Haskell (pliny Fisk) Middle, Cerritos CA

Original Research by School Decision on Haskell (pliny Fisk) Middle

Haskell (Pliny Fisk) Middle serves grades 7 and 8 in Cerritos, a built-out suburban community in Los Angeles County that has shifted from dairy farming to retail and logistics hub. The school sits in a predominantly single-family residential area with intentional separation between quiet neighborhoods and commercial corridors anchored by shopping centers and the Cerritos Auto Square. The housing market in the area is mid- to upper-range for Los Angeles County, with home values and rents reflecting the suburb's stable, developed character.

The school's enrollment is small, with a student body that is roughly half Hispanic and one-quarter Asian, alongside smaller shares of Black, white, and multiracial students. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. English learner status and special education enrollment data were not available, so a parent may want to check directly with the school on those populations.

The academic picture shows uneven performance across subjects. In English language arts, about half of seventh-grade students and a smaller share of eighth-graders met proficiency on the state assessment. Math proficiency is weaker, with fewer than one-third of students in either grade meeting the standard. Science proficiency, measured only in eighth grade, falls to about one-quarter of students. When averaged across all tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency sits below the midpoint among districts across Los Angeles County. Only historical social studies data is available, showing much stronger results from more than a decade ago under a different assessment system, so direct comparison is not reliable.

The school is a regular public school within ABC Unified, which covers multiple communities in the county. It operates as a traditional middle school with no magnet or charter status. The school website was not available, so a parent interested in specifics about course offerings, clubs, athletics, or other programs should contact the school directly or reach out through the district.

Cerritos itself is car-dependent with most amenities clustered in retail parks rather than walkable street neighborhoods. The city maintains an extensive parks system, including the 15-acre Heritage Park near the school's area, and is served by the local bus system, though that service is scheduled to be significantly reduced. Recent development in Cerritos is driven by state housing mandates, with multiple infill projects converting commercial or institutional sites to residential townhomes, creating modest demographic shifts in an otherwise stable suburb.

For families considering this school, the key question is whether the current proficiency levels and the school's position relative to other county options align with your child's academic needs and learning style. The math performance in particular may warrant conversation with school staff about support systems, intervention programs, or academic pathways available to students.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 731%

School 31% · District 51% · ▼ 20 pts below district

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

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 49% · ▼ 21 pts below district

even with state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 757%

School 57% · District 66% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 65% · ▼ 18 pts below district

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

Science

Grade 824%

School 24% · District 47% · ▼ 24 pts below district

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

Social studies

Grade 870%

School 70% · District 67% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

This schoolABC Unified, 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 7Lower-income51%Higher-income78%28 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income40%Higher-income67%28 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 7Lower-income23%Higher-income55%32 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income21%Higher-income48%27 pp gap