How does Stephens Middle compare to other middle schools in Long Beach?

Stephens Middle has a SchoolScope composite score of 39.2/100, placing it at the 41st percentile statewide. 17% of students exceed standard, with a total of 1,248 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at Stephens Middle?

16.9% of students at Stephens Middle exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 44.1% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at Stephens Middle?

33.8% of students at Stephens 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.

Stephens Middle

Q: Is Stephens Middle improving or declining?

Stephens Middle's proficiency rate increases by 6.8 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth, suggesting the school is adding value over time.

Middle School

Long Beach Unified Long BeachLos Angeles County90810

Composite Score

out of 100

State Percentile

of middle schools

State Rank

of California middle schools

School overview

Enrollment

692 students

Student-Teacher Ratio

19:1

Free/Reduced Lunch

82%

Teachers

36 full-time

Dashboard indicators

ELA Year-over-Year

Maintained

+1.3 pts DFS change

Math Year-over-Year

Increased

+5.6 pts DFS change

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

0.0%

English learners at Level 4 (Well Developed) · 104 tested

Data source: California School Dashboard 2025, ELPAC 2024

Student demographics

Hispanic66.5%

White0.6%

Asian3.9%

Black11.4%

Other17.6%

Performance breakdown

Performance breakdown for Stephens Middle
Category	Percentage
Exceeded Standard	16.9%
Met Standard	27.3%
Below Standard	55.9%

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "44% proficient" for Stephens Middle and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

16.9% of students exceeded standard while 27.3% merely met it. That exceeded rate is near the state average of 17.3%. That's 6.6 points below the Long Beach Unified district average of 23.4%. Compared to the 3 nearby schools within ~3 miles, this exceeded rate is 2.6 points higher (vs 14.2% average). The gap between "met" and "exceeded" is the difference between a school that clears the bar and one that raises it.

Students here improve by 6.8 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth, suggesting the school is adding value beyond what students arrive with.

California's Dashboard shows ELA performance maintained and Math increased year-over-year. 0.0% of English learners reached Level 4 (Well Developed) on ELPAC.

Chronic absenteeism is 33.8%, 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

16.9%

Students scoring above proficient

% Met or Above

44.1%

Students meeting standard

Growth (G6→G8)

+6.8pp

Change in proficiency rate

Chronic Absenteeism

33.8%

Students missing 10%+ of days

Suspension Rate

11.4%

Students suspended at least once

Total Tested

1,248

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	215	16.7%	29.8%	27.9%	25.6%	46.5%
7th	203	18.7%	36.5%	23.1%	21.7%	55.2%
8th	203	17.7%	40.9%	21.7%	19.7%	58.6%

Math scores by grade

Grade	Tested	Exceeded	Met	Nearly Met	Not Met	Met+Above
6th	216	14.8%	14.8%	29.6%	40.7%	29.6%
7th	206	17.5%	26.2%	21.8%	34.5%	43.7%
8th	205	15.6%	15.6%	26.3%	42.4%	31.2%

K-12 Feeder PathBoundary data

Elementary

Zoned

Zoned

▼

Middle

Stephens Middle

39.241st pctile

This school

▼

High School

Cabrillo High

46.440th pctile

Zoned

Eunice Sato Academy of Math & …

86.199th pctile

Zoned

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