Patterson Joint Unified’s 5 public elementary schools run from the 11th to the 43rd percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests).
Elementary · 5 schools
from 11th to 43rd · among 5,726 California elementary schools we score · spring 2026 tests
Apricot Valley Elementary: 43rd percentile, Developing
Las Palmas Elementary: 23rd percentile, Needs Support
Northmead Elementary: 16th percentile, Needs Support
Walnut Grove Elementary: 13th percentile, Needs Support
Grayson Elementary: 11th percentile, Needs Support
4Needs Support
1Developing
0Solid
0Strong
← lower percentilehigher →
One dot per school.
Middle and high school pictures
Middle · 2 schools
from 15th to 18th · among 2,529 California middle schools we score · spring 2026 tests
Open Valley Independent Study: 18th percentile, Needs Support
Creekside Middle: 15th percentile, Needs Support
2Needs Support
0Developing
0Solid
0Strong
High · 1 school
at 43rd · among 1,498 California high schools we score · spring 2025 tests
Patterson High: 43rd percentile, Developing
0Needs Support
1Developing
0Solid
0Strong
← lower percentilehigher →
One dot per school. Each stage is placed only among California schools at its own level.
The average elementary school in Patterson Joint Unified had 14 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.
Middle schools
Which middle schools in Patterson Joint Unified score highest?
Open Valley Independent Study is highest, at the 18th percentile.
That’s higher than 18 in 100 of the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests).
Highest in Patterson Joint Unified
Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.
Where does the high school we score in Patterson Joint Unified stand?
Patterson High is at the 43rd percentile.
That’s higher than 43 in 100 of the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). It’s the only public high school we score in Patterson Joint Unified.
Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level. What patterns mean
Del Puerto HighContinuation high school: compared only with other continuation schools
The district
Where does Patterson Joint Unified’s money go, and what does it plan?
Patterson Joint Unified spent $21,171 per student in the 2024–25 school year.
That’s close to the typical California district, which spent $20,491. About 58 cents of every Patterson Joint Unified dollar went to classroom instruction.
Spending by function
Day-to-day spending per student in average daily attendance, from the district’s annual financial report (SACS) to the California Department of Education. District-wide: it includes central administration and costs never assigned to one campus.
Share by function, 2024–25
Instruction58%
Instruction support12%
Student services11%
Administration8%
Buildings & maintenance10%
Other1%
Shares of the same spending total, by the report’s spending categories, rounded so they add up to 100. Names are simplified from the report’s own categories.
What the district plans
$45.4 million
planned in its 2026–27 plan for 37 funded actions in 8 goals. That’s 33% of its $135.9 million general fund budget. These are planned amounts; the district reports what it spent in a later plan.
The plan in short
Source: the district’s yearly spending plan (Local Control and Accountability Plan, or LCAP, 136 pages), as posted to the California School Dashboard.
Where the money goes
Three actions take 36% of the money. The plan itself puts 59% of it toward staff.
Multi-tiered System of Support: Academics $9.1 million
Technology and 21st Century Learning $3.9 million
Staff Recruitment & Retention $3.2 million
34 other actions
Reading, math and catch-up help
5 of the plan’s 37 funded actions name reading, math, catch-up help or English learners in their titles.
Actions whose titles name reading, math, catch-up help or English learners
Reading $0.3 million
Math $0.3 million
Catch-up help $0.1 million
English learners $1.7 million
An action naming two of these appears under both.
Largest of these
Designated & Integrated ELD$1.6 million
ELA & Math Achievement$179,803
ELA & Math Achievement$119,067
For high-need students (English learners, low-income students and foster youth), what changed and what its goals measure
For high-need students
It plans $32.8 million in extra services for English learners, low-income students and foster youth. For 2025–26, it planned $29.1 million and estimates it spent $23.0 million, $6.1 million (21%) less than planned (our arithmetic).
