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Bakersfield High · BakersfieldPublic

Bakersfield High: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.

Bakersfield posts 30% meeting the standard and 8.8% exceeding it, against 36% and 15.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.

1241 G Street, 93301 (opens in new tab)·Kern High·Bakersfield·Grades 9-12·3,069 students·82% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(661) 324-9841·Website
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope3947
% Exceeded9%16%
% Met+30%36%
Grad rate81.1%86.6%
College readiness40.1%33.9%
Absence19.5%30.2%
Suspension9.7%3.6%
Scope Score
39
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,490 statewide · #16 of 25 in Kern High

Bakersfield High scores 39 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 31st percentile of 2,160 California high schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →

🌱 Building Momentum — This label means the data doesn't clearly sort the school one way or the other — ask what the school is proud of, and what it's working on.

CDE CAASPP 2025

Most rating sites would stop at “30% proficient” and call it done. Bakersfield deserves a closer read. The school sits in Bakersfield, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,160 high schools statewide

Slipped from the 40th to the 31st percentile since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELAYellow(Increased Significantly)MathOrange(Increased)

This school hasn't fully recovered from the pandemic: 30% meet the standard today, versus 36% in 2019 — a gap worth asking about on a visit.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1153%46%49%35%42%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1119%18%17%12%17%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
30%
State 36%
Graduate
81%
State 87%
Pass an AP exam
40%
State 34%

Of 100 students here: 30 are proficient by 11th grade → 81 graduate → 40 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 7 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
81.1%
State 86.6%
5.5pp below state avg
Exceeded standard
8.8%
State 15.8%
7.1pp below state avg
College readiness
40.1%
State 33.9%
AP course or exam readiness above state avg
Met or exceeded
29.7%
State 35.7%
6.0pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
19.5%
State 30.2%
10.7pp below state avg
Suspension rate
9.7%
State 3.6%
6.0pp above state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
5.8%
State 18.0%
12.1pp below state avg
Worth a school visit

Ask what the school is working on next. Strong numbers tell you where a school is, not where it's going.

  • Ask what typically leads to a suspension, and what happens before it gets there.
  • Ask what share of students complete the full college-prep course sequence, and who gets steered into it.
  • Ask whether the tour can step into a working classroom — watch how the teacher handles a student who's stuck.
  • Ask to tour while school's in session, and notice how hallways and transitions feel — culture shows up between classes, not just in them.
  • Ask how the school communicates with families when a child starts to struggle.
  • Ask what a typical day looks like for a new student in the first few weeks.

How every group of students does here

At Bakersfield High in Bakersfield, 38.6% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 47.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Bakersfield High trails its district average for low-income students by 8.6 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (13.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (39.7% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 39.0 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 546 students tested.

All students at this school: 30% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 30%, district —, state 36%30%
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 26%, district 30%, state 32%26% · −4 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 27%, district 31%, state 32%27% · −3 vs school
MaleMale: this school 28%, district 32%, state 42%28% · −2 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 32%, district 37%, state 44%32% · +2 vs school
Black/African AmericanBlack/African American: this school 22%, district 24%, state 26%22% · −8 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 54%, district 44%, state 56%54% · +24 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 9%, district 8%, state 15%9% · −21 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 3%, district 5%, state 11%3% · −26 vs school
Two or More RacesTwo or More Races: this school 17%, district 49%, state 56%17% · −13 vs school

6 of 16 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

this school district, same group California, same group
AP access · 2020-21 federal civil rights snapshot (structural, dated — newest published; biennial)
Shown, never scored
Hispanic60.0% AP · 71.4% enroll.
American Indian/Alaska Native0.7% AP · 0.9% enroll.
Asian2.3% AP · 1.3% enroll.
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander0.0% AP · 0.4% enroll.
Black6.7% AP · 10.7% enroll.
White29.0% AP · 14.3% enroll.
Two or more races1.4% AP · 1.0% enroll.
English learners0.2% AP · 7.3% enroll.
Students with disabilities0.2% AP · 11.9% enroll.

