Desert Ridge Middle School

Posted: June 16, 2026

The current school leadership is not open to family engagement and does not take safety seriously. We have seen so many unsafe practices at the school and no one really seems to care when it gets reported. Plus there are teachers that rely on students to augment their education outside of school and appear to refuse to teach (honestly, I think they are burnt out and need to move onto new careers because they seem to hate their jobs). I think this used to be a good school, but it is definitely on a downward trajectory at the moment. Safety is probably the number one concern though.

Posted: June 16, 2026

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Posted: June 9, 2023

I'm currently going to this school and I think it's a really nice place.

Posted: June 9, 2023

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Posted: June 8, 2023

If only they cared about the welfare of children as much as they care about test scores and statistics that will bring them more money. If only they refrained from asking students if they are stupid and bullying children in the foster care system. If only the administration showed up to scheduled meetings, returned calls and worked cohesively to create plans for children of ALL backgrounds and abilities. If only disabilities were sought to be understood and navigated with compassion and dignity. If only this school provided counseling services for its staff and teachers to help them understand that bullying children is wrong. Worst school ever attended.

Posted: June 8, 2023

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Posted: June 25, 2021

This used to be a good school but now it’s a giant indoctrination station. I’m actually glad they shut down in school learning and I got to see just what’s being taught here. If you can, homeschool. Public schools are teaching nothing.
I bet the teachers just loved staying home so they could teach for 5 min and then tell the class to work on whatever they wanted. My husband literally had to teach our child math because the teacher was never around or able to be reached.

Bullying is out of control as well.

Posted: June 25, 2021

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Posted: October 2, 2020

Very pleased with our transition this past year. Glad we made the transition.

Posted: October 2, 2020

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Posted: September 28, 2020

I wasn't sure what to expect from middle school, but he had an excellent 6th grade year in all aspects of his education.

Posted: September 28, 2020

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Posted: October 17, 2019

If you have a disability, they will bully you constantly about it.

Posted: October 17, 2019

The community here has a lot of potential. However, they only care about themselves. There are a couple of extremely nice boys and girls, mostly girls. If you can find one of the extremely nice boys or girls, than you should be happy with who you selected. That one nice friend might be your only line of community that you have a positive relationship to besides your family. Odds are that you will get bullied. You need to get very lucky. I met one of the very nice girls, and it payed off.

Posted: October 17, 2019

Drilling into you works, but they do too much, more than the student can handle.

Posted: October 17, 2019

Depends on who your teachers are. There are good teachers and bad teachers.

Posted: October 17, 2019

Based on my experience there, they don't respect anything. If your favorite team loses. They will remind you constantly your team lost.

Posted: October 17, 2019

Students sort each other in a group. Day one your put into a group and thats it. Your stuck with them and try to make you look like a fool.

Posted: September 26, 2019

After a disastrous 18/19 school year the new interim administration seems to be doing a better job. I know it is a monumental task to monitor the behavior of over a 1000 kids but it is so important! A few out of control kids can sure ruin the school year for so many.

Posted: September 26, 2019

APS drags their feet in this area. My son is definitely gifted in math and science but the testing from APS failed to place him there. We did private testing and his IQ in math and science was 137. Even with these results in hand for weeks he still hasn’t been moved. So everyday he is falling a bit more behind his peers in gifted math.

Posted: September 26, 2019

Posted: September 26, 2019

7th grade has been a very different experience for us. 6th grade was just a mess, 7th grade much better than expected. My son has some amazing teachers this year.

Posted: September 26, 2019

My son has some amazing 7th grade teachers.

Posted: September 26, 2019

Would have to say this is still a mixed bag. There is definitely room for improvement.

Posted: September 26, 2019

6th grade in the 18/19 school year was a mess. The school now has new leadership, which was much needed,
and things seem to be improving in general. This along with my son’s 7th grade teachers has made a night and day difference from last year. I can gladly say that I am very impressed with what is happening at DRMS this year!

Posted: August 9, 2018

School hasn't even started yet and our experience has been terrible!!!!!!

Posted: August 9, 2018

We have only been to schedule pick up and already have had a bad experience! The principal is very rude and condescending. We moved here from another state and she was sure to let us know that New Mexico has standards that don't compare to the state we came from. They will not accept my daughters test scores for that reason. My poor daughter came home crying and school hasn't even started yet!! The principal seriously needs to learn how to treat people!

Posted: March 3, 2014

We relocated to ABQ in summer of 2013 from Northern Virginia where we enjoyed living in a very good school district with high demands. We chose Desert Ridge MS for our daughter as we heard many good things about the school. Now after 1/2 year of enrollment, we are very pleased to report that this was and still is a great choice. All of our daughters classes have been great so far with teachers who are going above and beyond. If a student is ready to learn, there are ample opportunities and all doors are open at this school. The principal is doing a great job encouraging his students on a daily basis and the administration is great to work with as well. The only thing the school is missing is LANGUAGES. Starting languages early on is very important, even if this is done as an after school program. Besides academics the school offers great after school programs such as cross country, track, etc.

Posted: April 4, 2013

I went to this school all three years and it was horrible. I had some really bad teachers that didn't teach me anything, the teachers didn't pay much attention, and they didn't pay much attention to the students.

Posted: March 27, 2013

My child has not had the problems with bullying mentioned here. In fact she thinks it is a much friendlier place than the school she went to in a different state. Her gifted classes and advanced classes are challenging and fun. Some of the math teachers we have experienced here are really amazing. I would say that the new principal is not good at answering emails from parents or dealing with teachers who are sub-par. Don't get me wrong, most teachers here are very good, but we have experienced a couple of horrendous teachers, and many, many parents have complained and yet those teachers are still teaching at Desert Ridge. For this I blame an administration that is unwilling to deal properly with these situations.

Posted: April 21, 2011

I could not agree more with the post from March 24, 2011. It is almost like you are living my life and have experienced the exact same things. Like you, we are also moving or I would move my child as well. Thanks for your post and observations, it is nice to know I am not the only parent of DRMS that feels this way. The bullying is the breaker for me and is why this school has been rated unsatisfactory. If a school cannot take a stand against bullies, at the price of my child's safety, then nothing else matters.

Posted: March 23, 2011

Most teachers are wonderful especially in accelerated courses and gifted; however there are others teaching regular classes that are on auto pilot and are no longer challenging the students.They need to retire and let new fresh teachers take over. They look the other way to kids bullying and when a parent complains they say it is our child's fault. Their no tolerance policy for bullying is not enforced. The regular classes are almost a joke. My child rarely has homework yet the accelerated classes are fun and challenging. The drama, bullying, and dating issues at this school are out of control. We chose this school because of test scores and have been greatly disappointed in the lack of morals of the student body. They are a mean and spiteful bunch who are not getting any direction from home on how to behave and how to treat people. Oh, there is LOTS of parent volunteers but this does not make it a great school. Luckily we are moving or I would be moving my child to private school next year because of the bullying, name calling, and lack of friendliness.