Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Q: Is Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy a good school?

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy ranks 35 th of 239 New Mexico middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Summary:

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy is a public middle school in Las Cruces, New Mexico, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 100 students. This school stands out for its strong academic performance, impressive statewide ranking, and commitment to equity and inclusion.

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy consistently outperforms the state and district averages in academic proficiency, with 61% of students proficient or better in Language Arts, 38% in Mathematics, and 50% in Science, compared to the state averages of 38%, 24%, and 34%, respectively. The school has seen a significant improvement in its statewide ranking, moving from the bottom 15% of New Mexico middle schools in 2014-2015 to the top 15% in 2022-2023, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. Notably, the school has particularly strong performance among specific student groups, ranking in the top 25% of New Mexico middle schools for female students, Hispanic students, and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds.

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy's success can be attributed to its small size, low student-teacher ratio, and focus on leadership development. While the school outperforms the nearby Mesa Middle, Vista Middle, and other middle schools in the Las Cruces Public Schools district, the district as a whole appears to be struggling, with most of the other middle schools performing below the state averages. This highlights the need for a deeper analysis of the district's challenges and opportunities for improvement, and the valuable lessons that Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy's success can offer to other schools serving similar demographics.

Detail:

Public 6-8

950 South Walnut St
Las Cruces, NM 88001

(575) 527-6059

District: Las Cruces

SchoolDigger Rank:
35^th of 239 New Mexico Middle Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $10,283

Student/teacher ratio: 20.0

Number of students: 100

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

59.0%

White:

37.0%

African American:

2.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 100%

See top rated New Mexico middle schools

Compare Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy to nearby middle schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy ranks better than 85.4% of middle schools in New Mexico. It also ranks first among 8 ranked middle schools in the Las Cruces School District! (See more...)

Compare Details In 2023 the calculated Average Standard Score was 86.09. (See more...)

Student Body

Compare Details Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy has the smallest middle school student body size in the Las Cruces School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (59%), White (37%), African American (2%). (See more...)

Compare Details 100% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. This is the lowest percentage in the Las Cruces School District. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy is 20, which is the highest among 8 middle schools in the Las Cruces School District! (See more...)

Compare Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy employs 5 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy is $10,283, which is the highest among 8 middle schools in the Las Cruces School District!

Schooldigger 2023 Rankings:

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy:

SchoolDigger ranks Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy 35^th of 239 New Mexico public middle schools. (See Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Las Cruces:

SchoolDigger ranks Las Cruces 60^th of 119 New Mexico school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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Rank History for all students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile
2015	18.03	190^th	207	8.2%
2016	18.71	177^th	208	14.9%
2018	22.87	142^nd	186	23.7%
2019	38.62	111^th	200	44.5%
2022	71.77	48^th	232	79.3%
2023	86.09	35^th	239	85.4%

See the entire list of New Mexico Middle School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	79.62	7^th	58	87.9%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile
2018	28.40	124^th	168	26.2%
2019	47.54	78^th	175	55.4%
2022	80.89	17^th	223	92.4%
2023	93.89	12^th	227	94.7%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile
2019	48.65	70^th	160	56.3%
2022	85.75	19^th	220	91.4%
2023	90.72	23^rd	213	89.2%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	62.80	52^nd	213	75.6%
2023	78.64	46^th	221	79.2%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	55.01	62^nd	214	71.0%
2023	66.55	47^th	204	77.0%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	NM State Percentile
2019	37.73	74^th	121	38.8%
2022	79.49	24^th	187	87.2%
2023	87.00	30^th	229	86.9%

See the entire list of Best New Mexico Middle Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: New Mexico Public Education Department, 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.

Data source: New Mexico Public Education Department

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Enrollment information for Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
2012	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2013	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2015	7	1	0	39	0	0	0	47
2016	9	1	0	47	0	0	0	57
2017	24	0	0	84	2	0	0	110
2018	31	0	0	66	2	1	0	100
2019	32	0	0	66	0	1	0	99
2020	32	5	1	52	2	1	0	93
2021	33	3	1	56	2	1	0	96
2022	26	2	2	55	2	0	1	88
2023	37	2	1	59	0	0	1	100

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 Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2012	0	0.0	n/a	n/a
2013	0	0.0	n/a	n/a
2015	47	5.0	9.4	93.6
2016	57	2.0	28.5	75.4
2017	110	7.5	14.6	100
2018	100	5.6	17.7	100
2019	99	6.1	16.1	100
2020	93	5.5	16.9	100
2021	96	5.6	17.1	100
2022	88	5.7	15.4	100
2023	100	5.0	20.0	100

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 Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2012	0	0.0	n/a	n/a
2013	0	0.0	n/a	n/a
2015	47	5.0	9.4	93.6
2016	57	2.0	28.5	75.4
2017	110	7.5	14.6	100
2018	100	5.6	17.7	100
2019	99	6.1	16.1	100
2020	93	5.5	16.9	100
2021	96	5.6	17.1	100
2022	88	5.7	15.4	100
2023	100	5.0	20.0	100

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 Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

Year	Total Expenditures Per Pupil
2019	$10,283

Data source: New Mexico Department of Education

Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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 111^th of 200 Middle schools	Ranks 35^th of 239 Middle schools	40.9%