$23.0 million spent (estimated)$29.1 million planned
Ask: Why did estimated spending on these services come in $6.1 million under the 2025–26 plan, and where does that money go in 2026–27?
What changed
The total is $3.9 million (9%) higher than in the 2025–26 plan. The biggest change in dollars is First Class Learning Facilities, which went from $5.6 million to $3.0 million.
Largest cuts
First Class Learning Facilities−$2.7 million
Transportation Plan: Attendance and Access to Enrichment & Extracurricular Activities−$1.8 million
Technology and 21st Century Learning−$405,700
Largest increases
Multi-tiered System of Support: Academics+$2.1 million
Safe and Clean Facilities+$1.1 million
Career & Technical Education+$1.0 million
New in the 2026–27 plan
Staff Recruitment & Retention$3.2 million
Ask: What did First Class Learning Facilities pay for, and what changes now that the 2026–27 plan gives it $2.7 million less?
What its goals measure
Read these state results for the district’s own schools as context for the goals they measure; results alone can’t show what the plan caused.
What its goals measure: state results, 2024–25 and 2025–26
Measure
2024–25
2025–26
Change
English, every tested grade: Proficient or Advanced in 2025–26, met or exceeded in 2024–25Goal 1 · Academic Achievement
37%
37%
no change
Math, every tested grade: Proficient or Advanced in 2025–26, met or exceeded in 2024–25Goal 1 · Academic Achievement
19%
20%
up 1 pt
Chronically absentCounted across all the district’s students, not averaged by schoolGoal 2 · Student and Staff Safety and Wellness
20 in 100
16 in 100
4 fewer in 100
Suspended at least onceGoal 2 · Student and Staff Safety and Wellness
5.3%
5.0%
down 0.3 pts
Goals 6 and 7 track named schools and Goals 3, 4, 5 and 8 track other measures, so they aren’t shown here.
Figures from CDE’s state test, chronic absence and suspension files. Test figures cover every grade the district tests (California tests grades 3–8 and 11), so they differ from a profile’s rated grades. We combined the district’s schools ourselves, weighted by students and leaving out charter schools. Chronically absent means a student missed 10% or more of school days.
The plan’s own titles and amounts
Multi-tiered System of Support: Academics · $9,096,864
Technology and 21st Century Learning · $3,879,631
Staff Recruitment & Retention · $3,237,399
The full plan8 goals, 55 measures and where the money goes
We calculate each action’s share of the plan by dividing its planned amount by the total of the plan’s funded actions ($45.4 million).
Where does the money go?
41% to Goal 1, Academic Achievement. Each box is one action, sized by its planned dollars and coloured by its change since last year’s plan. Tap a box to open its goal.
not compared: unconfirmed, or repeated across goals
Every goal, in the plan’s order
Goal 1Academic Achievement$18.5 million41% of action budgets
“All students will be provided with rigorous academic experiences that prepare them to be college and/or career ready upon graduation” p. 14 ↗
8 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $14.8 million (+$3.7 million)
Largest funded actions
Multi-tiered System of Support: Academics$9.1 millionaction 1.1 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $5.3 million is state funding counted toward those services
Career & Technical Education$3.1 millionaction 1.6 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $2.0 million is state funding counted toward those services
Visual and Performing Arts$2.7 millionaction 1.7 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $1.1 million is state funding counted toward those services
Designated & Integrated ELD$1.6 millionaction 1.8 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $695,977 is state funding counted toward those services
College & Career Readiness (A-G Completion)$1.2 millionaction 1.5 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
3 more funded actions in this goal
PJUSD Benchmark Assessments · action 1.2 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $286,663 is state funding counted toward those services$0.7 million
Professional Learning Communities · action 1.3 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need servicesunder $0.1 million
Equitable Grading Practices · action 1.4 · p. 92 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need servicesunder $0.1 million
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
Multi-tiered System of Support: Academics+$2.1 million$7.0 million → $9.1 million · p. 92 ↗
Career & Technical Education+$1.0 million$2.1 million → $3.1 million · p. 92 ↗
Designated & Integrated ELD+$0.4 million$1.2 million → $1.6 million · p. 93 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Visual and Performing Arts · $2.3 million → $2.7 million · p. 93 ↗+$0.4 million
College & Career Readiness (A-G Completion) · $1.5 million → $1.2 million · p. 92 ↗−$0.3 million
Percentage of Pupils with Access to Standards-aligned Instructional Materialsp. 14 ↗
Baseline
100%
Target for year 3
100%
CAASPP ELA: Percent of Students in Grades 3-8, and 11 Scoring a Level 3 or 4 CA Dashboard, 2025p. 15 ↗
Baseline
All: 34.02% …
Target for year 3
All: 52.02% …
CAASPP Math: Percent of Students in Grades 3-8, and 11 Scoring a Level 3 or 4 CA Dashboard, 2025p. 15 ↗
Baseline
All: 18.56% …
Target for year 3
All: 39.26% …
15 more measures in the plan’s table.
