Rancho San Joaquin Middle School

4861 Michelson Drive

School District

Irvine Unified
Grade

7-8
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:23
Type

public

School Map for Irvine Unified School District

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by other on June 03, 2023

What an amazing experience! My child spent 7th and 8th at Rancho, and all of the teachers were supportive, caring and creative with their lesson plans. There was the right balance between hard work, independence, and fun being back together to learn and grow. The staff went above and beyond to support our student. The kids, and some of the staff, had tears in their eyes during 8th grade promotion, which was touching. My child is fully prepared and confident for high school (and beyond) thanks to the lessons learned at Rancho. The 504 team is outstanding. Principal Snowden, and her team, made Middle School two of the best years of my kiddos life.
Submitted by parent on March 04, 2023

We have had a tremendously positive experience at Rancho San Joaquin Middle school with our 7th grader this year. The teachers have been engaging and have come up with creative ways to get students interested in the course material. I like how encouraging the PE teachers are; they try to get the kids interested in fitness and trying new activities rather than just grading on who can run the fastest mile. Teachers have generally been very flexible about things like accepting late work, test corrections and project revisions. Students are encouraged to review assignment feedback and submit corrections to improve their grade, which I really appreciate as a learning tool.The academics did seem rigorous to me. Students are taught to find appropriate sources and cite materials in great detail. Some of the more creative projects were to create a 3D gravestone for a historical figure in History and dress as a character from a novel they are reading in English. There are many elective classes offered, including several music classes, STEM, art, Spanish, and digital media classes. I was continuously impressed with the science and history topics covered throughout the year. Our child has a 504 plan, and the teachers all had very detailed feedback for our planning meeting. The team that handles recommendations also came up with thoughtful and thorough accommodations. The process of updating our 504 plan was very easy and I felt like our needs and feedback were carefully considered.The school offers several bussing options from neighborhoods like Quail Hill, Laguna Altura, Los Olivos and Turtle Rock. Although it is paid out of pocket, it’s much cheaper than the high school bus!We were really looking forward to sending our child back to school in the fall, but unfortunately we will be leaving the area. Not having our child attend Rancho next year is our biggest regret about leaving Irvine! I recommend it unreservedly.
Submitted by other on June 10, 2021

I just graduated and I have to say I had a great experience here especially with the teachers I got in both years. They were all really passionate about their subjects and taught well. Some teachers gave more homework but were really good at teaching. I really enjoyed my learning experience here at Rancho.
Submitted by parent on May 02, 2018

Very bad experience especially with the Principle Mike Modeer, Assistant principle Jeffery Morano and Therapist Kelly Alexander. They lack of experience . They don't listen to your complaint and they are not interested in listing about the bullying in school. They do have a big problem and they are not willing to address it or fix it which is the Bullying at their school.
Submitted by parent on February 05, 2018

Each parent approaches education differently. So there's no perfect school in the world. Satisfaction really depends on what kind of parenting approach, expectation from the school, and level of involvement of the parents. My son transferred from overseas to Rancho as 7th grader. I was concerned if he could blend in well (had heard many bad things about US public schools). But as I observed and talked to my son for few months, I was impressed with the organization of the school, capability of the staff, and welcoming environment among students. Of course, you should not expect all teachers treat you like kings/queens. You should not expect all kids like one another. You should expect some kids in the class being more likely to misbehave. But overall, I see much more positive than negative (e.g. older facilities). And I believe all teachers there have the heart to teach the kids, including those who have disadvantages. My son loves his school and makes new friends after 2 weeks. From time to time, he might complain about amount of homework. But if you can coach them to manage his/her time (not doing their homework though), the work are not too difficult to be completed on time.
Submitted by parent on November 06, 2017

I am very impressed with how the principal leads the school. The principal fosters the environment of learning, caring, and supportive. He is very approachable and all the teachers and staff are the same way. I am very impressed with how nice everyone in the school is. The counselor, Ms. Goonewardene is wonderful. She really cares about students. My son loves PE, Music and all other classes and well. I am very glad thatmy son goes to Rancho Middle School
Submitted by parent on April 15, 2017

