Phoenix Union High School District (4286), AZ

Original Research by School Decision on Phoenix Union High School District (4286)

Phoenix Union High School District is a large, urban high-school-only district serving the city of Phoenix and parts of surrounding communities in Maricopa County. It enrolls a substantial number of students across more than a dozen comprehensive high schools and several specialized or alternative campuses. The district’s student body is predominantly Hispanic, which shapes the peer environment in a way that families should consider as one characteristic among many. White students, Black students, and students who identify as American Indian or Alaska Native each make up a smaller share, and the Asian and Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander populations are very small. The district has a notable number of English learners and students receiving special education services, though precise share data for these groups was not available in the materials reviewed.

Housing and affordability across the district’s footprint are highly varied. The overall home value in the district’s zip code area is around the national typical range, but the spread is wide: a few neighborhoods, especially in parts of Paradise Valley and east-central Phoenix, have home values reaching the highest end of the spectrum, while many areas, particularly in west and southwest Phoenix, have values well below the district average. Most of the neighborhoods contributing the most students to the district have values on the lower side of that range. Rents follow a similar pattern, with most rental units costing at the lower to middle end of the market. On a typical household budget, the estimated monthly rent would take up roughly a moderate share of income, which aligns with the national typical. There is no single housing story for the district; families will find a wide affordability range depending on the specific neighborhood.

On academic performance, the district’s state assessment results from the most recent testing year show that in English language arts, roughly one student in five met or exceeded the proficiency standard. In math, the share was lower, about one in seven. These figures reflect performance across all tested students in the district and represent a single year of data. A multi-year trend was not available, as only one year’s data was reported, so there is no way to tell from this information whether performance has been improving or declining. For a district serving as many students as this one does, these proficiency rates are clearly in the lower range relative to state expectations. A parent evaluating schools within PXU would want to look at individual school performance, because the district figure averages across campuses with very different programs and student populations, including several specialized schools that may have different academic profiles.

The district’s chronic absenteeism rate, which measures the share of students missing a substantial portion of the school year, was in the bottom quartile compared to other districts in Maricopa County. This means the rate is higher than most of the county’s other districts. This is a significant soft spot. Families moving into the district should be aware that a large share of students are not attending school regularly, which is a known correlate of lower academic outcomes across the board. The data does not specify which individual schools within the district drive this figure, so it is worth asking about attendance patterns at specific campuses.

Per-pupil current spending in the district is in the upper range among Maricopa County’s districts. This is a strength in terms of the resources available. The district spends more than the median district in the county, which may translate to smaller average class sizes, more course offerings, or additional support staff, though the data provided does not break this down further.

The district offers a variety of program options that families should note. Its school list includes traditional comprehensive high schools, a bioscience high school, a police and fire high school, a coding academy, a college preparatory school, a digital academy, and a small school that opened in 2023 called PXU City. A fully online high school option, Phoenix Digital Academy, became available in 2020. This breadth of program types is a distinct strength of the district, giving families choices within the same system that would otherwise require leaving the district. One larger high school, formerly Cesar Chavez High School, went through a recent renaming process following public controversy about the figure it was named after; it now uses a temporary name, Champions Circle High School, keeping the same initials. This may be a point of interest for families considering that particular campus.

We looked for the district’s graduation rate in the available data, but it was not present. That is a significant gap for a high-school-only district. We also found no state assessment trend data and no civil rights or discipline data. Families should ask the district directly for its graduation rate and discipline statistics. The district’s size and urban setting mean that its high schools serve a very diverse range of communities within Phoenix and its immediate suburbs. The peer environment, housing costs, and school program options will vary considerably from one campus to another within the same district, so a school-by-school search is strongly recommended.

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District Context

Officially reported figures, 2024-25.

Enrollment

26,753

Grades

09–12

Schools

Student body

Hispanic 81%

Black 10%

White 4%

Asian 1%

Two+ 1%

Am. Indian / AK Native 2%

Hawaiian / Pac. Isl. 0%

Schools in this District

20 schools are officially reported under this district.

Alhambra High School

Metro Tech High School

Camelback High School

Carl Hayden High School

Central High School

Maryvale High School

South Mountain High School

Trevor Browne High School

North High School

Bostrom Alternative Center

Cesar Chavez High School

Linda Abril Educational Academy

Phoenix Union Bioscience High School

Betty Fairfax High School

Franklin Police and Fire High School

Phoenix Coding Academy

Phoenix Union-Wilson College Preparatory

Phoenix Digital Academy

PXU City

Phoenix Educator Preparatory

Housing & Real Estate

Data as of April 2026 | District-weighted from constituent ZIP codes

Home Values

Typical home value$421,548

Year-over-year change-2.3%

Range across 30 ZIP codes$281K to $3.3M

vs. state typical0.99x

vs. national typical1.14x

Home value trend (12 months)

ZIP code home values (30 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Value	YoY	Weight
85339	Phoenix	$445K	-1.9%	15.2%
85041	Phoenix	$369K	-2.8%	9.2%
85009	Phoenix	$281K	-8.2%	8.4%
85034	Phoenix	$285K	+3.2%	6.0%
85042	Phoenix	$387K	-3.4%	5.8%
85008	Phoenix	$382K	-1.4%	5.7%
85043	Phoenix	$371K	-2.3%	5.0%
85016	Phoenix	$527K	+0.3%	4.7%
85040	Phoenix	$322K	-3.9%	4.7%
85033	Phoenix	$327K	-3.4%	3.5%

Showing top 10 of 30 ZIP codes by land area weight

Rental Market

Typical monthly rent$1,666/mo

Year-over-year change-1.5%

Range across 30 ZIP codes$1,162 to $2,507/mo

Rent trend (12 months)

ZIP code rents (30 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Rent/mo	YoY	Weight
85339	Phoenix	$2,181	+1.0%	15.2%
85041	Phoenix	$2,207	+0.3%	9.2%
85009	Phoenix	$1,197	-5.2%	8.4%
85034	Phoenix	$1,339	-5.5%	6.0%
85042	Phoenix	$1,581	-2.8%	5.8%
85008	Phoenix	$1,447	-2.5%	5.7%
85043	Phoenix	$1,967	-0.1%	5.0%
85016	Phoenix	$1,647	-0.3%	4.7%
85040	Phoenix	$1,897	-1.0%	4.7%
85033	Phoenix	$1,342	-2.1%	3.5%

Showing top 10 of 30 ZIP codes by land area weight

Affordability

Est. monthly mortgage (20% down at 6.48%)$2,127/mo

Home price / national median income5.0x

Annual rent / national median income23.9%

Est. mortgage exceeds rent by$461/mo

Comparison

State typical home value$423,746 (-1.6% YoY)

National typical home value$368,198 (+0.6% YoY)

State ZHVI trend (12 months)

National ZHVI trend (12 months)

Economic Context

30-year fixed mortgage rate6.48%

National unemployment rate4.3%

National median household income$83,730

CPI: Rent of shelter (index)447.05

30-year fixed mortgage rate (12 months)

National unemployment rate (12 months)

National median household income (12 months)

CPI: Rent of shelter (index) (12 months)

Sources: Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index (Zillow Group), Realtor.com via Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED)

Data Currently Unavailable

Academic Performance
Civil Rights Data (CRDC)

This profile is derived exclusively from publicly available federal and state datasets. It may not reflect the most current information available. We encourage parents and families to supplement this data with information published directly on the school’s website, which may include more recent figures, additional programs, or updated enrollment data.