Goal 2Student and Staff Safety and Wellness$7.2 million16% of action budgets
“PJUSD will cultivate a safe and respectful learning environment that prioritizes the emotional health and well-being of all students and staff” p. 27 ↗
5 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $6.6 million (+$519,634)
Largest funded actions
Staff and Student Wellness$2.4 millionaction 2.3 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $1.3 million is state funding counted toward those services
PBIS with Social Emotional Support$2.1 millionaction 2.2 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $1.0 million is state funding counted toward those services
Site Safety$1.7 millionaction 2.1 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Multi-Tiered System of Support: Behavior, Social-Emotional Learning, Attendance$1.0 millionaction 2.4 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $891,635 is state funding counted toward those services
Alcohol and Drug Prevention and Intervention$0.1 millionaction 2.5 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
Staff and Student Wellness+$0.6 million$1.8 million → $2.4 million · p. 93 ↗
Site Safety+$0.4 million$1.3 million → $1.7 million · p. 93 ↗
Multi-Tiered System of Support: Behavior, Social-Emotional Learning, Attendance−$0.3 million$1.2 million → $1.0 million · p. 93 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
PBIS with Social Emotional Support · $2.3 million → $2.1 million · p. 93 ↗−$0.2 million
Alcohol and Drug Prevention and Intervention · $9,722 → $55,984 · p. 93 ↗+$46,262
How the plan measures it · 12 measures · 3 quoted
Attendance Rate: Percent of Students Attending School on a Daily Basisp. 27 ↗
Baseline
All: 91.9% …
Target for year 3
All: 95% …
Chronic Absenteeism Rate: Percent of Students Chronically Absent from Schoolp. 27 ↗
Baseline
All: 24.3% …
Target for year 3
All: 5% …
Middle School Dropout Rate: Percent of 7th-8th Grade Students Who Dropoutp. 28 ↗
Baseline
All: 0%
Target for year 3
All: 0%
9 more measures in the plan’s table.
Goal 3Facilities and Resources$13.3 million29% of action budgets
“Maximize resources for students and staff to support educational excellence” p. 38 ↗
5 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $16.3 million (−$3.1 million)
Largest funded actions
Technology and 21st Century Learning$3.9 millionaction 3.4 · p. 94 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
First Class Learning Facilities$3.0 millionaction 3.1 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Safe and Clean Facilities$2.7 millionaction 3.2 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Transportation Plan: Attendance and Access to Enrichment & Extracurricular Activities$2.5 millionaction 3.3 · p. 93 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $2.2 million is state funding counted toward those services
Nutritious, Appealing Meals$1.2 millionaction 3.5 · p. 94 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
First Class Learning Facilities−$2.7 million$5.6 million → $3.0 million · p. 93 ↗
Transportation Plan: Attendance and Access to Enrichment & Extracurricular Activities−$1.8 million$4.2 million → $2.5 million · p. 93 ↗
Safe and Clean Facilities+$1.1 million$1.6 million → $2.7 million · p. 93 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Technology and 21st Century Learning · $4.3 million → $3.9 million · p. 94 ↗−$0.4 million
Nutritious, Appealing Meals · $0.6 million → $1.2 million · p. 94 ↗+$0.6 million
How the plan measures it · 5 measures · 2 quoted
Attendance Rate: Percent of Students Attending School on a Daily Basisp. 39 ↗
Baseline
All: 91.9% …
Target for year 3
All: 95% …
Meals Cooked from Scratch: Percent of Meals Cooked from Scratchp. 39 ↗
Baseline
40%
Target for year 3
65%
3 more measures in the plan’s table.
