Public schools in Madera, CA
Madera has 47 public schools with a 2024-25 address in the city: 11 high, 5 middle, 24 elementary, 7 other, enrolling 24,960 students. They are run by 8 districts and agencies; Madera Unified runs 28 of them.
NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: schools open that year with enrollment · method
The 8 districts and agencies that run Madera's public schools
Each district decides who can enroll where; its page holds its schools, spending and teachers.
| District | Schools in Madera | District students, fall 2022 | Spending per student, FY23 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madera Unified | 28 | 20,151 | $18,553 |
| Golden Valley Unified | 10 | 2,566 | $13,158 |
| Madera County Superintendent of Schools | 4 | 663 | $71,630 |
| Ezequiel Tafoya Alvarado Academy District | 1 | 650 | $17,206 |
| Chawanakee Unified | 1 | 1,433 | $16,906 |
| Sherman Thomas Charter Schools | 1 | 219 | $15,616 |
| Sherman Thomas STEM Academy District | 1 | 75 | $13,107 |
| Sherman Thomas Charter High District | 1 | 84 | $13,214 |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25: school location city and operating agency; NCES F-33 fiscal year 2022-23: district fall membership and current spending per student. Schools on a city's edge can serve students from outside it.
11 high schools in Madera, 6,864 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matilda Torres High | 2,017 | 20.5 | 79.2% | Madera Unified |
| Madera High | 1,869 | 20.6 | 68.4% | Madera Unified |
| Madera South High | 1,859 | 20.0 | 88.2% | Madera Unified |
| Liberty High | 748 | 20.4 | 30.9% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Mountain Vista High | 162 | 12.4 | 92.0% | Madera Unified |
| Sherman Thomas Charter High | 69 | 14.1 | 52.2% | Sherman Thomas Charter High District |
| Ripperdan Community Day | 49 | 6.8 | 93.9% | Madera Unified |
| Independence Continuation High | 45 | 11.8 | 82.2% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Juvenile Hall (Endeavor/Voyager Secondary) | 29 | 6.9 | 89.7% | Madera County Superintendent of Schools |
| Madera Unified Adult Transition Program | 15 | 7.5 | 53.3% | Madera Unified |
One more high school
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Community Day | 2 | 0.9 | not reported | Golden Valley Unified |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
5 middle schools in Madera, 3,178 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thomas Jefferson Middle | 948 | 19.0 | 76.3% | Madera Unified |
| Martin Luther King Jr. Middle | 865 | 17.7 | 89.9% | Madera Unified |
| Jack G. Desmond Middle | 838 | 18.4 | 84.7% | Madera Unified |
| Ranchos Middle | 452 | 23.0 | 32.3% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Sherman Thomas STEM Academy | 75 | 27.3 | 29.3% | Sherman Thomas STEM Academy District |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
24 elementary schools in Madera, 13,870 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lincoln Elementary | 816 | 19.0 | 62.9% | Madera Unified |
| John J. Pershing Elementary | 788 | 20.7 | 83.0% | Madera Unified |
| Sierra Vista Elementary | 740 | 19.5 | 92.6% | Madera Unified |
| James Madison Elementary | 739 | 20.5 | 74.3% | Madera Unified |
| John Adams Elementary | 736 | 21.8 | 68.8% | Madera Unified |
| Alpha Elementary | 735 | 20.9 | 77.1% | Madera Unified |
| Virginia Lee Rose Elementary | 714 | 22.6 | 90.8% | Madera Unified |
| Berenda Elementary | 709 | 20.4 | 70.2% | Madera Unified |
| Ezequiel Tafoya Alvarado Academy | 704 | 24.3 | 85.1% | Ezequiel Tafoya Alvarado Academy District |
| Nishimoto Elementary | 704 | 19.4 | 87.5% | Madera Unified |
The other 14 elementary schools
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stone Creek Elementary | 672 | 24.0 | 22.8% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Cesar Chavez Elementary | 659 | 20.2 | 83.9% | Madera Unified |
| Parkwood Elementary | 635 | 20.0 | 86.8% | Madera Unified |
| Webster Elementary | 634 | 21.9 | 43.2% | Golden Valley Unified |
| James Monroe Elementary | 624 | 20.8 | 91.3% | Madera Unified |
| Millview Elementary | 594 | 19.9 | 94.3% | Madera Unified |
| George Washington Elementary | 578 | 20.0 | 95.2% | Madera Unified |
| Howard Elementary | 487 | 18.8 | 60.0% | Madera Unified |
