School district · California
Desert Sands Unified
Desert Sands Unified in California: 35 public schools with 25,613 students and 23.7 students per teacher in the 2024–25 school year. It spent $19,599 per student in FY2024.
- Schools
- 35
- 2 charter
- Students
- 25,613
- Students per teacher
- 23.7
- CA 21.6 · US 15.1
- Spending per student
- $19,599
- CA $20.7K · US $17.6K
Staff
Full-time equivalents reported by the district. Ratios are students per staff member: lower means more staff for each student, not better results.
- Teachers (FTE)
- 1,081
- Counselors (FTE)
- 81.9
- Students per counselor
- 313
- CA 407 · US 357
- Psychologists (FTE)
- 26.0
- Librarians (FTE): 0.8
State test results
Share of students scoring proficient or above on California's tests, grades 3–8, 2024–25 school year.
Reading and writing
California: 47%39%proficient
+2.4 points from 2023–24 school year
A lower share proficient than 57% of school districts in California
Median 42% · 854 school districts compared
11,170 students tested, grades 3–8 · Smarter Balanced; proficient means Levels 3-4
Math
California: 38%28%proficient
+1.0 points from 2023–24 school year
A lower share proficient than 60% of school districts in California
Median 32% · 854 school districts compared
11,215 students tested, grades 3–8 · Smarter Balanced; proficient means Levels 3-4
Each state sets its own test and its own bar for “proficient”, so results compare only within a state. Results also follow family income closely: a school's share reflects its students' circumstances as much as its teaching.
Data sourced from the Education Data Center (www.eddatacenter.org), a partner project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc. State Assessment Data Repository version 3.1. More information about these assessments over time, including participation and test changes, is available from the Education Data Center.
Money
Current spending pays for staff, services and supplies; buildings and debt are counted apart. It follows local costs and needs (special education, long bus routes), so it is a comparison, not a grade.
- Federal
- 10% · $69.5M
- State
- 49% · $334.3M
- Local
- 40% · $272M
Per student (FY2024)
- Instruction
- $11,438
- Support services
- $7,392
- Buildings and equipment (capital outlay)
- $32.4M
- Long-term debt
- $406.1M
Schools
Open public schools of the district in the 2024–25 school year.
| School | Grades | Students | Students / teacher | Reading | Math |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Abraham Lincoln ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 607 | 25.2 | 39% | 23% |
Amelia Earhart Elementary School of International StudiesFree meals for all | K–5 | 748 | 24.9 | 46% | 36% |
Andrew Jackson ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 750 | 22.7 | 21% | 16% |
Benjamin Franklin ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 627 | 21.6 | 38% | 28% |
Carrillo Ranch ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 459 | 22.4 | 41% | 28% |
Dr. Reynaldo J. Carreon Jr. AcademyFree meals for all | K–5 | 592 | 22.8 | 35% | 28% |
George Washington CharterCharterFree meals for all | K–5 | 746 | 25.7 | 69% | 67% |
Gerald R. Ford ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 598 | 23.9 | 64% | 60% |
Harry S. Truman ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 635 | 25.4 | 45% | 38% |
Herbert Hoover ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 326 | 24.1 | 20% | 15% |
James Earl Carter ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 487 | 22.1 | 56% | 52% |
James Madison ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 403 | 23.7 | 20% | 10% |
James Monroe ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 562 | 25.5 | 58% | 53% |
John F. Kennedy ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 390 | 21.6 | 13% | 12% |
Lyndon B. Johnson ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 560 | 21.1 | 23% | 14% |
Martin Van Buren ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 533 | 24.2 | 42% | 35% |
Richard R. Oliphant ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 568 | 21.8 | 48% | 36% |
Ronald Reagan ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 808 | 23.4 | 49% | 37% |
Theodore Roosevelt ElementaryFree meals for all | K–5 | 490 | 22.3 | 22% | 18% |
Colonel Mitchell Paige MiddleFree meals for all | 6–8 | 439 | 20.7 | 30% | 12% |
Desert Ridge AcademyFree meals for all | 6–8 | 962 | 23.6 | 34% | 17% |
Indio MiddleFree meals for all | 6–8 | 768 | 22.4 | 18% | 6.3% |
John Glenn Middle School of International StudiesFree meals for all | 6–8 | 1,099 | 24.4 | 44% | 40% |
La Quinta MiddleFree meals for all | 6–8 | 709 | 23.4 | 36% | 23% |
Palm Desert Charter MiddleCharterFree meals for all | 6–8 | 1,298 | 27.6 | 58% | 39% |
Thomas Jefferson MiddleFree meals for all | 6–8 | 591 | 27.0 | 15% | 3.6% |
Amistad High (Continuation)AlternativeFree meals for all | 9–12 | 192 | 12.6 | — | — |
Desert Sands A.T.L.A.S.Special educationFree meals for all | 12 | 69 | 16.9 | — | — |
Indio HighFree meals for all | 9–12 | 1,962 | 23.6 | — | — |
La Quinta HighFree meals for all | 9–12 | 2,425 | 24.8 | — | — |
Palm Desert HighFree meals for all | 9–12 | 2,079 | 26.0 | — | — |
Shadow Hills HighFree meals for all | 9–12 | 1,650 | 23.4 | — | — |
Summit High (Continuation)AlternativeFree meals for all | 10–12 | 195 | 16.5 | — | — |
HorizonAlternativeMostly virtual | K–12 | 286 | 22.3 | 34% | 24% |
| — | — | — | — | — |
Reading and Math: share of tested students proficient or above on the state's own tests (grades 3–8, 2024–25 school year). Compare only within a state.
Data sourced from the Education Data Center (www.eddatacenter.org), a partner project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc. State Assessment Data Repository version 3.1. More information about these assessments over time, including participation and test changes, is available from the Education Data Center.
Sources
- Address
- 47-950 Dune Palms Rd., La Quinta, CA 92253
- Phone
- (760)777-4200
- Public schools and school districts (National Center for Education Statistics · U.S. Census Bureau), 2024–25 school year. NCES Common Core of Data and EDGE public school geocodes; U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances and cartographic boundary files (places).
- Annual Survey of School System Finances (U.S. Census Bureau), FY2024. U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances (F-33).
- State Assessment Data Repository (Education Data Center), 2024–25 school year. Data sourced from the Education Data Center (www.eddatacenter.org), a partner project of the National Center for Civic Innovation, Inc. State Assessment Data Repository v3.1.