Goal 4Communications and Collaboration$662,9101% of action budgets
“Provide schools, parents, staff, and members of the community with a consistent stream of communication that is transparent and easily accessible to all” p. 46 ↗
Branding: The PJUSD Promise · $25,000 → $34,900 · p. 94 ↗+$9,900
How the plan measures it · 4 measures · 1 quoted
Parent and Community Volunteers: Number of Parent/Community Volunteersp. 48 ↗
Baseline
265 Parent/Community Volunteers
Target for year 3
305 Parent/Community Volunteers
3 more measures in the plan’s table.
Goal 5Employee Success and Leadership Development$5.2 million11% of action budgets
“Build the capacity of all staff to improve academic achievement for all students” p. 54 ↗
4 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $2.2 million (+$3.0 million)
Largest funded actions
Staff Recruitment & Retention$3.2 millionaction 5.4 · p. 95 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Comprehensive Professional Development Plan$1.0 millionaction 5.1 · p. 94 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $34,000 is state funding counted toward those services
Instructional Coaching Support$0.8 millionaction 5.2 · p. 95 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $572,682 is state funding counted toward those services
Leadership Opportunities$0.1 millionaction 5.3 · p. 95 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
Comprehensive Professional Development Plan+$0.3 million$0.7 million → $1.0 million · p. 94 ↗
Leadership Opportunities+$91,466$24,750 → $116,216 · p. 95 ↗
Instructional Coaching Support−$48,523$875,995 → $827,472 · p. 95 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Staff Recruitment & Retention · $3.2 million · p. 95 ↗new or renamed
A reworded title counts as new.
How the plan measures it · 5 measures
None of these has an all-students line we can quote; the plan’s table lists them from p. 54 ↗.
Goal 6 · Equity Multiplier Focus GoalGrayson Elementary School will increase student achievement in ELA, Math, language acquisition, and…$275,7381% of action budgets
“Grayson Elementary School will increase student achievement in ELA, Math, language acquisition, and reclassification and decrease chronic absenteeism annually as measured by the metrics within this goal” p. 60 ↗
CAASPP ELA: Percent of Students in Grades 3-6 Scoring a Level 3 or 4 CA Dashboard, 2025p. 60 ↗
Baseline
All: 17% …
Target for year 3
All: 35% …
CAASPP Math: Percent of Students in Grades 3-6 Scoring a Level 3 or 4 CA Dashboard, 2025p. 60 ↗
Baseline
All: 13% …
Target for year 3
All: 33.7% …
Chronic Absenteeism Rate: Percent of Students Chronically Absent from Schoolp. 61 ↗
Baseline
All: 19.3% …
Target for year 3
All: 10.3% …
2 more measures in the plan’s table.
Goal 7 · Equity Multiplier Focus GoalDel Puerto and Open Valley Independent School (OVIS) will annually increase the graduation and…$348,9571% of action budgets
“Del Puerto and Open Valley Independent School (OVIS) will annually increase the graduation and college/career readiness rate as measured by the metrics within this goal. Del Puerto will annually decrease the suspension rate, and OVIS will annually increase achievement in ELA and math, as measured by the metrics within this goal” p. 66 ↗
College & Career Readiness$2,800action 7.2 · p. 95 ↗
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
ELA & Math Achievement+$39,968$139,835 → $179,803 · p. 95 ↗
Graduation Rate−$38,865$124,542 → $85,677 · p. 95 ↗
College & Career Readiness−$19,641$22,441 → $2,800 · p. 95 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Suspension Rate · $94,645 → $80,677 · p. 96 ↗−$13,968
How the plan measures it · 5 measures
None of these has an all-students line we can quote; the plan’s table lists them from p. 66 ↗.
