Cabot's Old Indian Pueblo Museum · Photo: Jllm06 · CC0Desert Hot Springs’s public schools score below 57% of California districts on tests and graduation
Math proficiency in Desert Hot Springs’s districts is 20%, below the California average (33%). The grade covers the public school district serving Desert Hot Springs, from kindergarten through graduation, on state tests and graduation. Each state writes its own tests, so this is the one TownRatings grade compared within California, not nationally.
From California state tests taken in spring 2022, when 97% of students in the tested grades sat them, and the class of 2023’s four-year graduation rate, as reported to the U.S. Department of Education.
Desert Hot Springs’s schools, in brief
Better than its incomes would predict
Among the 275 California towns with household incomes within a quarter of Desert Hot Springs’s, its schools beat 60%, higher than their 43% against all the state’s districts. The grade ↓
Results trail the state
In spring 2022, 36% of tested students were proficient in reading and 20% in math, against 47% and 33% statewide; 97% of students in the tested grades sat the tests. The grade ↓
Graduation
89% of the class of 2023 graduated in four years, against 86% across California. Districts ↓
Spending and class size
The district spends $22,793 per student, against $21,206 across California (FY2024). Spending doesn’t count toward the grade. Districts ↓
Four elementary schools, then two middle and one high school
Which school depends on the address at every step. Enrollment is down 8% since 2020–21. See the path ↓
Choice beyond the district
Duc Learning Center (private) is in town. Every school ↓
Written from the figures on this page. Tests are from 2021–22, graduation from the class of 2023; each school’s own letter uses 2020–21 results.
What’s behind Desert Hot Springs’s grade
C+: better than 43% of California school districts, #582 of 847 California towns. Graduation is above the California average; test scores are below it.
Where will my kid go?
Pick a grade. These are the public schools that serve Desert Hot Springs, with each school’s own grade.
6th grade in Desert Hot Springs · depends on your address
Desert Springs Middle
Grades 6–8 · 749 students · 20:1 students per teacher
Painted Hills Middle
Grades 6–8 · 722 students · 22:1 students per teacher
7th grade in Desert Hot Springs · depends on your address
Desert Springs Middle
Grades 6–8 · 749 students · 20:1 students per teacher
Painted Hills Middle
Grades 6–8 · 722 students · 22:1 students per teacher
8th grade in Desert Hot Springs · depends on your address
Desert Springs Middle
Grades 6–8 · 749 students · 20:1 students per teacher
Painted Hills Middle
Grades 6–8 · 722 students · 22:1 students per teacher
9th grade in Desert Hot Springs
Desert Hot Springs High
Grades 9–12 · 1,687 students · 21:1 students per teacher
10th grade in Desert Hot Springs
Desert Hot Springs High
Grades 9–12 · 1,687 students · 21:1 students per teacher
11th grade in Desert Hot Springs
Desert Hot Springs High
Grades 9–12 · 1,687 students · 21:1 students per teacher
12th grade in Desert Hot Springs
Desert Hot Springs High
Grades 9–12 · 1,687 students · 21:1 students per teacher
Desert Hot Springs’s public schools are run by Palm Springs Unified School District, which also serves Cathedral City, Palm Springs and Rancho Mirage. Parts of Desert Hot Springs (10% of its land) are served by Banning Unified instead. To confirm the school for a specific address, ask the district.
The district
Spending and class size are shown but don’t count toward the grade. Each district’s own page has every school.
Well below the state in reading
Desert Hot Springs vs. its neighbors
Schools grades for the California towns that share Desert Hot Springs’s borders.
| Town | Schools | Main districts |
|---|---|---|
| Desert Hot Springs | C+ | Palm Springs Unified |
| Palm Springs | C+ | Palm Springs Unified |
| Cathedral City | C+ | Palm Springs Unified |
All 2 neighbors share Palm Springs Unified with Desert Hot Springs, so their letters differ mainly through other districts.
Every school in Desert Hot Springs
8 schools. Each public school’s letter compares its own 2020–21 reading and math results with California’s other public schools (the newest school-level results we have).
Questions about Desert Hot Springs’s schools
Are Desert Hot Springs’s schools good?
On California’s tests they score below most of the state: the public schools Desert Hot Springs children attend score below 57% of California’s school districts on tests and graduation, a C+ Schools grade, #582 of 847 California towns. Among towns with similar incomes they beat 60%. Tests are from 2021–22, graduation from the class of 2023.
What school district is Desert Hot Springs in?
Palm Springs Unified School District, which runs grades K–12 and enrolls 20,007 students in 27 schools (2024–25). Small parts of Desert Hot Springs are served by Banning Unified.
Where do Desert Hot Springs kids go to high school?
Desert Hot Springs High, with 1,687 students; its own test results earn a B.
What is Desert Hot Springs’s graduation rate?
89% of the class of 2023 in Palm Springs Unified School District graduated in four years, against 86% across California.
How much does Desert Hot Springs spend per student?
$22,793 in Palm Springs Unified School District (FY2024), against $21,206 across California. Spending doesn’t count toward the grade.
Are there private schools in Desert Hot Springs?
Yes: Duc Learning Center (religious, grades K–12, 260 students).
Parents talk
What Desert Hot Springs families are saying about school.
Looking for colleges? Colleges near Desert Hot Springs → They have their own page.
School data: state test results (2021–22, with participation) and four-year graduation rates (class of 2023) reported to the U.S. Department of Education (EDFacts via ED Data Express); each school’s own letter uses its 2020–21 results (EDFacts via the Urban Institute); schools and enrollment from NCES (2024–25; private schools 2023–24); spending from the Census Bureau’s school finance survey (FY2024). The School Grade is our own summary, graded within California. Stars are from neighbors.