Palo Verde Middle School

Summary:

Palo Verde Middle School is a public middle school located in Phoenix, Arizona, serving grades 7-8 with a total enrollment of 870 students. The school is part of the Washington Elementary School District, which is ranked 225 out of 288 districts in Arizona and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Palo Verde Middle School has consistently ranked in the bottom half of Arizona middle schools, with a ranking of 477 out of 533 schools in the 2023-2024 school year and a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's academic performance is significantly below the state and district averages across all tested subjects and grade levels, with only 21% of 7th and 8th-grade students proficient or better in English Language Arts, and just 11% of 7th graders and 14% of 8th graders meeting or exceeding the standards in mathematics. The school's performance on the AzSCI science assessment for 8th grade also lags behind the state and district, with only 17% of students proficient or better.

Palo Verde Middle School's struggles are particularly pronounced when compared to nearby schools. For example, the Madison Meadows School, which is part of the Madison Elementary District, outperforms Palo Verde Middle School and the other nearby schools on state assessments, with significantly higher proficiency rates in English Language Arts and Mathematics. In contrast, the nearby Imagine Cortez Park Middle charter school also struggles with academic performance, ranking in the bottom half of Arizona middle schools.


Detail:

Public 7-8

 7502 N 39th Ave
       Phoenix, AZ  85051-6417


(602) 347-2500

District: Washington Elementary School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
477th of 533 Arizona Middle Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $7,569 Help


Feeder schools for Palo Verde Middle School:

Elementary:    Alta Vista Elementary School
    Manzanita Elementary School
    Ocotillo School
    Roadrunner Elementary School
    More...

Student/teacher ratio:  16.4 Help
Number of students:  870

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
64.7%
African American:
13.2%
White:
10.8%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  80% Help


 See top rated Arizona middle schools

 Compare Palo Verde Middle School to nearby middle schools!

Performance Trends
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Compare Details Palo Verde Middle School ranks worse than 89.5% of middle schools in Arizona. It also ranks last among 5 ranked middle schools in the Washington Elementary School District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 13.44. (See more...)
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The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.
Student Body
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Compare Details Palo Verde Middle School has the largest middle school student body size in the Washington Elementary School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (64.7%), African American (13.2%), White (10.8%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 80% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Palo Verde Middle School is 16.4, which is the lowest among 5 middle schools in the Washington Elementary School District! (See more...)
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Compare Palo Verde Middle School employs 53 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Palo Verde Middle School is $7,569, which is the 2nd highest among 5 middle schools in the Washington Elementary School District.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Palo Verde Middle School:

SchoolDigger ranks Palo Verde Middle School 477th of 533 Arizona public middle schools. (See Palo Verde Middle School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
Hispanic students:


Washington Elementary School District:

SchoolDigger ranks Washington Elementary School District 225th of 288 Arizona school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Palo Verde Middle School

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Compare

Rank History for all students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2009 36.80 431st 663 35.0%
2010 35.74 459th 692 33.7%
2011 32.21 484th 685 29.3%
2012 34.79 546th 772 29.3%
2013 35.45 544th 787 30.9%
2014 29.60 507th 690 26.5%
2015 23.28 404th 521 22.5%
2016 25.55 499th 677 26.3%
2017 29.32 460th 695 33.8%
2018 27.19 496th 711 30.2%
2019 20.33 481st 605 20.5%
2021 24.41 623rd 832 25.1%
2022 15.93 517th 605 14.5%
2023 19.71 693rd 854 18.9%
2024 13.44 477th 533 10.5%
See the entire list of Arizona Middle School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 24.77 525th 650 19.2%
2023 23.46 328th 384 14.6%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 44.02 188th 606 69.0%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 15.72 177th 178 0.6%
2021 41.01 415th 789 47.4%
2023 17.89 335th 363 7.7%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 38.16 289th 503 42.5%
2022 16.45 332nd 369 10.0%
2023 23.90 564th 717 21.3%
2024 14.77 293rd 314 6.7%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Homeless students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 43.14 109th 257 57.6%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Homeless Students!

Rank History for Female students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 32.98 393rd 624 37.0%
2019 15.92 389th 466 16.5%
2021 25.10 622nd 820 24.1%
2022 12.64 458th 494 7.3%
2023 17.27 704th 806 12.7%
2024 7.64 363rd 379 4.2%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 22.66 469th 617 24.0%
2019 15.83 368th 435 15.4%
2021 25.85 602nd 818 26.4%
2022 14.12 417th 476 12.4%
2023 20.99 645th 810 20.4%
2024 9.46 336th 356 5.6%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Asian students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 8.20 41st 42 2.4%
2019 0.86 31st 31 0.0%
2021 35.71 290th 404 28.2%
2022 6.17 191st 192 0.5%
2023 6.73 245th 247 0.8%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Asian Students!

Rank History for African American students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 17.57 115th 125 8.0%
2021 31.89 404th 573 29.5%
2023 8.01 400th 400 0.0%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 35.13 338th 543 37.8%
2019 27.53 275th 387 28.9%
2021 32.20 526th 802 34.4%
2022 21.50 314th 392 19.9%
2023 25.56 569th 760 25.1%
2024 16.51 277th 322 14.0%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for Native American students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 31.29 274th 390 29.7%
2023 34.20 98th 159 38.4%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for Native American Students!

Rank History for White students at Palo Verde Middle School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools AZ State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 18.10 380th 436 12.8%
2019 5.86 328th 337 2.7%
2021 21.54 667th 780 14.5%
2023 6.37 671st 675 0.6%
See the entire list of Best Arizona Middle Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Arizona Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Palo Verde Middle School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 




Data source: Arizona Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Palo Verde Middle School

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Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 970 25 31 79 3 n/a n/a -104 1004
1989 920 24 22 73 3 n/a n/a -8 1034
1990 912 26 18 65 4 n/a n/a -5 1020
1991 1008 30 20 93 6 n/a n/a -117 1040
1992 912 39 21 124 10 n/a n/a 0 1106
1993 935 41 21 114 16 n/a n/a 0 1127
1994 863 55 29 152 16 n/a n/a 0 1115
1995 817 67 30 237 17 n/a n/a 0 1168
1996 817 67 30 237 17 n/a n/a 0 1168
1997 799 73 37 258 26 n/a n/a 0 1193
1998 912 85 35 300 37 n/a n/a 0 1369
1999 798 94 41 302 38 n/a n/a 0 1273
2000 711 87 37 307 31 n/a n/a 0 1173
2001 697 101 38 400 28 n/a n/a 0 1264
2002 606 94 42 517 51 n/a n/a 0 1310
2003 606 94 42 517 51 n/a n/a 0 1310
2004 498 100 39 589 49 n/a n/a 0 1275
2005 433 93 43 651 45 n/a n/a 0 1265
2006 391 113 44 664 45 n/a n/a 0 1257
2007 282 99 35 648 56 n/a n/a 0 1120
2008 260 77 28 645 41 n/a n/a 0 1051
2009 240 84 44 618 39 n/a n/a 0 1025
2010 207 70 39 623 28 n/a n/a 0 967
2011 208 88 37 566 34 2 3 0 938
2012 179 89 45 562 31 1 5 0 912
2013 158 102 45 560 30 1 11 0 907
2014 168 80 37 571 25 1 14 0 896
2015 172 93 35 577 29 2 17 0 925
2016 165 95 39 618 32 3 19 0 971
2017 142 80 38 661 26 2 16 0 965
2018 135 97 48 640 23 1 25 0 969
2019 152 121 53 675 32 3 24 0 1060
2020 149 128 49 627 31 1 34 0 1019
2021 128 118 44 648 33 0 30 0 1001
2022 108 121 47 638 21 0 25 0 960
2023 94 115 52 563 20 0 26 0 870

