El Cajon · San Diego County

Schools in El Cajon

El Cajon’s 25 public elementary schools run from the 1st to the 77th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). They sit in all four bands, from Strong to Needs Support.

Elementary · 25 schools

from 1st to 77th · among 5,726 California elementary schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Fuerte Elementary: 77th percentile, Strong
  • Fletcher Hills Elementary: 76th percentile, Strong
  • Kidinnu Academy: 66th percentile, Solid
  • Literacy First Charter: 65th percentile, Solid
  • Blossom Valley Elementary: 59th percentile, Solid
  • Rancho San Diego Elementary: 58th percentile, Solid
  • Rios Elementary: 54th percentile, Solid
  • Cajon Valley Home: 54th percentile, Solid
  • Pepper Drive Elementary: 51st percentile, Solid
  • Vista Grande Elementary: 45th percentile, Developing
  • Flying Hills School of Arts: 44th percentile, Developing
  • Crest Elementary: 37th percentile, Developing
  • Dehesa Elementary: 31st percentile, Developing
  • Jamacha Elementary: 28th percentile, Developing
  • EJE Elementary Academy Charter: 26th percentile, Developing
  • Bostonia Global: 24th percentile, Needs Support
  • Johnson Elementary: 21st percentile, Needs Support
  • Madison Avenue Elementary: 19th percentile, Needs Support
  • Meridian Elementary: 12th percentile, Needs Support
  • Magnolia Elementary: 7th percentile, Needs Support
  • Chase Avenue Elementary: 5th percentile, Needs Support
  • Anza Elementary: 5th percentile, Needs Support
  • W. D. Hall Elementary: 3rd percentile, Needs Support
  • Naranca Elementary: 2nd percentile, Needs Support
  • Lexington Elementary: 1st percentile, Needs Support
10Needs Support
6Developing
7Solid
2Strong

One dot per school.

Middle and high school pictures

Middle · 14 schools

from bottom 1% to 68th · among 2,529 California middle schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Hillsdale Middle: 68th percentile, Solid
  • Literacy First Charter: 66th percentile, Solid
  • Pepper Drive Elementary: 62nd percentile, Solid
  • Kidinnu Academy: 59th percentile, Solid
  • Dehesa Elementary: 44th percentile, Developing
  • Crest Elementary: 43rd percentile, Developing
  • Flying Hills School of Arts: 41st percentile, Developing
  • Cajon Valley Home: 35th percentile, Developing
  • Los Coches Creek Middle: 34th percentile, Developing
  • Bostonia Global: 25th percentile, Developing
  • Method Summit Academy: 6th percentile, Needs Support
  • Greenfield Middle: 4th percentile, Needs Support
  • Cajon Valley Middle: 1st percentile, Needs Support
  • Montgomery Middle: bottom 1%, Needs Support
4Needs Support
6Developing
4Solid
0Strong

High · 6 schools

from 1st to 82nd · among 1,498 California high schools we score · spring 2025 tests

  • Literacy First Charter: 82nd percentile, Strong
  • Valhalla High: 52nd percentile, Solid
  • Granite Hills High: 26th percentile, Developing
  • Bostonia Global: 4th percentile, Needs Support
  • El Cajon Valley High: 2nd percentile, Needs Support
  • IDEA Center: 1st percentile, Needs Support
3Needs Support
1Developing
1Solid
1Strong

One dot per school. Each stage is placed only among California schools at its own level. 8 of the 35 ranked schools teach more than one level, 2 of them all three, so they appear in more than one picture.

Schools around El Cajon

41 listed public schools with mapped locations.

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Percentile among California schools at the same level

  • Strong75th+
  • Solid50–74th
  • Developing25–49th
  • Needs Supportbelow 25th
  • Not scored

The school lists on this page are also available without the map.

Elementary schools

Which elementary schools in El Cajon score highest?

Fuerte Elementary is highest, at the 77th percentile.

That’s higher than 77 in 100 of the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Highest in El Cajon

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

Show the other 22 elementary schools
Context

The average El Cajon elementary school had 15 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once.

