
ranked #1,051 statewide · #3 of 4 in Mountain Empire Unified
JCS - Pine Valley scores 39 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 53rd percentile of 2,238 California middle schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).
Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →
Most rating sites would stop at “37% proficient” and call it done. JCS - Pine Valley deserves a closer read. The school sits in Pine Valley, where two in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.
As a charter, JCS - Pine Valley enrolls by application, not address — the score reads the same, the enrollment path doesn't.
The story this school is actually telling
The school, grade by grade
ELA · CAASPP 2024–25Different students, same year — each bar is one grade's proficiency mix.
9%
26%
65%
Grade 6 · 35% proficient
10%
38%
52%
Grade 7 · 48% proficient
16%
37%
47%
Grade 8 · 53% proficient
The honest read: the share exceeding rises 7.1pp across grades; the floor rises 17.9pp. The state average falls 0.5pp over the same span. Kids here gain ground the longer they stay — the pattern you want to see. A school visit and conversation with teachers will tell you more than this number.
The 5 things our score weighs
Exceeded standard
14.8%
State 16.8%
2.1pp below state avg
Met or exceeded
37.1%
State 39.3%
2.2pp below state avg
Growth (G6→G8)
+18.6pp
State +1.5pp
Scores improve across grades
Chronic absenteeism
13.5%
State 18.5%
5.0pp below state avg
Suspension rate
0.7%
State 3.7%
3.0pp below state avg
Worth a school visit
Ask what the school is working on next. Strong numbers tell you where a school is, not where it's going.
Where the path goes
The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.
Estimated K-12 Path
Elementary
Descanso Elementary
40
→
Middle
JCS - Pine Valley
39
This school
→
Estimated K-12 path based on district and proximity. Actual attendance zones may differ. Contact your school district for official feeder information.
Your other options
The community around it
Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope ScoreStudent demographics
Hispanic26.1%
White61.4%
Asian0.5%
Other12.0%
GenderFemale 44.0%Male 54.9%Non-binary 1.1%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 46.2% (18pp below CA avg)
Resources & Access
Enrollment
184
1,016 below CA avg (~1,200)
Transitional Kindergarten
TK status unconfirmed
No TK enrollment is on file with the state for this school — that isn't the same as “no TK.” Confirm directly with the district.
Student-Teacher Ratio
13:1
8 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$15,429
CA avg: $14,815 · District avg · NCES F-33
At JCS - Pine Valley in Pine Valley, 34.8% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 20.6% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. JCS - Pine Valley outperforms its district average for low-income students by 14.2 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (21.7% Math proficient); White students (37.0% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 23 students tested.
Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income23 tested
ELA 34.8%·Math 21.7%· +14.2pp vs district
White27 tested
ELA 37.0%·Math 29.6%· -6.0pp vs district
Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.
Subgroup Growth by Grade
Change in proficiency from lowest tested grade. Shows which groups are gaining ground.
Low-income student ELA proficiency falls by 3.0pp from grade 6 to grade 8 at this school. District average: -7.4pp.
Subgroups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.
Funding Breakdown
Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$143K
$58K above CA median
Median Home Value
$528K
$131K below CA median
Bachelor's+
41%
6pp above CA avg
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
12.5 years avg experience
24 teachers · 8% first-year · 21% second-year
Teacher Credentials
61% fully credentialed
Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25
Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →
For the data nerdsEvery number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
For the data nerds
Every number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Exceeded standard · 43%
14.8%
↓ vs CA 16.8% · 48th pctile
Met or exceeded · 22%
37.1%
↓ vs CA 39.3% · 48th pctile
Growth (G6→G8) · 15%
+18.6pp
↑ vs CA +1.5pp · 45th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 10%
13.5%
↑ vs CA 18.5% · 57th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
0.7%
↑ vs CA 3.7% · 62th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
| ELA | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 4 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 5 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 6 | 23 | 9% | 26% | 35% | 30% | 35% | −12 |
| Grade 7 | 21 | 10% | 38% | 38% | 14% | 48% | −0 |
| Grade 8 | 19 | 16% | 37% | 32% | 16% | 53% | +7 |
| Grade 11 | 11 | 18% | 27% | 18% | 36% | 45% | −2 |
| Math | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 4 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 5 | 8 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 6 | 23 | 9% | 9% | 26% | 57% | 17% | −18 |
| Grade 7 | 21 | 14% | 19% | 38% | 29% | 33% | −1 |
| Grade 8 | 19 | 32% | 5% | 26% | 37% | 37% | +5 |
| Grade 11 | 11 | 9% | 36% | 0% | 55% | 45% | +22 |
| Science (CAST) | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5/8/11 | 43 | 9% | 21% | 63% | 7% |
CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.
