Eight high-performing middle schools in Orange County have been newly designated by the state as California Schools to Watch, and two local campuses that were previously recognized will keep their status a little longer.
Making the list for the first time are El Rancho Charter School, Portola Middle School and Yorba Middle School in the Orange Unified School District; Don Juan Avila Middle School in Capistrano Unified; Robert C. Fisler Elementary School in the Fullerton School District; Vista View Middle School in the Ocean View School District; and Oxford Preparatory Academy’s Saddleback Valley and South Orange County campuses.
Meanwhile, La Paz Intermediate School in Saddleback Valley Unified and Rancho-Starbuck Intermediate School in the Lowell Joint School District, which straddles Orange and Los Angeles counties, both had their status renewed in 2023 after reapplying for the distinction — and demonstrating sustained progress.
On Friday, State Superintendent Tony Thurmond announced 36 newly minted California Schools to Watch and named another 41 that had successfully reapplied to stay on the list. All together, there are now 186 California Schools to Watch.
“Congratulations to these schools for building systems that support all students from all backgrounds and who bring a wealth of individual and family assets,” Thurmond said. “These middle grades students attend programs that help them believe in themselves, discover their interests, and work toward their academic, life and career goals. These middle schools are exceptional role models of how educational innovation and an enthusiastic school community can keep students engaged and learning through a critical stage in their K–12 journey.”
The California Schools to Watch program is sponsored by the California Department of Education, the California League of Educators and the California Middle Grades Alliance, in association with The National Forum. To earn the designation, schools must submit an extensive application and host a site visit by middle grades experts. Winning schools can be redesignated every three years.
This year’s honorees will be recognized at the California Schools to Watch Celebration in Monterey on March 9. For more information about the program, visit the California League of Educators’ Schools to Watch webpage. And here’s the full list of winners:
Newly Designated 2023 California Schools to Watch
- Adams Middle School, Redondo Beach Unified School District
- Alpha: Cornerstone Academy Preparatory, Santa Clara County Office of Education
- Alta Loma Junior High School, Alta Loma Elementary School District
- Animo Florence-Firestone Charter Middle School, Los Angeles Unified School District
- Chipman Junior High, Bakersfield City School District
- Coalinga Middle School, Coalinga-Huron Unified School District
- College Preparatory Middle School, SBE College Preparatory Middle School District
- Don Juan Avila Middle School, Capistrano Unified School District
- E.O. Green Junior High School, Hueneme Elementary School District
- East Avenue Middle School, Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District
- El Rancho Charter School, Orange Unified School District
- Ellen Fletcher Middle School, Palo Alto Unified School District
- Hollencrest Middle School, West Covina Unified School District
- Hosler Middle School, Lynwood Unified School District
- ICEF Vista Middle Academy, Los Angeles Unified School District
- James Workman Middle School, Palm Springs Unified School District
- Jefferson Middle School, San Gabriel Unified School District
- Ben F. Kolb Middle School, Rialto Unified School District
- March Middle School, Val Verde Unified School District
- Melva Davis Academy of Excellence, Adelanto Elementary School District
- Nellie N. Coffman Middle School, Palm Springs Unified School District
- Oxford Preparatory Academy – Saddleback Valley
- Oxford Preparatory Academy – South Orange County
- Palm Desert Charter Middle, Desert Sands Unified School District
- Pleasant View Elementary School, Pleasant View Elementary School District
- Portola Middle School, Orange Unified School District
- Prairie Vista Middle School, Hawthorne School District
- Riverview Elementary School, Kings Canyon Joint Unified School District
- Robert C. Fisler Elementary School, Fullerton Elementary School District
- Shoreline Middle School, Live Oak Elementary School District
- STEAM Academy @ Burke, El Rancho Unified School District
- Thomas Law Reed Elementary School, Kings Canyon Joint Unified School District
- Vineyard Junior High School, Alta Loma School District
- Vista View Middle School, Ocean View School District
- William Mendenhall Middle School, Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District
- Yorba Middle School, Orange Unified School District
Redesignated 2023 California Schools to Watch
- Alondra Middle School, Paramount Unified School District
- Alta Sierra Intermediate School, Clovis Unified School District
- Alvarado Intermediate School, Rowland Unified School District
- Arlie F. Hutchinson Middle School, Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District
- Carmenita Middle School, ABC Unified School District
- Chaparral Middle School, Walnut Valley Unified School District
- Clifton Middle School, Monrovia School District
- Creekview Ranch School, Dry Creek Joint Elementary School District
- Dartmouth Middle School, Union Elementary School District
- El Segundo Middle School, El Segundo Unified School District
- Elizabeth Pinkerton Middle School, Elk Grove Unified School District
- General Grant Middle School, Kings Canyon Joint Unified School District
- Hall Middle School, Larkspur-Corte Madera School District
- Haskell STEM Academy, ABC Unified School District
- Hawthorne Middle School, Hawthorne School District
- Heber Elementary School, Heber Elementary School District
- Huron Middle School, Coalinga Huron Unified School District
- Kennedy Middle School, El Centro Elementary School District
- Kastner Intermediate School, Clovis Unified School District
- La Cañada High School (7–8), La Canada Unified School District
- La Paz Intermediate School, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
- Landmark Middle School, Moreno Valley Unified School District
- Leona Jackson Middle School, Paramount Unified School District
- Los Alisos STEM Magnet Middle School, Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District
- Louis Armstrong Middle School, Los Angeles Unified School District
- Mountain View Middle School, Beaumont Unified School District
- Rancho Milpitas Middle School, Milpitas Unified School District
- Rancho-Starbuck Intermediate School, Lowell Joint School District
- Ray Wiltsey Middle School, Ontario Montclair School District
- Ross Academy of Creative and Media Arts Middle School, ABC Unified School District
- San Gorgonio Middle School, Beaumont Unified School District
- Silverado Middle School, Dry Creek Joint Elementary School District
- South Pointe Middle School, Walnut Valley Unified School District
- Sunnymead Middle School, Moreno Valley Unified School District
- Suzanne Middle School, Walnut Valley Unified School District
- Tetzlaff Accelerated Learning Academy, ABC Unified School District
- Thomas S. Hart Middle School, Pleasanton Unified School District
- Torch Middle School, Bassett Unified School District
- Twin Rivers Charter School, Yuba City Unified School District
- Vista Verde Middle School, Val Verde Unified School District
- Washington Academic Middle School, Sanger Unified School District