1 elementary school not ranked statewide
  • EmpowerSpecial education center: students are placed here by an IEP team, not by address and not by lottery, so we don’t rank it

Middle schools

Which middle schools in El Cajon score highest?

Hillsdale Middle is highest, at the 68th percentile.

That’s higher than 68 in 100 of the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Highest in El Cajon

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

Show the other 11 middle schools
Context

The average El Cajon middle school had 17 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California middle school we score had 18 in 100.

High schools

Which high schools in El Cajon score highest?

Literacy First Charter is highest, at the 82nd percentile.

That’s higher than 82 in 100 of the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests).

Highest in El Cajon

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

Show the other 3 high schools
  • Bostonia GlobalCajon Valley Union · Charter school. Check how it admits students.
    4thNeeds SupportScope Score 34
  • El Cajon Valley HighGrossmont Union High
    2ndNeeds SupportScope Score 30
  • IDEA CenterGrossmont Union High · Check how it admits students.
    1stNeeds SupportScope Score 26
Context

The average El Cajon high school had 25 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California high school we score had 22 in 100.

5 high schools not ranked statewide

Alternative schools, continuation schools and special education centers enroll students differently from a regular school, so each is compared only with its own kind or not ranked. The others have no statewide percentile this year.

  • Altus Schools East CountyAlternative school: compared only with other alternative schools
  • Chaparral HighContinuation high school: compared only with other continuation schools
  • Elite AcademySpecial education center: students are placed here by an IEP team, not by address and not by lottery, so we don’t rank it
  • Grossmont Middle College HighNo Scope Score this year
  • MERIT AcademySpecial education center: students are placed here by an IEP team, not by address and not by lottery, so we don’t rank it

11 private schools have a El Cajon address. They don’t take California’s state tests, so we don’t score them. See them in the private-school directory →

Which places nearby can you look at next?

School districts

More places (9)

ZIP codes

Before kindergarten

Common questions

Which public schools in El Cajon rank highest?

Elementary: Fuerte Elementary, 77th percentile (Strong). Middle: Hillsdale Middle, 68th percentile (Solid). High: Literacy First Charter, 82nd percentile (Strong). Each percentile is among the California schools at the same level we score. A rank doesn’t decide fit or whether a child can enroll.

Does living in El Cajon decide which school my child attends?

No. A city can hold schools from more than one district, and attendance boundaries decide which school serves an address. Confirm the school for your address with the district.
More questions (3)

Are the public schools in El Cajon good?

El Cajon’s 25 public elementary schools run from the 1st to the 77th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 2 Strong, 7 Solid, 6 Developing and 10 Needs Support. El Cajon’s 14 public middle schools run from the bottom 1% to the 68th percentile among the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 4 Solid, 6 Developing and 4 Needs Support. El Cajon’s 6 public high schools run from the 1st to the 82nd percentile among the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). By band: 1 Strong, 1 Solid, 1 Developing and 3 Needs Support. A percentile compares a school with California public schools at the same level that we score. How we score schools.

How does chronic absence in El Cajon compare with California?

The average El Cajon elementary school had 15 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once. The average El Cajon middle school had 17 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California middle school we score had 18 in 100. The average El Cajon high school had 25 in 100 students chronically absent in 2025–26; the average California high school we score had 22 in 100. These are averages of school rates: each school counts once, whatever its size.

Where do these results come from?

California’s state tests (CAASPP): spring 2026 for elementary and middle schools, spring 2025 for high schools, and chronic-absence rates for 2025–26, published by the California Department of Education. Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s calculations. How we score schools.

Sources and methodology

This page lists the public schools with a El Cajon address, which can belong to more than one school district.

Data source: California Department of Education · CAASPP 2025–26 elementary and middle school; 2024–25 high school

Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s own calculations from these state files.

View CDE data ↗ (opens in a new tab)How Scope Scores work →

Download these schools (CSV)Free to use under CC BY 4.0 with attribution.