Desert Thunder, Goodyear AZ - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Desert Thunder

Desert Thunder is a regular public school serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade within the Avondale Elementary District, though the school itself is located in Goodyear, a rapidly growing suburban city about 17 miles west of downtown Phoenix. The school is not a charter or magnet institution. Since the school serves only through eighth grade, it does not have a graduation rate, and state testing data applies only to the grades that are assessed. The district did not have any recent major budget overrides, bond elections, or curriculum changes publicly reported that met a four-year threshold.

Goodyear is a car-dependent city defined by large master-planned communities such as Estrella, Palm Valley, and PebbleCreek, and it has seen significant population growth in recent years. Housing values in the area sit around the middle of the Phoenix metro range, though they have experienced a slight year-over-year decline. Rents follow a similar pattern, meaning families moving to the area for work or school will find a moderately priced market relative to the broader region. Major employers include the city government, Cancer Treatment Centers of America, UPS, and the Arizona State Prison Complex-Perryville, while Phoenix Goodyear Airport supports aircraft maintenance. The new City Hall complex, opened in 2022, serves as a civic anchor alongside Estrella Mountain Regional Park and the Goodyear Ballpark spring training facility.

Enrollment at Desert Thunder is substantial for a pre-K through eighth grade school, and the student body is diverse. A majority of students are Hispanic, with notable shares of white and Black students, and smaller but present populations of Asian, American Indian, and two-or-more-races students. Data on the share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price meals, as well as counts of students with Individualized Education Programs and English learners, were not reported in the available information. A parent looking to understand the economic and special-education profile of the school would need to ask the school directly for those details.

Academically, Desert Thunder’s state assessment results vary by grade and subject. In mathematics, proficiency rates across grades three through eight generally trend lower than the overall averages for the county, with the lowest rates seen in the middle grades. English language arts performance is somewhat stronger, particularly in fourth, seventh, and eighth grades, but still shows a mixed picture. In science, the share of students meeting proficiency in fifth grade is lower than the share in eighth grade. When comparing the school’s overall proficiency index across all tested subjects and grades relative to districts in Maricopa County, Desert Thunder sits below the midpoint of the cohort. Only a single year of assessment data was available for analysis, so no trend over time could be established.

The school does not offer high school programs such as Advanced Placement or dual enrollment, nor does it provide career pathway courses, as the grade band ends at eighth grade. Families with students graduating from Desert Thunder will need to consider high school options within the Avondale Elementary District or through open enrollment elsewhere. The school’s location in a fast-growing suburban area means that the broader community context includes ongoing residential development and new civic infrastructure, which may affect future enrollment and school resources.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 338%

School 38% · District 35% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 431%

School 31% · District 28% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 26% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 611%

School 11% · District 19% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 29 pts below county median

Grade 719%

School 19% · District 27% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 826%

School 26% · District 30% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 329%

School 29% · District 25% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 35% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 530%

School 30% · District 28% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 631%

School 31% · District 38% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 742%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 853%

School 53% · District 44% · ▲ 9 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 23% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 838%

School 38% · District 30% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

This schoolAvondale Elementary District (4272), 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.