How does New Brighton Middle compare to other middle schools in Capitola?

New Brighton Middle has a Scope Score of 60.9/100, ranked #588 among California middle schools. 22% of students exceed standard, with a total of 1,112 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at New Brighton Middle?

22.0% of students at New Brighton Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 50.1% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

Is New Brighton Middle improving or declining?

Based on CAASPP data, New Brighton Middle's proficiency rate decreases by 5.8 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 New Brighton Middle?

15.8% of students at New Brighton 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.

New Brighton Middle

Middle School

Soquel Union Elementary CapitolaSanta Cruz County95010

📍 250 Washburn Avenue

Scope Score

out of 100

State Rank

of 1,714 California middle schools

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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.

School overview

Enrollment

611 students

Student-Teacher Ratio

20:1

Free/Reduced Lunch

31%

Teachers

30 full-time

Dashboard indicators

How this school's scores changed from last year to this year

ELA Year-over-Year

Maintained

+1.6 pts DFS change

Math Year-over-Year

Increased

+11.3 pts DFS change

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

29.0%

English learners at Level 4 (Well Developed) · 31 tested

Data source: California School Dashboard 2025, ELPAC 2024

Student demographics

Hispanic33.9%

White57.3%

Asian1.1%

Black0.5%

Other7.2%

Performance breakdown

Performance breakdown for New Brighton Middle
Category	Percentage
Exceeded Standard	22.0%
Met Standard	28.1%
Below Standard	49.9%

Score Factors

Helping

✓Exceeded standard: 22.0%

4.7pp above state avg (state avg 17.3%)

30% weight

✓Met or exceeded: 50.1%

10.6pp above state avg (state avg 39.5%)

20% weight

✓Chronic absenteeism: 15.8%

3.5pp below state avg (state avg 19.3%)

15% weight

✓Baseline proficiency: 50.1%

Above state baseline (state avg 39.5%)

10% weight

✓Suspension rate: 1.7%

2.4pp below state avg (state avg 4.1%)

10% weight

Holding Back

▼Growth (G6→G8): -5.8pp

Scores decline across grades (state avg +0.8pp)

15% 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 →

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "50% proficient" for New Brighton Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

22.0% of students exceeded standard while 28.1% met it. That exceeded rate is 4.7 points above the state average of 17.3%. That's near the Soquel Union Elementary district average of 22.7%. Compared to the 1 nearby schools within ~3 miles, this exceeded rate is 4.3 points higher (vs 17.8% average). The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

Proficiency drops by 5.8 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 year-over-year. 29.0% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 15.8%, better than the state average of 19.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →