Aims College Prep Middle, Oakland CA

Original Research by School Decision on Aims College Prep Middle

AIMS College Prep Middle is a charter middle school in downtown Oakland serving grades six through eight. The school is small, with an enrollment that breaks roughly equally across the three grades. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the student body is diverse: about two in five students are Asian, roughly a third are Black, and smaller shares are Hispanic, multiracial, or other backgrounds. Data on students with IEPs or English learners was not available.

On California's state assessments in 2024-2025, AIMS's proficiency rates sit below the midpoint when compared to other middle schools across Alameda County. In English language arts, overall proficiency was in the mid-40s range, with eighth grade notably stronger than sixth grade. Mathematics proficiency was lower, clustering in the low-to-mid-40s overall, and science proficiency at eighth grade was in the mid-20s range. When proficiency is averaged across tested subjects and grades, AIMS falls below the county median. These results reflect the reality that many students are working below the state's proficiency standards, and a parent may want to ask the school directly about its support structures for reading, math, and science, and how quickly it is moving to close gaps.

The school sits at 171 12th Street in downtown Oakland's City Center area, within a block of BART transit, near City Hall and the Civic Center complex. The neighborhood itself is mostly institutional and governmental rather than residential, though downtown Oakland offers walkable street life along Broadway and Telegraph a few blocks away, plus access to Lake Merritt, cultural institutions, and a robust transit network. Families choosing this school are likely making a deliberate choice to send their middle schooler into the urban core rather than a neighborhood-based setting.

AIMS College Prep Middle is part of a single-school district bearing its name. The school faces significant regulatory and structural uncertainty. It is up for charter renewal, with the Oakland Unified School District Board scheduled to vote on approval or denial in the fall of the 2026-2027 school year. Charter schools in California must renew every several years to continue operating, so this renewal vote is not routine. If the district denies renewal, the school may appeal to the Alameda County Office of Education, but a denial would threaten the school's continued existence. Since February 2022, OUSD has also received numerous complaints about AIMS College Prep Middle and its sister schools, prompting a formal district report citing concerns about governance, operations, and whether the schools serve all students who wish to attend. The school has responded with stated improvements in governance and special education services, but families should understand that the school is operating under regulatory scrutiny and faces an existential decision point in the coming school year. This is not a minor procedural issue; whether the charter is renewed directly determines whether the school persists as an option for your child.

The housing market in the 94607 zip code (downtown Oakland) shows median home values significantly below the California state benchmark and rents in the mid-range for the region. The area is walkable and dense, with job centers, government, and services concentrated nearby, though it is not a traditional family neighborhood.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 632%

School 32% · district not reported

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 748%

School 48% · district not reported

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · district not reported

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

English language arts

Grade 634%

School 34% · district not reported

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

Grade 747%

School 47% · district not reported

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

Grade 855%

School 55% · district not reported

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Science

Grade 826%

School 26% · district not reported

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

This schoolDistrict average, 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income36%Higher-income29%7 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income55%Higher-income55%0 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income29%5 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income45%Higher-income46%1 pp gap