● share of AP enrollment vs share of total enrollment, this school only · not part of the Scope Score

Data source: U.S. Dept. of Education Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2020-21 (biennial; newest published)

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 19.5%, district 18.7%, state 30.2%19.5% · −10.7pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 9.7%, district —, state 3.6%9.7% · +6.0pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1219.2%

Where graduates go

Context — never part of the Scope Score
51%
College-going rate, class of 2023

Where they went after graduation

Of Bakersfield's class of 2023, 51% enrolled in college somewhere within a year — a CSU, a community college, a UC, or out of state.

College destination mix, class of 2023

Class of 2023: 558 completers, 51% enrolled somewhere within a year

University of California 17 (3%)California State University 58 (10%)California community college 185 (33%)In-state private 9 (2%)Out-of-state, 4-year 17 (3%)Out-of-state, 2-year 1 (0%)Not enrolled 271 (49%)

Percentages are computed by SchoolScope (count ÷ completers) from CDE-reported counts, not a CDE-native rate.

Data source: California Department of Education, 2023 cohort — the newest published; National Student Clearinghouse match.

UC application funnel — one destination of six, tracked in detail because UC is the only source with 30 years of history

In fall 2025, 10 of Bakersfield's 550 graduates enrolled in the University of California system — Santa Barbara the most common landing, with 4 enrollees.

Applied48fall 2025, universitywide
Admitted40
Enrolled10
Where they landed (fall 2025)

8 of 9 campuses are masked below UC's privacy floor — a protection, not a verdict.

campuses never sum to the universitywide figure — students apply to several

UC enrollees, universitywide, 2014–2025

Peak: 21 enrolled, 2024

UC publishes this trend back to 1994 — no other destination has a comparable multi-year record

UC is one road of many — the full destination mix for the class of 2023 is below. And who applied isn't who the school taught: the ratio between the two reflects the self-selected pool of students who chose to apply, not what happened in the classroom. By the state's 2023 count, 51% of this class's predecessors enrolled in college somewhere within a year. More of the class of 2023 enrolled at community colleges (185) than at UC (17).

Data source: University of California Office of the President (UC Information Center), fall 2025 admissions cycle · college-going rate: California Department of Education, 2023 cohort.

The people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 26:1, district 25:126:1
Teaching staff222 teachers
Avg. experience12.2 years
Fully credentialed84%
First-year teachers5%
Intern / emergency permit0.1%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$62,889 – $134,832
Principal salaryUp to $173,913
Superintendent salary$255,200

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course Breadth
AP exam qualifiers93 studentsCCI, participation not authorization
CTE pathway completers90 students
Advanced Coursework

Bakersfield's teachers are authorized to teach 8 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers — including Calculus BC, Calculus AB, and Computer Science Principles.

AP subjects taught8
Math & Computer Science (3)Calculus AB · Calculus BC · Computer Science Principles
Sciences (1)Environmental Science
History & Social Science (2)Macroeconomics · U.S. Government and Politics
Arts (2)3-D Art and Design · Music Theory

Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, 2025 - 2026 audit year (authorization, not enrollment) · IB World Schools directory, name-matched · structural depth: 2020-21 federal snapshot, table 09

What gets spent here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $18,319, CA average $14,491$18,319 · spent at this school
Federal share$1,079 per student

$1,079 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$20,278 per student

The district's current expense of education per student, from CDE's annual SACS filing — the freshest district spending figure the state publishes.