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Palo Verde Middle School

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Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1004 61.0 16.4 n/a
1989 1034 56.3 18.3 n/a
1990 1020 53.9 18.9 n/a
1991 1040 58.4 17.8 n/a
1992 1106 60.8 18.1 n/a
1993 1127 59.8 18.8 n/a
1994 1115 61.6 18.1 n/a
1995 1168 63.9 18.3 n/a
1996 1168 63.9 18.3 n/a
1997 1193 74.3 16.1 n/a
1998 1369 73.1 18.7 n/a
1999 1273 70.4 18.1 n/a
2000 1173 72.0 16.3 n/a
2001 1264 67.5 18.7 n/a
2002 1310 77.2 17.0 48.2
2003 1310 77.2 17.0 48.2
2004 1275 83.4 15.3 83
2005 1265 78.2 16.2 83.5
2006 1257 66.3 19.0 75.5
2007 1120 65.2 17.2 99.7
2008 1051 66.5 15.8 99.7
2009 1025 68.3 15.0 99.7
2010 967 63.7 15.1 57.1
2011 938 59.3 15.8 80.4
2012 912 50.8 17.9 78.4
2013 907 48.0 18.8 77.2
2014 896 47.5 18.8 84.4
2015 925 46.0 20.1 0
2016 971 49.0 19.8 100
2017 965 51.0 18.8 100
2018 969 58.0 16.7 86
2019 1060 59.7 17.7 85.9
2020 1019 59.6 17.0 80
2021 1001 59.8 16.7 n/a
2022 960 59.0 16.2 80
2023 870 53.0 16.4 80

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Palo Verde Middle School

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Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 1004 61.0 16.4 n/a
1989 1034 56.3 18.3 n/a
1990 1020 53.9 18.9 n/a
1991 1040 58.4 17.8 n/a
1992 1106 60.8 18.1 n/a
1993 1127 59.8 18.8 n/a
1994 1115 61.6 18.1 n/a
1995 1168 63.9 18.3 n/a
1996 1168 63.9 18.3 n/a
1997 1193 74.3 16.1 n/a
1998 1369 73.1 18.7 n/a
1999 1273 70.4 18.1 n/a
2000 1173 72.0 16.3 n/a
2001 1264 67.5 18.7 n/a
2002 1310 77.2 17.0 48.2
2003 1310 77.2 17.0 48.2
2004 1275 83.4 15.3 83
2005 1265 78.2 16.2 83.5
2006 1257 66.3 19.0 75.5
2007 1120 65.2 17.2 99.7
2008 1051 66.5 15.8 99.7
2009 1025 68.3 15.0 99.7
2010 967 63.7 15.1 57.1
2011 938 59.3 15.8 80.4
2012 912 50.8 17.9 78.4
2013 907 48.0 18.8 77.2
2014 896 47.5 18.8 84.4
2015 925 46.0 20.1 0
2016 971 49.0 19.8 100
2017 965 51.0 18.8 100
2018 969 58.0 16.7 86
2019 1060 59.7 17.7 85.9
2020 1019 59.6 17.0 80
2021 1001 59.8 16.7 n/a
2022 960 59.0 16.2 80
2023 870 53.0 16.4 80

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Palo Verde Middle School

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YearPersonnel Expenditures from Federal FundsNon-Personnel Expenditures from Federal FundsTotal Expenditures from Federal FundsPersonnel Expenditures from State and Local FundsNon-Personnel Expenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $676 (8.2%) $145 (1.8%) $1,498 (18.2%) $5,806 (70.4%) $1,618 (19.6%) $7,424 (90.0%) $8,246
2020 $658 (10.2%) $662 (10.2%) $1,978 (30.6%) $4,982 (77.1%) $161 (2.5%) $5,143 (79.6%) $6,463
2022 $743 (9.8%) $125 (1.7%) $1,611 (21.3%) $5,717 (75.5%) $984 (13.0%) $6,700 (88.5%) $7,569

Data source: Arizona Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Palo Verde Middle School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 481st of 605 Middle schoolsRanks 693rd of 854 Middle schools
 1.6%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students1060870
 17.9%
African American121115
 5%
American Indian3220
 37.5%
Asian5352
 1.9%
Hispanic675563
 16.6%
Pacific Islander30
 100%
White15294
 38.2%
Two or More Races2426
 8.3%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients85.9%80%
 5.9%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Palo Verde Middle School

Students at Palo Verde Middle School are 65% Hispanic, 13% African American, 11% White, 6% Asian, 3% Two or more races, 2% American Indian.

In the 2022-23 school year, 870 students attended Palo Verde Middle School.

Palo Verde Middle School ranks in the bottom 10.5% of Arizona middle schools.


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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Arizona Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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