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La Mesa Junior High · Santa Clarita

La Mesa Junior High: The state doesn't publish enough data to score this school fairly.

La Mesa is a middle school in Santa Clarita. The state doesn't publish enough data to score it fairly — so we won't. Here's what we can show.

No Scope Score available

California doesn't publicly report per-grade test results when fewer than 11 students are tested in a grade — a privacy protection for small schools. We can't compute a Scope Score without that data.

Worth a school visit

With little published data, a visit does the heavy lifting: ask about class sizes, teacher tenure, and where last year's students went next.

  • Ask about typical class sizes and the student-teacher ratio.
  • Ask how long teachers have stayed at the school.
  • Ask where recent graduates or transfers went next.
  • Ask whether the tour can step into a working classroom, and watch how a lesson actually runs.

How every group of students does here

At La Mesa Junior High in Santa Clarita, 48.0% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 55.4% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. La Mesa Junior High trails its district average for low-income students by 7.4 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (31.6% Math proficient); Hispanic students (50.0% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 51.4 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 473 students tested.

All students at this school: 51% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 51%, district —, state 39%51%
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 41%, district 47%, state 32%41% · −10 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 40%, district 44%, state 32%40% · −11 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 53%, district 60%, state 44%53% · +2 vs school
MaleMale: this school 50%, district 58%, state 42%50% · −2 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 61%, district 67%, state 56%61% · +10 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 11%, district 19%, state 15%11% · −40 vs school
FilipinoFilipino: this school 80%, district 78%, state 65%80% · +28 vs school
Black/African AmericanBlack/African American: this school 44%, district 45%, state 26%44% · −8 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 6%, district 9%, state 11%6% · −45 vs school
HomelessHomeless: this school 35%, district 31%, state 22%35% · −16 vs school
AsianAsian: this school 79%, district 86%, state 72%79% · +28 vs school
Two or More RacesTwo or More Races: this school 60%, district 71%, state 56%60% · +9 vs school
American Indian/Alaska NativeAmerican Indian/Alaska Native: too few students to report‹11
Pacific IslanderPacific Islander: too few students to report‹11
Foster YouthFoster Youth: too few students to report‹11
this school district, same group California, same group
Subgroup growth by grade

Change in proficiency from the lowest tested grade — which groups gain ground the longer they stay. Groups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.

Where the path goes

The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.

K-12 Feeder Path

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

The people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 20:1, district 24:120:1
Teaching staff52 teachers
Avg. experience14.9 years
Fully credentialed83%
First-year teachers2%
Intern / emergency permit1.0%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$57,538 – $101,943
Principal salary$0 – $172,444
Superintendent salary$310,000

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $17,141, CA average $14,815$17,141 · spent at this school
Federal share$1,509 per student

$1,509 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$17,176 per student

The district's current expense of education per student, from CDE's annual SACS filing — the freshest district spending figure the state publishes.

Where the district's dollars go · FY 2024–25 · CDE SACS
Instruction58%
Instruction support12%
Student services11%
Administration8%
Buildings & maintenance10%
Other1%

District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.

district detail, 2016–2020 — the newest published
2020$11,844 per pupil
2019$11,615 per pupil
2018$11,989 per pupil
2017$10,579 per pupil
2016$9,869 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Hispanic56.8%
District 45.3% · CA 56.1%
White17.7%
District 31.9% · CA 19.9%
Other13.4%
District 10.3% · CA 9.0%
Black7.8%
District 4.4% · CA 4.8%
Asian4.3%
District 8.1% · CA 10.2%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 47.8% (16pp below CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$115K · CA $85K
Median home value$609K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+25% · CA 35%
ZIP population33,155
Median age39 years

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 31% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 but never enters the Scope Score.

Your other options

Private alternatives nearby

Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.


SchoolScope scores and verdicts are our interpretation of public California Department of Education data — independent analysis, not an official rating. How we analyze · Request a correction