Santa Cruz Elementary School: Profile, Programs, and ADE Data

By James Sanson, REALTOR. Licensed Arizona REALTOR since August 2002. Maricopa specialist since 2004. 1,000+ closings. See about James Sanson and the team.

Published 2026-05-22. Last reviewed 2026-05-22. Every fact on this page cites a primary source.

Quick answer

Santa Cruz Elementary School is a Maricopa Unified School District elementary school located in the Tortosa subdivision at 19845 N. Costa Del Sol, built in 2007. Led by Principal Stephanie Rhinehart, the school enrolled 936 students, according to the 2025 Arizona Department of Education report card, and earned a B letter grade for 2025 (75.26 percent). The school offers a gifted program, full-day kindergarten, preschool, art, a robotics club, and a running club, and earned full points for both EL growth and acceleration readiness on the 2025 report card. Call 520-838-8037 if you are researching homes in Tortosa or the Santa Cruz attendance area.

On this page

1. School at a glance
2. A note on grade span
3. 2025 A-F letter grade
4. Enrollment and demographics
5. Programs and academic focus
6. Awards and recognitions
7. Teacher qualifications
8. School finance and improvement funds
9. Feeder pattern and zoning
10. Location in Tortosa

School at a glance

The verified fact table below is drawn from the official 2025 Arizona Department of Education report card for Santa Cruz Elementary School (azreportcards.azed.gov) and the school's own description.

Per the school's description, Santa Cruz Elementary School was built in 2007 and is located in the Tortosa subdivision. Its mission is to provide a learning community where staff and students work together to set personal goals, with students setting academic goals based on individual achievement data and health and nutrition goals through daily physical education. The mascot is the Smiling Scorpions, per James Sanson's team field verification.

A note on grade span

Santa Cruz Elementary School currently runs preschool (tuition-based) through grade 5, according to the school's "Our School" page (sces.musd20.org). Some state and third-party directory data still list the school as preschool through grade 6, which reflects an older configuration rather than how the school operates today. Where this page reports school-level data such as the A-F letter grade, enrollment, and finance, those figures come from the 2025 Arizona Department of Education report card. For the current grade span and program details, the school's own page and MUSD at musd20.org or (520) 568-5100 are the most reliable sources.

2025 A-F letter grade

Santa Cruz Elementary School received a B letter grade for 2025 from the Arizona Department of Education, earning 75.26 percent under the K-8 accountability model (73.26 base points out of 100, plus 2 bonus points). The K-8 model breakdown is shown below.

For reference, the ADE K-8 model cut scores are:

Notable in the 2025 breakdown: Santa Cruz earned full points on both the EL Growth and Proficiency indicator (10 of 10) and the Acceleration Readiness indicator (10 of 10), with 23 percent of English learners achieving English language proficiency on the AZELLA assessment. The school earned 38.26 of 50 growth points and 15 of 30 proficiency points. MUSD has referenced an A grade for Santa Cruz in prior reporting; the 2025 ADE report card shows a B. Letter grades are published annually and can move year to year. For the current letter grade, verify directly at azreportcards.azed.gov. Call 520-838-8037 for help interpreting how school data applies to a specific Tortosa home.

Enrollment and demographics

Santa Cruz Elementary School enrolled 936 students per the 2025 Arizona Department of Education report card.

Santa Cruz holds Title I status, which means it receives federal funds to support students from low-income households per the federal Title I program.

Programs and academic focus

Per the 2025 ADE report card and the school's description, Santa Cruz Elementary School offers art, technology, library, and physical education within a goal-setting learning model. Listed academic offerings and programs include:

1. Preschool (early education)
2. Full-day Kindergarten
3. Gifted Program
4. Robotics Club
5. Running Club (non-competitive)
6. Art (music and arts)
7. Before-school and after-school tutoring, with intervention and enrichment driven by student achievement data

Campus facilities per the 2025 ADE report card include a cafeteria with on-site food service, a certified nurse, dedicated counselors, an early education activity/sensory room, enhanced security, indoor air quality control, a kindergarten playground, a library, a music hall, a technology lab, and transportation. Call 520-838-8037 for help researching schools as part of a Tortosa home search.

