Hoover (herbert) Middle, San Francisco CA

Original Research by School Decision on Hoover (herbert) Middle

Hoover Middle is a regular public middle school serving grades six through eight in San Francisco's outer neighborhoods, with an enrollment of roughly a thousand students.

The school's academic profile shows a mixed picture. On the most recent state tests in English language arts, students performed at or just below the midpoint of proficiency across the three grade levels, with eighth graders slightly ahead. Math proficiency runs a few percentage points lower than ELA, with sixth graders showing the weakest performance. Science results, measured only in eighth grade, are notably lower than both ELA and math. Overall, across tested subjects and grades, Hoover's proficiency index places it in the top quartile among districts in San Francisco County, a meaningful strength in an urban context where many schools serve high-poverty populations.

The student body is diverse. Asian students make up just over half the enrollment. Hispanic students constitute a substantial share, with smaller populations of students of two or more races, white students, and other groups. Nearly three-fifths of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a student body facing significant economic pressure.

The neighborhood around Hoover reflects the broader character of San Francisco's outer residential districts: quieter than downtown, with more single-family homes, less dense development, and a suburban feel relative to the city's commercial core. Housing values in the area are very high, consistent with San Francisco countywide, placing homeownership out of reach for many families. Rents are also substantial and have climbed modestly in recent years. For families living in or considering the neighborhood, the tradeoff is less street intensity and more residential stability, with good neighborhood schools as an anchor.

San Francisco's transit network reaches into all neighborhoods, though the outer districts require longer trips to access the downtown civic core, major parks, and cultural institutions. The broader city has pursued pedestrian-first policies and maintains one of the highest walkability scores of any large U.S. city, so families without a car can navigate their immediate neighborhoods on foot.

The San Francisco housing market is absorbing new development primarily in southern and western areas under a state-mandated housing target. Major projects include waterfront developments and conversion of office space downtown, though the pace of new housing has been uneven since the pandemic. For a family considering this neighborhood and school, the affordability pressure is acute; the tradeoff is residential character and school stability against very steep costs to own or rent.

A parent may want to reach out to Hoover to learn more about how the school supports students in math and science, where proficiency gaps are wider, and about the specific academic pathways and programs the school offers middle schoolers. Documentation on enrollment data for English learners and students with IEPs was not available in this review, so those details would be worth asking about directly.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 648%

School 48% · District 43% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

Grade 751%

School 51% · District 47% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

Grade 851%

School 51% · District 41% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 659%

School 59% · District 53% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 14 pts above county median

Grade 757%

School 57% · District 56% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Grade 860%

School 60% · District 52% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 841%

School 41% · District 39% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Social studies

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 54% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

This schoolSan Francisco 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 6Lower-income49%Higher-income75%27 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income43%Higher-income77%34 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income55%Higher-income67%12 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income38%Higher-income64%26 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income43%Higher-income64%21 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income43%Higher-income60%17 pp gap