Test Scores

	% proficient Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	% proficient Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
6th Grade Language Arts (Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy)	39	50	11%
6th Grade Language Arts (Las Cruces)	33	29.7	3.3%
6th Grade Language Arts (New Mexico)	31	32.9	1.9%
8th Grade Language Arts (Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy)	26	54.5	28.5%
8th Grade Language Arts (Las Cruces)	31	31.8	0.8%
8th Grade Language Arts (New Mexico)	31	33.2	2.2%

Student Body

	Number of students Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)	Number of students Post pandemic (2022-2023)	Change (%)
Total Students	99	100	1%
African American	0	2
American Indian	0	0
Asian	0	1
Hispanic	66	59	10.6%
Pacific Islander	1	0	100%
White	32	37	15.6%
Two or More Races	0	1
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	100%	100%

Schools Near Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2023)				Ranking (2022)				NM Combined Language Arts (2023)	NM Combined Mathematics (2023)	NM Combined Science (2023)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2019)
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 (2023)	Statewide Rank (2023)	State Percentile (2023)	SchoolDigger Rating (2023)	Average Standard Score (2022)	Statewide Rank (2022)	State Percentile (2022)	Rank Change from Previous Year	NM Combined Language Arts All Grades	NM Combined Mathematics All Grades	NM Combined Science All Grades	Total
Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy	Public	6-8	950 South Walnut St	Las Cruces	88001	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-6059	100	5	20.0	100.0%	37 (37.0%)	2 (2.0%)	59 (59.0%)	1 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.0%)	86.1	35^th of 239 public middle schools	85.4%		71.8	48^th of 232 public middle schools	79.3%	13	61.0	38.0	50.0	$10,283
Lynn Middle	Public	6-8	950 South Walnut St	Las Cruces	88001	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9445	534	39	13.6	100.0%	65 (12.2%)	20 (3.7%)	422 (79.0%)	7 (1.3%)	13 (2.4%)	3 (0.6%)	4 (0.7%)	27.9	168^th of 239 public middle schools	29.7%		21.8	175^th of 232 public middle schools	24.6%	7	29.0	16.0	17.0	$8,523
Sierra Middle	Public	6-8	1700 E Spruce Ave	Las Cruces	88001	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9640	799	50	16.1	100.0%	106 (13.3%)	15 (1.9%)	661 (82.7%)	5 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.4%)	8 (1.0%)	50.5	97^th of 239 public middle schools	59.4%		39.7	117^th of 232 public middle schools	49.6%	20	41.0	22.0	32.0	$8,018
La Academia Dolores Huerta	Public, Charter	6-8	400 West Bell Ave	Las Cruces	88005	Do�a Ana County	La Academia Dolores Huerta	Yes	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-5800	66	11	5.9	100.0%	2 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	64 (97.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	39.7	130^th of 239 public middle schools	45.6%		30.2	145^th of 232 public middle schools	37.5%	15	37.0	16.0	30.0	$10,699
Zia Middle	Public	6-8	1300 West University Ave	Las Cruces	88005	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9475	688	39	17.4	100.0%	123 (17.9%)	16 (2.3%)	533 (77.5%)	3 (0.4%)	4 (0.6%)	2 (0.3%)	7 (1.0%)	30	160^th of 239 public middle schools	33.1%		17	191^st of 232 public middle schools	17.7%	31	31.0	15.0	21.0	$8,805
Camino Real Middle	Public	6-8	2961 Roadrunner Pkwy	Las Cruces	88011	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-6030	965	55	17.6	100.0%	237 (24.6%)	14 (1.5%)	681 (70.6%)	14 (1.5%)	8 (0.8%)	3 (0.3%)	8 (0.8%)	69.3	65^th of 239 public middle schools	72.8%		52.6	84^th of 232 public middle schools	63.8%	19	49.0	32.0	35.0	$7,720
Picacho Middle	Public	6-8	1040 North Motel Blvd	Las Cruces	88001	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9455	727	45	16.1	100.0%	107 (14.7%)	10 (1.4%)	599 (82.4%)	3 (0.4%)	6 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	31.3	157^th of 239 public middle schools	34.3%		20.8	182^nd of 232 public middle schools	21.6%	25	32.0	16.0	19.0	$9,072
Vista Middle	Public	6-8	4465 Elks Dr	Las Cruces	88007	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9465	602	40	15.2	100.0%	68 (11.3%)	14 (2.3%)	512 (85.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (0.8%)	38.5	136^th of 239 public middle schools	43.1%		29.7	148^th of 232 public middle schools	36.2%	12	38.0	16.0	23.0	$8,507
Mesa Middle	Public	6-8	7225 Jornada Rd North	Las Cruces	88012	Do�a Ana County	Las Cruces	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(575) 527-9510	803	51	15.9	100.0%	100 (12.5%)	15 (1.9%)	662 (82.4%)	4 (0.5%)	8 (1.0%)	2 (0.2%)	12 (1.5%)	37.9	138^th of 239 public middle schools	42.3%		30.4	142^nd of 232 public middle schools	38.8%	4	39.0	15.0	20.0	$8,992

Frequently Asked Questions about Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy

How many students attend Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy?

In the 2022-23 school year, 100 students attended Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy.

What district is Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy in?

Las Cruces

Is Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy a good school?

Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy ranks 35^th of 239 New Mexico middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy?

Students at Mesilla Valley Leadership Academy are 59% Hispanic, 37% White, 2% African American.

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NMNew Mexico Middle School Rankings

NMNew Mexico District Rankings

Schools in Las Cruces, NM

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

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.