Awards and recognitions

Per the 2025 ADE report card, Santa Cruz Elementary School lists the following recognitions:

1. VEX IQ Challenge Excellence Award for Robotics, 2015-2016 and 2016-2017
2. VEX IQ Challenge STEM Research Project Award for Robotics, 2017-2018
3. 2017 Merit Award for PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports)
4. Salsa Festival Winners, 2017 and 2018
5. Diamondback Most Valuable Teacher Award recipient, 2018-2019

The school earned a B letter grade from the Arizona Department of Education for 2025, detailed in the section above.

Teacher qualifications

Per the 2025 ADE report card, teacher qualification data for Santa Cruz Elementary School:

1. Appropriately certified teachers: 44 (95.65 percent)
2. Teaching out of field: 2 (4.35 percent)
3. Emergency credentials: 0 (0.00 percent)
4. Experienced (3 or more years in position): 28 (60.87 percent)
5. Inexperienced (less than 3 years): 18 (39.13 percent)

Per the 2025 data, Santa Cruz reported a high appropriately certified rate (95.65 percent) with no teachers on emergency credentials, alongside a higher share of inexperienced staff (39.13 percent) than at some other MUSD campuses. ADE reports experience figures for teachers, principals, and school leaders, and certification figures for teachers.

School finance and improvement funds

Per the 2025 ADE report card, Santa Cruz Elementary School reported a total per-pupil expenditure of $11,804.09, broken down as follows:

The 2025 report card also notes that Santa Cruz received $141,750.68 in School Improvement Funds. Per ADE, School Improvement Funds are awarded through a competitive grant process under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to support student-achievement work. The reported strategies were "S2: Improving the effective use of assessment," "S3: Improving the effective use of instructional practices," and "S6: Improving the effective use of data." Funding levels and improvement-grant status are published by ADE and the Arizona School Financial Transparency Portal at schoolspending.az.gov and can change year to year.

Feeder pattern and zoning

Santa Cruz Elementary School serves its MUSD attendance area in and around the Tortosa subdivision on the east side of Maricopa. The general continuation pattern is:

1. Elementary: Santa Cruz Elementary School (preschool through grade 5 per the school).
2. Middle school (6-8): MUSD middle school assignment is either Desert Wind Middle School or Maricopa Wells Middle School, depending on the specific address.
3. High school (9-12): MUSD operates two traditional high schools, Maricopa High School and Desert Sunrise High School. High school assignment depends on the specific address and the current boundary map.

Verify your specific address. MUSD's school board approved a K-8 attendance boundary adjustment in December 2025, effective the 2026-2027 school year, which may change which school serves specific addresses. While students are initially assigned a default neighborhood school, Arizona law also allows families to use MUSD open enrollment to apply to any other MUSD school, subject to grade-level and program capacity. To confirm the current school assignment for a specific address, use the MUSD School Finder at musd20.org or contact the district office at (520) 568-5100.

For the broader district, see our MUSD overview and Maricopa schools hub. For other MUSD elementary profiles, see our profiles of Butterfield Elementary, Saddleback Elementary, and Pima Butte Elementary.

Location in Tortosa

Santa Cruz Elementary School is located inside the Tortosa subdivision at 19845 N. Costa Del Sol, on the east side of Maricopa. Per the school's own description, it was built in 2007 to serve the Tortosa community. Tortosa is an actively developing community with D.R. Horton and Starlight Homes on the remaining lots, which makes the on- or near-community elementary school a relevant factor for families considering new construction there.

For families with elementary-age children, proximity to an assigned school is one factor among many in a home purchase decision. We present the school's data and let families weigh it against their own priorities, in keeping with the Arizona Department of Real Estate and federal Fair Housing guidance.

For details on the Tortosa community, including HOA, amenities, builders, and home pricing, see our Tortosa community page. For the full Maricopa neighborhood directory, see our Maricopa neighborhoods directory.

Call 520-838-8037 to talk through how Santa Cruz school zoning applies to specific Tortosa addresses you are considering, or to any Maricopa home you are considering buying or selling.

James Sanson | Real Broker LLC | Licensed in Arizona