PSUSD FACTS

Riverside County and the Coachella Valley are among the fastest growing regions in the United States. We are attracting more young families than ever before. Our school attendance figures are growing rapidly. The needs of our student population are becoming greater and more diverse. However, the sad economic reality is that State funding for public education has not kept pace.

Each day, almost 25,000 from Palm Springs, Desert Hot Springs, Cathedral City, Palm Desert, Thousand Palms and Rancho Mirage attend 26 schools located in the Palm Springs Unified School District (PSUSD). The State of California falls consistently below the national average in per-pupil expenditures.

We are fortunate to have an outstanding school board, district staff and team of teachers. We have an excellent infrastructure upon which to build. However, there are significant demographic factors that must be addressed. For example:

• Only 71.2% of our high school students ever graduate
• 32% of the District’s students are learning English as a second language
• 70% of PSUSD students are eligible for government-subsidized free orreduced 0 cost lunch

We can do better! And we must do better if we are to school our children and prepare them for the careers and challenges of the 21st Century. The good news is that increased, sustainable financial support can reverse these trends.