Best Public Schools in Joshua Tree, CA

Summary:

The city of Joshua Tree, California is home to two elementary schools: Joshua Tree Elementary and Friendly Hills Elementary, both serving students from kindergarten through 6th grade. Based on the available data, Friendly Hills Elementary stands out as the higher-performing school in the area, consistently outpacing Joshua Tree Elementary on key metrics.

Friendly Hills Elementary boasts a 3-star statewide ranking from SchoolDigger, compared to Joshua Tree Elementary's 1-star rating. Students at Friendly Hills also demonstrate stronger academic achievement, with over 56% proficient or better in English Language Arts/Literacy, compared to just 32% at Joshua Tree Elementary. Additionally, Friendly Hills has a lower chronic absenteeism rate of 13.6%, while Joshua Tree Elementary struggles with a rate of 39.1%.

While both schools perform below the Morongo Unified School District and California state averages on standardized tests, the data reveals a significant gap in academic performance and other key metrics between the two Joshua Tree schools. Addressing the root causes of this disparity, such as differences in student demographics and access to resources, should be a priority for the district to ensure all students in the area receive a high-quality education.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2024)				Ranking (2023)				CAST Science (2024)		Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2024)					Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2024)					% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Polio (2022)	% DTP (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2018)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	SchoolDigger Rating (2024)	Average Standard Score (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science End of Course	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy End of Course	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics End of Course	% Completely Immunized KG	% Polio KG	% DTP KG	Total
Joshua Tree Elementary	Public	K-6	6051 Sunburst Dr.	Joshua Tree	92252	San Bernardino County	Morongo Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 366-8459	276	13	21.9	77.9%	128 (46.4%)	16 (5.8%)	109 (39.5%)	3 (1.1%)	5 (1.8%)	2 (0.7%)	13 (4.7%)	25.7	4294^th of 5862 public elementary schools	26.7%		23.9	4471^st of 5874 public elementary schools	23.9%	177	9.7	9.7	35.7	30.0	29.0	31.6	31.9	26.2	30.0	3.2	26.3	22.0				$7,096
Friendly Hills Elementary	Public	K-6	7252 Sunny Vista Rd.	Joshua Tree	92252	San Bernardino County	Morongo Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(760) 366-3812	267	12	22.6	56.9%	155 (58.1%)	10 (3.7%)	86 (32.2%)	3 (1.1%)	2 (0.7%)	6 (2.2%)	5 (1.9%)	65.7	1782^nd of 5862 public elementary schools	69.6%		49.6	2552^nd of 5874 public elementary schools	56.6%	770	35.9	35.9	65.8	44.8	59.0	52.8	56.3	44.7	37.9	53.9	38.9	44.4	92.5	92.5	92.5	$7,703

Cities Near Joshua Tree

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Yucca Valley	4.79 mi	6	674^th
Landers	10.68 mi	1	437^th
Twentynine Palms	12.78 mi	7	651^st
Desert Hot Springs	17.22 mi	8	814^th
Morongo Valley	18.02 mi	1	457^th

See the top CA California cities

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