| Subgroup · ELA | Tested | MET+ | vs district | vs CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socioeconomically Disadvantaged | 23 | 34.8% | +14 | −3 |
| White | 27 | 37.0% | −6 | −25 |
03Peer comparison · nearest middle schoolssorted by Scope Score
| School | Dist | Scope | EXC | MET+ | Growth | Susp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JCS - Pine Valley ← | — | 39 | 14.8% | 37.1% | +18.6 | 0.7% |
| California average | — | 40 | 16.8% | 39.3% | +1.5 | 3.7% |
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Scope Score history
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #1103 → #1354 → #569 → #954 → #1051
What we can't show
- — Scored here as a middle school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.
Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=2,238 middle schools · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue
Frequently asked questions
Is JCS - Pine Valley a good middle school?
JCS - Pine Valley has a Scope Score of 39 out of 100, placing it in the 53rd percentile of California middle schools and ranked #1,051 statewide. 14.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 2.1 percentage points below the California average of 16.8%. The Scope Score weights six dimensions for middle schools: exceeded standard (43%), met or exceeded (22%), grade 3-to-5 growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are JCS - Pine Valley's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 37.1% of students at JCS - Pine Valley met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 14.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 22.3% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 14.8% pushed past it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it reveals whether a school's curriculum challenges students beyond minimum proficiency or paces toward it. 126 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does JCS - Pine Valley rank in California?
JCS - Pine Valley ranks #1,051 among California middle schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 53rd percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), grade-level growth (Grade 6 to grade 8 growth), chronic absenteeism, and suspension rate. Unlike single-number ratings, the Scope Score shows what drives the ranking so parents can decide what matters most to their family. See full methodology.
Is JCS - Pine Valley getting better or worse?
Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at JCS - Pine Valley increases by 18.6 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth. This upward trajectory suggests the school is adding measurable value — students leave with higher proficiency rates than they entered with. Growth trajectory is weighted at 15% in the middle Scope Score because it measures what the school does, not just who walks in the door.
What is the attendance and school culture like at JCS - Pine Valley?
13.5% of students at JCS - Pine Valley are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 18.5%. The suspension rate is 0.7%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. SchoolScope includes these culture metrics in the Scope Score because they reflect day-to-day school experience in ways test scores alone cannot.
How does JCS - Pine Valley compare to other schools in Pine Valley?
JCS - Pine Valley scores 39/100 (53rd percentile) among California middle schools. To compare with nearby schools, SchoolScope shows the same metrics side by side: exceeded rate, proficiency, growth trajectory, and school culture indicators. The school serves 184 students. Use the schools in Pine Valley page or the map view to compare all middle schools nearby.
How does JCS - Pine Valley serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At JCS - Pine Valley in Pine Valley, 34.8% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 20.6% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. JCS - Pine Valley outperforms its district average for low-income students by 14.2 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (21.7% Math proficient); White students (37.0% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 23 students tested. SchoolScope shows disaggregated test scores by demographic subgroup so you can see how a school performs for your child's specific group — not just the school-wide average. Subgroup data is context, not part of the Scope Score: we don't penalize schools for who they serve. See our equity approach.