Overall, this school is not a model for quality education or for fostering a love of learning. It seems like a factory to just get the kids onto high school. All the parents that I have spoken are not very happy. They say there is too much homework and some really terrible teachers. Their experience is just ok. So, if our standard is that low for education, then I guess we are fine.
Submitted by other on March 16, 2017

Nothing like everyone makes it seem. It is very old, with very little materials, the library is tiny and there are very little technology availabilities. Furthermore, the teachers are very bias, once you get on their bad side, they will yell at you for everything. My son knows a kid that got in trouble for sitting up after laying down on his desk for a while. The worst school, go somewhere else. The only thing here good is music which is top of the line and math which is somewhat better than other schools my kids have gone to.
Submitted by parent on February 03, 2014

My 12 year old son goes to 7 th grade at Rancho Middle School. As pampered parents of one of the best elementary schools in town and until the commencement of the school this year, we were a bundle of nerves. But I must admit that the experience with this middle school has been nothing but a pleasure. The teachers, counselor and the principal have been very helpful and encouraging and very engaging. Here, I would like to mention one particular name amongst all the wonderful teachers, the Humanities teacher, Mrs. Zoe Schellenberg. She has been very hands on with the students and extremely meticulous. I was very impressed as to how she knew every child personally and took interest in their overall development. I feel really fortunate to have my son be part of this great school.
Submitted by other on December 04, 2013

My time at Rancho was challenging, however by the end of eighth grade I was completely prepared for UNI. Just like most schools, some teachers are disorganized and frantic, while others are calm and have a plan of what they are going to teach a month in advance. I did not participate in the GATE program in 7th grade, however I was placed into the GATE program in 8th grade and I did extremely well (I had Mrs. Mckay <3). There are few kids who get picked on, but students are encouraged to befriend others and stop bullies from hurting. I've made so many new friends at Rancho, and I absolutely loved it. (The Principle and quite a few 7th grade teachers moved to another middle school this year so the school has had many changes, but my younger brother is currently in 8th grade and he still likes the school even with all of the new changes.)
Submitted by parent on March 01, 2013

Socially I wouldn't recommend this school for black children. Racial slurs are a regular thing here. For two years my child was teased about not being black enough and called many names. Also one of teacher's here disclosed my child's grades to the entire class. Because of this teacher's action my child was teased. I'm beyond saddened by these events. All children deserve to have a safe environment to learn. Also there needs to be more supervision as the kids do fight at this school.
Submitted by parent on June 24, 2012

My son loves this school. All my worries or concerns went by the waste side after the first month. The administration at this school is great. I can't say enough good things about Rancho!
Submitted by parent on April 20, 2012

Our experience has been mixed. Some great teachers and some very poor teachers. Academics would be better if some of the teachers spent more time on organization and communication. Strong P.E. and fitness program (if you care).
Submitted by parent on February 21, 2012

We relocated to So Cal this summer. We were told wonderful things about this school. However, we are very disappointed. It is very difficult to get contact with our childs teachers. When we asked for a conference to discuss our childs progress we were told staff only has time for children with D or F's. Our child in in the Gate classes and has always been an A student. We feel that our childs academic success has been a colaboration beween the Student, Parent, & Teachers. We do not see this unity here. We hope to transfer in the fall.
Submitted by other on February 17, 2012

I haven't been to this school yet but I've heard it's a great school.I do have to say I'm scared of being bullied because,of course,it's going to be my first year of middle school.I checked out the school's website and they have a strict "dress code" for students to follow and they have a great schedule.Since I've never had periods at school before,I'm kind of scared of that too.I've been trying to find a map of the school to print out so I wouldn't get lost,but I can't find one.I totally think they should put one up.I'm looking forward to going to Rancho!Wish me luck!-Oh and I have like 2 years to go before I go into middle school because I'm in 4th grade.-