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If you could change one rule at Desert Thunder, what would it be?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
928
Elementary
DISTRICT 706 · STATE 451
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·AVONDALE ELEMENTARY DISTRICT (4272)·NCES 040096002381
Desert Thunder
16750 W GARFIELD ST, GOODYEAR, AZ 85338 · (623) 772-4700 · Maricopa County
GRADES PK–08ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL928 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
25.1:1
37 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 25.9:1 · STATE 17.0:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
,
Title I proxy
STATE 95%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 1 | 0% |
| Kindergarten | 88 | 9% |
| Grade 1 | 100 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 115 | 12% |
| Grade 3 | 105 | 11% |
| Grade 4 | 89 | 10% |
| Grade 5 | 95 | 10% |
| Grade 6 | 117 | 13% |
| Grade 7 | 106 | 11% |
| Grade 8 | 112 | 12% |
This year's kindergarten class (88) is 21% smaller than its 8th grade class (112).
Student demographics
56%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 50% · STATE 65% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
AASA 2024-25 . % PassingEnglish Language Arts
37.0%
AZ avg 45.4% . -8.0pp since 2017
Math
23.0%
AZ avg 37.8% . -22.0pp since 2017
What this means: On the AASA, Arizona's statewide test, about 37 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 23 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Arizona schools, those numbers are about 45 and 38. Reading and writing scores are down about 8 points since 2017, while math scores are down about 22 points.
AASA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 37.0% | 23.0% |
| 2023-24 | 43.0% | 29.0% |
| 2022-23 | 40.0% | 29.0% |
| 2021-22 | 48.0% | 44.0% |
| 2020-21 | 39.0% | 30.0% |
| 2018-19 | 48.0% | 53.0% |
| 2017-18 | 45.0% | 45.0% |
% Passing, all students and all tested grades.
Source: AASA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
Where Desert Thunder ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Arizona | In Maricopa County |
|---|---|---|---|
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 23.0% | #681 of 1,072 ▼ 142 | #421 of 646 ▼ 77 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 37.0% | #494 of 1,072 ▼ 81 | #328 of 646 ▼ 41 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -16.0pp | #15 of 930 | #10 of 577 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 928 | #58 of 1,223 | #47 of 692 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 25.1:1 | #958 of 991 | #599 of 615 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 56.5% | #425 of 1,007 | #292 of 627 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +27.5% | #54 of 256 | #32 of 138 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
928
+65 (+8%) vs 2020
+25% since 2010-11, when it was 742
Student : Teacher
25.1:1
was 22.1:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 928 | 36.9 | 25.1:1 | N/A |
| 2023-24 | 946 | 42.4 | 22.3:1 | N/A |
| 2022-23 | 911 | 40.3 | 22.6:1 | 50% (455) |
| 2020-21 | 863 | 39 | 22.1:1 | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 728 | 34.3 | 21.2:1 | 54% (392) |
| 2015-16 | 665 | 32 | 20.8:1 | 50% (330) |
| 2010-11 | 742 | 31 | 23.9:1 | 39% (292) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Desert Thunder.
Since 2017-18: students up 27% (728 to 928); teachers up 7% (34.3 to 36.9).
About Desert Thunder
Among the schools in GOODYEAR, Arizona, is Desert Thunder, a large elementary school. It has an enrollment of 928 students in pre-K through 8. Across elementary schools in Arizona, the average enrollment is about 451.
Avondale Elementary District (4272) oversees Desert Thunder and 8 other schools, with 6,000 students in total.
At Desert Thunder, 62% of students are Hispanic. Smaller groups are 18% White, 15% Black, and 2% multiracial. For comparison, the population of Maricopa County is roughly 31% Hispanic. On the diversity index, which measures the chance that two random students are from different groups, Desert Thunder scores 56%.
There are 36.9 full-time-equivalent teachers at Desert Thunder, giving a ratio of 25.1:1. Elementary schools in Arizona have an average ratio of 17.0:1.
In the surrounding county, Maricopa County, the median household earns about $89,300 a year, 37% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 8% of people live in poverty. Maricopa County has 1,352 public schools with about 725,139 students, including Desert Thunder.
Straight-line distance to the nearest public school, Incito Schools, is about 0.6 miles. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles.
In the federal locale system, Desert Thunder is coded Suburb: Large, for schools in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
From 863 students in 2020-21, enrollment increased to 928 by 2024-25. The number of students per teacher increased from 22.1 to 25.1 over 4 years.
This page is set up for the Desert Thunder community to discuss open houses, carpools, and field trips. Members of the school community can share what they know.
Maricopa County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
4,559,748
Census ACS
Median income
$89,300
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
37%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
8%
Below federal line
Schools in county
1,352
725,139 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Avondale Elementary District (4272)
- Copper TrailsElementary · 1,020 students
- Michael AndersonElementary · 834 students
- Wildflower Accelerated AcademyElementary · 750 students
- Centerra Mirage STEM AcademyElementary · 659 students
- Desert StarElementary · 637 students
- Eliseo C. Felix SchoolElementary · 516 students
Other schools in GOODYEAR
- Millennium High SchoolHigh · 2,295 students
- Desert Edge High SchoolHigh · 2,106 students
- Estrella Foothills High SchoolHigh · 1,592 students
- Belen Soto Elementary SchoolElementary · 1,123 students
- Copper TrailsElementary · 1,020 students
- Western Sky Middle SchoolMiddle · 952 students
Nearby schools
- Incito Schools0.6 mi · 179
- Copper Trails1.0 mi · 1,020
- Wildflower Accelerated Academy1.2 mi · 750
- The Odyssey Preparatory Academy Goodyear1.3 mi · 522
- BASIS Goodyear Primary1.7 mi · 657
- BASIS Goodyear1.7 mi · 318
Frequently asked questions
About Desert ThunderWhat is the total enrollment at Desert Thunder?
Desert Thunder enrolls approximately 928 students in grades PK-08.
Is Desert Thunder an elementary, middle, or high school?
Desert Thunder is an elementary school covering grades PK-08.
How many teachers does Desert Thunder have?
Desert Thunder employs 37 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 25.1:1.
What is the student diversity at Desert Thunder?
Student demographics at Desert Thunder are roughly 18% White, 62% Hispanic, 15% Black, 2% Asian, 2% Two or more.
Who oversees Desert Thunder?
Desert Thunder is overseen by Avondale Elementary District (4272) in Maricopa County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.