| Sierra View Elementary | 365 | 24.3 | 32.3% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Hillside Elementary | 310 | 21.9 | 20.0% | Chawanakee Unified |
| Dixieland Elementary | 266 | 18.1 | 82.0% | Madera Unified |
| Sherman Thomas Charter | 233 | 23.3 | 55.4% | Sherman Thomas Charter Schools |
| Eastin Arcola Elementary | 225 | 16.7 | 86.2% | Madera Unified |
| La Vina Elementary | 203 | 14.2 | 93.1% | Madera Unified |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
7 other schools in Madera, 1,048 students
| School | Students 2024‑25 | Per teacher | Free lunch | District |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gould Educational Center | 351 | 7.8 | 66.1% | Madera County Superintendent of Schools |
| Duane E. Furman Independent Study | 348 | 19.7 | 82.8% | Madera Unified |
| Pioneer Technical Center | 207 | 18.2 | 87.0% | Madera County Superintendent of Schools |
| Madera County Independent Academy | 61 | 25.4 | 82.0% | Madera County Superintendent of Schools |
| Freedom Home | 53 | 27.7 | 37.7% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Centennial Independent Study | 25 | 12.8 | 80.0% | Golden Valley Unified |
| Valley Children's Hospital | 3 | 16.7 | 50.0% | Golden Valley Unified |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch); level from the directory. All free (CEP): every student eats free under the Community Eligibility Provision, so the school reports no free-lunch count.
How Madera's public schools compare with California's
The median Madera school has 20.0 students per full-time teacher, fewer than the California median of 21.6. Its median school enrolls 578 students (state 471).
| Madera | California | |
|---|---|---|
| Median students per teacher | 20.0 | 21.6 |
| Median school size (students) | 578 | 471 |
| Schools with a schoolwide Title I program (2021-22) | not reported | not reported |
| Schools where every student eats free (CEP) | 95% | 74% |
| Charter schools | 13% | 13% |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (membership, staff, lunch program, charter status; the 47 Madera schools and the 9,918 California schools open that year with students); Title I status CCD 2021-22. Students per teacher counts 2024-25 teachers and ratios from 3 to 99.
What to look at next in Madera
- Madera UnifiedRuns 28 of Madera's 47 public schools and spent $18,553 per student in fiscal year 2022-23.$18,553
- Matilda Torres High, the largest high school in Madera2,017 students in 2024-25, 20.5 per teacher.2,017
- Compare Madera Unified with Golden Valley UnifiedMadera's two largest operators side by side: enrollment, spending and schools.
- The largest public schools in CaliforniaCalifornia's 50 largest schools open in 2024-25, by enrollment.
- Find the school district for a Madera addressA home's district, not its city, decides which public schools it can enroll in.
Source: NCES Common Core of Data 2024-25 (schools and their operating agencies); NCES F-33 finance survey, fiscal year 2022-23 (spending per student).
Choosing among them: how to choose a school district with the federal data, and what a Title I school is.
Other cities in California
- Los Angeles564 schools
- San Diego283 schools
- San Jose232 schools
- Sacramento197 schools
- Fresno179 schools
- Bakersfield146 schools
- San Francisco123 schools
- Stockton122 schools
Questions about schools in Madera
How many public schools are in Madera, CA?
47 public schools with an address in Madera were open in 2024-25: 11 high, 5 middle, 24 elementary, 7 other, enrolling 24,960 students. 6 are charter schools.What is the largest high school in Madera?
Matilda Torres High, with 2,017 students in 2024-25 (Madera Unified).Which districts run Madera's schools?
Madera Unified (28 schools), Golden Valley Unified (10 schools), Madera County Superintendent of Schools (4 schools), Ezequiel Tafoya Alvarado Academy District (1 school), and 4 more. A school's district, not its city, decides who can enroll.
These figures are for information and are not a substitute for the district's enrollment office, which confirms the school a home is assigned to.
Sources
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School directory, membership, staff and lunch files · 2024-25
Source: NCES Common Core of Data Public school search (the official record of each school) · 2024-25