Summary:
Sunny Brae Middle is a public middle school in Arcata, California, serving around 220 students in grades 6-8. While the school has seen a relatively stable racial makeup, with a majority White student population, it has faced several challenges in recent years, including declining academic performance, significant disparities in subgroup performance, and a concerning increase in chronic absenteeism.
Academically, Sunny Brae Middle has seen a drop in its statewide ranking, from a high of 230 out of 2,259 California middle schools in 2011-2012 to 1,301 out of 2,788 in 2022-2023. The school's performance on standardized tests, such as the Smarter Balanced Assessments and CAST, is generally below the state and Arcata Elementary district averages, particularly in mathematics. For example, in 2022-2023, only 25.49% of Sunny Brae Middle students were proficient or better in Smarter Balanced Mathematics, compared to 29.5% for the district and 34.62% statewide. The school's performance also varies significantly across different student subgroups, with Hispanic students and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds struggling the most.
Sunny Brae Middle's challenges extend beyond academics, as the school has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 0% in 2018-2019 to 33.3% in 2022-2023 - notably higher than the state average of 14.3%. Additionally, the school has a high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, at around 60% in recent years, which may be a contributing factor to its lower academic performance. When compared to nearby middle schools, such as Freshwater Charter Middle and McKinleyville Middle, Sunny Brae Middle's academic performance is generally lower, though its chronic absenteeism rate is lower than some other nearby schools, such as Winship Middle and South Bay Elementary.
Thank you for your feedback!
Detail:
Public 6-8
District:
Arcata Elementary
SchoolDigger Rank:
1304th of 2,802 California Middle Schools
Per Pupil Expenditures: $13,984
Students who attend Sunny Brae Middle usually attend:
Feeder schools for Sunny Brae Middle:
Student/teacher ratio: 16.6
Number of students: 220
Racial breakdown:
White:
61.4%
Hispanic:
20.5%
Two or more races:
9.5%
more
African American:
3.2%
American Indian:
2.3%
Asian:
1.8%
Not Specified:
1.4%
Free/discounted lunch recipients: 60.5%
See top rated California middle schools
Compare Sunny Brae Middle to nearby middle schools!