The reported proficiency rate for English language arts is 74%.
Original Research by School Decision on Desert Star Community School
Desert Star Community School is a charter school serving kindergarten through eighth grade in Cornville, an unincorporated community in Yavapai County. It operates as a single-school charter district, meaning its own board oversees the school independently of the Cottonwood-Oak Creek School District that serves most other Cornville students.
The school’s state assessment results are mostly suppressed at the grade level. This is a common pattern when class sizes are small enough that the state withholds data to protect student privacy. Where results are reported, English language arts proficiency is solid across the tested middle grades. Math and science results are suppressed across all grades, so a full picture of math and science performance is not publicly available from state tests. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages the reported results, places it in the top quartile relative to districts in Yavapai County. That is a genuine strength for a school of this size. Because the school does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate.
The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic minority. Other racial backgrounds are represented in very small numbers. Data on students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch is not available, nor are counts of students with disabilities or English learners. A parent may want to ask the school directly about the supports available for these students.
Cornville is a fast-growing bedroom community positioned between Sedona and Cottonwood. It has no traditional downtown. The built environment is low-density and auto-dependent, with residential subdivisions, ranch land, and a developing wine industry along Oak Creek. The weekly farmers market at Windmill Park and the winery tasting rooms along Page Springs Road are among the few regular gathering places. Home values in the Cornville zip code are above both the state and national medians, reflecting the area’s desirability as a scenic exurban location. Many residents commute to Sedona or Cottonwood for work. The school is located on Recycler Road, at some remove from the wineries and the market, and there is no walkable commercial district nearby.
As a charter school, Desert Star Community School has its own budget and board, which gives it flexibility in curriculum and operations. No recent district-level changes or strategic priorities were publicly reported for the charter organization, so it is not possible to speak to any shifts in direction from the data available.
This school fits families looking for a small, independent charter setting with strong academic results relative to other schools in the county. The small enrollment means class sizes are modest, and state testing data is often suppressed, which can make year-to-year academic tracking less transparent than in larger schools. Families who commute to Sedona or Cottonwood for work and who prefer a rural exurban environment with a growing wine-country character may find the location and the school a natural match.
See more original research from School Decision →