Thurston Middle

Thurston Middle operates as a close-knit middle-grades school in Laguna Beach, California, overseen by Laguna Beach Unified. Current enrollment sits at 524 students spanning grades 6 through 8. That puts it 20% below the typical public school in California, which averages around 659 students.

Laguna Beach Unified runs 4 schools in total, collectively educating 2,279 students. Thurston Middle is one of those campuses.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Thurston Middle reports that White students make up the majority at 70%. Beyond that, the school shows 12% Hispanic, 10% multiracial, 6% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 43% White, putting the school's mix meaningfully more White than the area baseline.

Looking at school resources, Thurston Middle records 31 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 16.7:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 20.7:1, putting Thurston Middle tighter than the state norm the norm. About 18% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Orange County (around 55%), the school's rate is noticeably below typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Thurston Middle sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 68.9%; this one delivers 69.9%.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Orange County) logs that median household income runs about $116,289, 44% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, Orange County runs 649 public schools (combined enrollment of about 430,458 students), of which Thurston Middle is one.

Nearest neighbor: Top of the World Elementary, around 0.8 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. On composite proficiency, Thurston Middle comes 5th of 9 in the immediate cluster, higher than the nearby-schools average of 69.9%.

The campus sits in a commuter-belt setting.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Thurston Middle has contracted 33%, going from 778 students in 2018 to 524 in 2025. Class-load math has tightened: from 21.3:1 in 2018 to 16.7:1 in 2025.

On the community side, members of the Thurston Middle community share and discuss fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.