American Leadership Academy West Foothills K-12, Surprise AZ

Original Research by School Decision on American Leadership Academy West Foothills K-12

American Leadership Academy West Foothills K-12 is a charter school in Surprise, Arizona, serving kindergarten through twelfth grade as a single campus within a rapidly growing charter network. As part of the American Leadership Academy Inc., a charter holder that has expanded to many schools across the state, West Foothills offers families in the northwestern Phoenix metro a tuition-free option that blends a college-preparatory academic program with what the network describes as a leadership and character-based framework.

Academically, the school shows a mixed profile on Arizona’s state assessments that shifts noticeably by grade level. In the elementary grades, proficiency rates in both math and English language arts are solid, with several grades reaching well above half of students meeting the state standard. Sixth grade is a clear strength, where a strong majority of students scored proficient in both subjects. However, middle school brings a sharper decline, particularly in math, where proficiency falls off considerably in seventh and eighth grade. English language arts also dips, though less steeply. Science testing at fifth and eighth grade shows a similar pattern, with the lower grade performing better than the upper one. Overall, the school’s combined proficiency across tested subjects and grades puts it above the midpoint relative to other districts in Maricopa County, a large and diverse county. A parent considering West Foothills will want to ask how the school supports students through the transition to middle school math, where the numbers suggest a strain.

The student body is large and predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic population and smaller shares of Asian, Black, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and multiracial students. The school serves a wide grade span on one campus, which means elementary students share a site with teenagers. This is a characteristic that suits some families and not others. Data on how many students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, how many receive special education services, and how many are English learners were not available in the source material, so a family with a child in any of these categories should ask the school directly about the available supports and staffing.

Graduation rate data was not available in the source material. For a K-12 school that enrolls students through twelfth grade, this is a notable gap. A parent investigating the high school program will want to ask for the school’s four-year graduation rate, as well as details on college and career counseling, dual enrollment opportunities, and Advanced Placement offerings. The parent district, American Leadership Academy Inc., has grown to operate many campuses statewide, so families can also compare how this campus fits within the network’s broader academic record.

Surprise itself is a fast-growing suburban city northwest of Phoenix, shaped by master-planned communities and a strong retiree presence, particularly in the Sun City Grand development. The city’s civic life centers on a recreation campus with a spring training stadium, library, and aquatics center. Schools are spread across the large city rather than clustered downtown, and the built environment is car-dependent. The housing market in the surrounding zip code reflects values near the state average, with rents at a similar benchmark. The city’s school-age population is likely to continue growing as new residential development adds families, which may affect class sizes and facility demand at West Foothills over time.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 62% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 25 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 456%

School 56% · District 51% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 565%

School 65% · District 54% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 675%

School 75% · District 49% · ▲ 26 pts above district

▲ 39 pts above state median · ▲ 35 pts above county median

Grade 733%

School 33% · District 28% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 24% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 357%

School 57% · District 50% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 458%

School 58% · District 59% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 563%

School 63% · District 54% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 676%

School 76% · District 59% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 33 pts above state median · ▲ 31 pts above county median

Grade 755%

School 55% · District 48% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 40% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Science

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 51% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 35% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

This schoolAmerican Leadership Academy Inc. (4348), same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.