Goal 8 · Focus GoalRising Sun will create a Community-Based Vocational Training program to foster employer partnerships and…$53,000under 1% of action budgets
“Rising Sun will create a Community-Based Vocational Training program to foster employer partnerships and equip students with job skills” p. 72 ↗
All amounts are planned. We read them from the PDF and added up each goal’s actions ourselves. Page links open the plan at that page.
Who goes to the district’s schools
Who attends
Student mix
2024–25 · October enrollment count, 6,070 students
1Hispanic or Latino78%
2White8%
3Black or African American4%
4Asian2%
5Not reported2%
6Filipino2%
7Two or more races2%
8Pacific Islander1%
9American Indian or Alaska Native<1%
Shares use the district's own October enrollment counts from the CDE, including its charter schools. Rounded labels may not total 100%; segments use the original shares.
Free or reduced-price meals
78%
Across California, 63% of students qualify.
2024–25 · 4,589 of 5,897 students qualify, summed from the CDE’s meal counts for every school it lists under the district, charters included. It comes from a different CDE file than the student mix, so the two totals differ.
The district’s state records
Is the state giving the district extra help?
The state is giving Patterson Joint Unified extra help in 2026, the second year after it qualified on the 2025 Dashboard.
How English learners moved up on the state’s English test
From spring 2025 to spring 2026, 51% of the district’s English learners moved up at least one level on the state’s English test (ELPAC), or stayed at the top (709 of 1,386 students). California: 47%. It counts students moving up the test’s levels, so a student can count here before becoming fluent.
2 schools getting state support, 2025–26
Apricot Valley Elementary (Targeted support) · Northmead Elementary (Targeted support)
This list covers the district’s own schools; each charter school’s page shows its record. Federal designation under the Every Student Succeeds Act, 2025–26.
Which public schools in Patterson Joint Unified rank highest?
Elementary: Apricot Valley Elementary, 43rd percentile (Developing). Middle: Open Valley Independent Study, 18th percentile (Needs Support). High: Patterson High, 43rd percentile (Developing). 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 the Patterson Joint Unified district decide which school my child attends?
Not by itself. Attendance boundaries, programs, transfers and space all matter. Confirm the school for your address, grade and program with the district.
More questions (5)
Are the public schools in Patterson Joint Unified good?
Patterson Joint Unified’s 5 public elementary schools run from the 11th to the 43rd percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 1 Developing and 4 Needs Support. Patterson Joint Unified’s 2 public middle schools run from the 15th to the 18th percentile among the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 2 Needs Support. Patterson Joint Unified has one public high school we score, Patterson High, at the 43rd percentile among the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). By band: 1 Developing. 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 Patterson Joint Unified compare with California?
The average elementary school in Patterson Joint Unified had 14 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. These are averages of school rates: each school counts once, whatever its size.
How much does Patterson Joint Unified spend per student?
Patterson Joint Unified spent $21,171 per student in the 2024–25 school year. That’s close to the typical California district, which spent $20,491. About 58 cents of every Patterson Joint Unified dollar went to classroom instruction. Day-to-day spending per student in average daily attendance, from its annual financial report to the California Department of Education. The district’s spending, by function.
What is in Patterson Joint Unified’s 2026–27 spending plan?
The district’s 2026–27 spending plan puts $45.4 million into 37 funded actions in 8 goals, 33% of its $135.9 million general fund budget. Its largest goal holds $18.5 million, 41% of the action budgets. The 2026–27 plan, goal by goal.
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 governed and funded by Patterson Joint Unified, with the district’s spending and state accountability records.
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.