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Tenaya Middle · Merced

Tenaya Middle: The state doesn't publish enough data to score this school fairly.

Tenaya is a middle school in Merced. 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 Tenaya Middle in Merced, 28.7% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 31.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Tenaya Middle trails its district average for low-income students by 2.5 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (14.3% Math proficient); Hispanic students (27.4% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 26.2 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 544 students tested.

All students at this school: 22% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 22%, district —, state 39%22%
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 21%, district 25%, state 32%21% · −0 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 21%, district 25%, state 32%21% · −1 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 25%, district 30%, state 44%25% · +3 vs school
MaleMale: this school 18%, district 26%, state 42%18% · −3 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 2%, district 7%, state 11%2% · −20 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 4%, district 7%, state 15%4% · −18 vs school
Black/African AmericanBlack/African American: this school 25%, district 17%, state 26%25% · +3 vs school
AsianAsian: this school 29%, district 39%, state 72%29% · +7 vs school

7 of 16 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

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 28:1, district 26:128:1
Teaching staff25 teachers
Avg. experience13.5 years
Fully credentialed88%
Intern / emergency permit4.0%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$68,682 – $137,063
Principal salary$174,280 – $0
Superintendent salary$255,000

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $18,014, CA average $14,815$18,014 · spent at this school
Federal share$748 per student

$748 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$18,875 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
Instruction62%
Instruction support13%
Student services10%
Administration6%
Buildings & maintenance8%
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$13,083 per pupil
2019$12,124 per pupil
2018$12,653 per pupil
2017$11,348 per pupil
2016$11,284 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Hispanic83.0%
District 70.1% · CA 56.1%
Black5.8%
District 4.7% · CA 4.8%
Asian4.5%
District 8.6% · CA 10.2%
White3.5%
District 10.8% · CA 19.9%
Other3.3%
District 5.9% · CA 9.0%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 91.6% (28pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$71K · CA $85K
Median home value$399K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+27% · CA 35%
ZIP population38,303
Median age32 years

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

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 13% 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