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Teachers: what resource would make the biggest difference at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE this year?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
801
Middle
DISTRICT 423 · STATE 335
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·ALBUQUERQUE·NCES 350006000764
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE
8400 BARSTOW NE, ALBUQUERQUE, NM 87122 · (505) 857-9282 · Bernalillo County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL801 STUDENTS
A+
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 98% of New Mexico public middle schools
- A+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded New Mexico public middle schools
Student : Teacher
12.7:1
63 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 11.6:1 · STATE 12.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
794 students
DISTRICT 92% · STATE 90%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 270 | 34% |
| Grade 7 | 277 | 35% |
| Grade 8 | 254 | 32% |
Student demographics
69%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 52% · STATE 55% · 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
NM-MSSA + NM-ASR 2024-25 . % ProficientEnglish Language Arts
69.5%
NM avg 44.2%
Math
59.8%
NM avg 27.2%
What this means: On the NM-MSSA + NM-ASR, New Mexico's statewide test, about 70 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 60 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all New Mexico schools, those numbers are about 44 and 27.
Source: NM-MSSA + NM-ASR. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of NM schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
64.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
33.6%
based on NM schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+31.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 65% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 34% typical for New Mexico schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 31 points, placing it in New Mexico's top 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE's state test result (64.9% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE this school | 801 | 99.1% | 64.9% |
| GRANT MIDDLE ALBUQUERQUE | 286 | 99.3% | 32.2% |
| EISENHOWER MIDDLE ALBUQUERQUE | 740 | 100.0% | 66.7% |
| JACKSON MIDDLE ALBUQUERQUE | 380 | 99.7% | 32.1% |
| MADISON MIDDLE ALBUQUERQUE | 532 | 99.6% | 37.7% |
| HOOVER MIDDLE ALBUQUERQUE | 404 | 99.8% | 46.7% |
Matched among New Mexico middle schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In New Mexico | In Bernalillo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 64.9% | #3 of 113 | #2 of 31 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 59.8% | #5 of 120 | #2 of 31 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 69.5% | #4 of 122 | #2 of 31 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 801 | #9 of 160 | #2 of 31 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.7:1 | #46 of 101 | #21 of 28 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 69.0% | #5 of 103 | #1 of 28 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.1% | #81 of 116 | #24 of 31 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -20.8% | #39 of 89 | #22 of 25 |
Ranked against other public middle 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
801
-52 (-6%) vs 2020
-6% since 2000-01, when it was 851
Student : Teacher
12.7:1
was 12.7:1
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 | 801 | 63.3 | 12.7:1 | 99% (794) |
| 2023-24 | 788 | 59.3 | 13.3:1 | 39% (305) |
| 2022-23 | 816 | 60 | 13.6:1 | 17% (135) |
| 2020-21 | 853 | 67 | 12.7:1 | 14% (116) |
| 2017-18 | 1,011 | 61.5 | 16.4:1 | 16% (165) |
| 2015-16 | 969 | 61 | 15.9:1 | 18% (173) |
| 2010-11 | 1,020 | 68 | 15.0:1 | 18% (186) |
| 2000-01 | 851 | 50 | 17.0:1 | 8% (71) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE.
Since 2017-18: students down 21% (1,011 to 801); teachers up 3% (61.5 to 63.3).
About DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE
A large middle school in ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico, DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is part of ALBUQUERQUE. Enrolled students number 801 students, in grades 6 through 8. Statewide, middle schools in New Mexico average about 335 students each.
The ALBUQUERQUE system has 172 schools and 74,800 students.
White students form the largest group at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE, 39% of enrollment. Other groups include 37% Hispanic, 10% Asian, 8% multiracial, and 3% Native American. By comparison, Bernalillo County residents are about 49% White. The chance that two students picked at random at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 69%.
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE employs 63.3 full-time-equivalent teachers. That gives a ratio of about 12.7:1. Middle schools in New Mexico have a similar average ratio of 12.5:1. DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE's free or reduced-price lunch eligibility rate is 99%. That rate is above the 90% average among public schools in Bernalillo County.
allk12 grades DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE an A+. The grade compares the school only with New Mexico public middle schools, because each state gives its own test.
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE ranks in the top 10% of New Mexico schools after adjusting test results for student poverty. Actual: 64.9%. Predicted: 33.6%. Difference: 31.3 points.
Bernalillo County has about 673,930 residents, and median household income is about $69,473, about 38% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and roughly 11% of residents are in poverty. Federal data list 211 public schools in Bernalillo County, with a combined enrollment of about 85,724.
The school nearest to DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is ALTURA PREPARATORY SCHOOL, at a distance of about 0.3 miles. Counting only straight-line distance, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Of the 7 nearby schools with scores, including this one, DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is 3rd on average proficiency.
Under the NCES locale system, DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is City: Large.
Federal counts put enrollment at 853 in 2020-21 and 801 in 2024-25, a 6% decrease.
If you have questions about sports schedules, lunch menus, and spirit week at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE, you can post them here. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Bernalillo County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
673,930
Census ACS
Median income
$69,473
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
38%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
211
85,724 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in ALBUQUERQUE
- VOLCANO VISTA HIGHHigh · 2,089 students
- ATRISCO HERITAGE ACADEMY HSHigh · 1,930 students
- LA CUEVA HIGHHigh · 1,826 students
- SANDIA HIGHHigh · 1,618 students
- ELDORADO HIGHCombined · 1,579 students
- ALBUQUERQUE HIGHHigh · 1,568 students
Other schools in ALBUQUERQUE
- VOLCANO VISTA HIGHHigh · 2,089 students
- ATRISCO HERITAGE ACADEMY HSHigh · 1,930 students
- LA CUEVA HIGHHigh · 1,826 students
- SANDIA HIGHHigh · 1,618 students
- ELDORADO HIGHCombined · 1,579 students
- ALBUQUERQUE HIGHHigh · 1,568 students
Nearby schools
- ALTURA PREPARATORY SCHOOL0.3 mi · 263
- LA CUEVA HIGH0.4 mi · 1,826
- DENNIS CHAVEZ ELEMENTARY0.8 mi · 550
- NORTH STAR ELEMENTARY1.0 mi · 510
- EDMUND G ROSS ELEMENTARY1.4 mi · 343
- CORRALES INTERNATIONAL1.9 mi · 232
Frequently asked questions
About DESERT RIDGE MIDDLEWhat is the total enrollment at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE?
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE enrolls approximately 801 students in grades 06-08.
Is DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE an elementary, middle, or high school?
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is a middle school covering grades 06-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE?
The student-to-teacher ratio at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is approximately 12.7:1 (63 FTE teachers).
What is the student diversity at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE?
Student demographics at DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE are roughly 39% White, 37% Hispanic, 2% Black, 10% Asian, 8% Two or more.
Is DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE public or private?
DESERT RIDGE MIDDLE is a public K-12 school, overseen by ALBUQUERQUE.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.