Where the district's dollars go · FY 2024–25 · CDE SACS
Instruction48%
Instruction support16%
Student services15%
Administration6%
Buildings & maintenance13%
Other2%

District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.

district detail, 2016–2020 — the newest published
2020$13,940 per pupil
2019$13,737 per pupil
2018$14,008 per pupil
2017$12,847 per pupil
2016$12,132 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Hispanic72.2%
District 71.9% · CA 56.1%
White11.4%
District 14.2% · CA 19.9%
Black10.9%
District 5.0% · CA 4.8%
Other4.8%
District 6.3% · CA 9.0%
Asian0.6%
District 2.5% · CA 10.2%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 81.5% (18pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$44K · CA $85K
Median home value$296K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+17% · CA 35%
ZIP population13,620
Median age35 years

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level

Worth Knowing

At 3,069 students, this school is well above the typical California high school (≈1450).

On the state's science test (CAST), 24% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 and once in high school, and it never enters the Scope Score.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bakersfield High a good high school?

Bakersfield High has a Scope Score of 39 out of 100, placing it in the 31st percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,490 statewide. 8.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 7.1 percentage points below the California average of 15.8%. The Scope Score weights 7 dimensions for high schools: graduation rate (25%), exceeded standard (22%), college/career readiness (20%), met or exceeded (proficient) (18%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), and ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.

What are Bakersfield High's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 29.7% of students at Bakersfield High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 8.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 20.9% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 8.8% pushed past it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it reveals whether a school's curriculum challenges students beyond minimum proficiency or paces toward it. 1,332 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Bakersfield High rank in California?

Bakersfield High ranks #1,490 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 31st percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), chronic absenteeism, and suspension rate. Unlike single-number ratings, the Scope Score shows what drives the ranking so parents can decide what matters most to their family. See full methodology.

What is the attendance and school culture like at Bakersfield High?

19.5% of students at Bakersfield High are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 30.2%. The suspension rate is 9.7%. SchoolScope includes these culture metrics in the Scope Score because they reflect day-to-day school experience in ways test scores alone cannot.

How does Bakersfield High compare to other schools in Bakersfield?

Bakersfield High scores 39/100 (31st percentile) among California high schools. To compare with nearby schools, SchoolScope shows the same metrics side by side: exceeded rate, proficiency, growth trajectory, and school culture indicators. The school serves 3,069 students. Use the schools in Bakersfield page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

How does Bakersfield High serve low-income and underrepresented students?

At Bakersfield High in Bakersfield, 38.6% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 47.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Bakersfield High trails its district average for low-income students by 8.6 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (13.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (39.7% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 39.0 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 546 students tested. SchoolScope shows disaggregated test scores by demographic subgroup so you can see how a school performs for your child's specific group — not just the school-wide average. Subgroup data is context, not part of the Scope Score: we don't penalize schools for who they serve. See our equity approach.

What AP courses are offered at Bakersfield High?

Bakersfield High's teachers are authorized to teach 8 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers, per the 2025 - 2026 AP Course Audit: 3-D Art and Design, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Computer Science Principles, Environmental Science, Macroeconomics, Music Theory, U.S. Government and Politics. Authorization means the school may teach a course, not that a section is running this year, and it's separate from AP exam pass rates. Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, analyzed by SchoolScope.

How many students from Bakersfield High go to UC?

In fall 2025, 10 Bakersfield High graduates enrolled at University of California campuses, universitywide. That figure can't be split into a per-campus sum — students apply to several UC campuses at once, so campus-level counts don't add up to the universitywide total. UC is one destination among many: this says nothing about graduates who chose a CSU, a private college, a community college, or work, and it is a count, not a rate or a ranking. Data source: University of California Office of the President (UC Information Center), fall 2025 admissions cycle.

Your other options

All schools in Bakersfield →

Private alternatives nearby

Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.

A low score doesn't tell the whole story. Read: Your School Scored Low — Here's What That Actually Means

For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and nearest schools.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Graduation rate · 25%
81.1%
↓ vs CA 86.6% · 44th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
8.8%
↓ vs CA 15.8% · 42th pctile
College readiness · 20%
40.1%
↑ vs CA 33.9% · 54th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
29.7%
↓ vs CA 35.7% · 45th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
19.5%
↑ vs CA 30.2% · 59th pctile
▲ 1.4pp higher vs 2024
Suspension rate · 5%
9.7%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 23th pctile
→ no change vs 2024
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
5.8%
↓ vs CA 18.0% · 33th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 1166513%30%23%34%42%−6
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 116675%12%18%65%17%−7

We show the grade rows CDE publishes for this school. A missing grade or dash can mean the school does not serve that grade, no valid result was published, or the tested group was too small to report. It does not mean zero.

Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Schoolwide4425%19%62%15%

CAST is tested in grades 5 and 8, then once in grade 10, 11, or 12. This row is the school's all-student aggregate. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged54638.6%−9+0
Hispanic/Latino46039.7%−9+1
Black/African American9334.4%−3+2
03Nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score · Grade gap = grade 3 vs grade 5, this year, different students; Cohort growth = the same students tracked across grades, in scale-score points — that's the measurement the Scope Score weights
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Grade gapCohort growthSusp
Bakersfield High ←—398.8%29.7%——9.7%
West High2.8 mi419.2%33.2%——8.0%
Vista Continuation High1 mi210.0%7.0%——7.5%
Tierra Del Sol Continuation High2 mi190.4%2.8%——8.0%
California average—4715.8%35.7%——3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
81.1%
AP Exam Prepared
40.1%
A-G Completion
30.7%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
51.4%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrade gap
20194340#123610.4%36.0%14.6%8.6%—
20224137#132510.3%31.8%31.8%8.7%—
20234238#134310.4%32.9%24.6%10.3%—
20243932#14537.6%23.6%18.0%9.8%—
20253931#14908.8%29.7%19.5%9.7%—
Grade gap = this year's grade 3 vs grade 5 result, two different sets of students, not a trend for any one child — it is not the measurement the Scope Score's growth dimension uses. See §01 above and /methodology#verdicts for the school's actual scored (cohort) growth.
NO STATEWIDE TESTING 2020–21 (COVID) · SCORE AND PERCENTILE ARE RELATIVE TO EACH YEAR'S FIELD
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
Group20192025Δ
Female14.4%19.7%+5.3pp
Male14.3%18.7%+4.4pp
Asian13.6%8.3%-5.3pp
Black/African American16.8%26.2%+9.4pp
Filipino10.8%24.2%+13.4pp
White2.6%10.0%+7.4pp
Hispanic/Latino14.2%18.6%+4.4pp
American Indian/Alaska Native20.6%18.5%-2.1pp
Pacific Islander10.0%——
Two or More Races22.4%22.5%+0.1pp
Students with Disabilities30.8%27.7%-3.1pp
English Learners21.2%22.0%+0.8pp
Foster Youth31.0%31.8%+0.8pp
Homeless61.7%42.4%-19.3pp
Military-Connected13.0%19.7%+6.7pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged16.5%20.9%+4.4pp
All Students14.3%19.2%+4.9pp
06UC admissions, universitywide2014–2025 · summed across CEEB codes at query time
YearAppliedAdmittedEnrolledGPA (applied)GPA (admitted)GPA (enrolled)
20254840103.853.913.95
20247055213.803.913.94
20236441183.683.943.95
20224932153.723.923.99
20217547163.683.944.05
20204832153.573.773.82
20195937213.793.963.96
20184824163.583.984.00
20175334143.754.004.00
20166339193.633.913.86
20154124163.623.923.92
20143825113.653.893.92

‹n = UC masks counts below n · a missing year means zero or masked — never assume zero · GPA cells blank for years with more than one contributing CEEB code (a summed GPA would be fabricated math) · GPAs live here and nowhere else on this page · Applied/Admitted/Enrolled reflect who applied, not what the school taught — no admit rate is computed or implied by this table. Series shown from 2014; full record to 1994 at the UC Infocenter.

07UC admissions by campuslatest falls on file
CampusYearAppliedAdmittedEnrolled
Berkeley202524‹3‹3
Berkeley20243284
Berkeley2023327‹3
Berkeley20222554
Berkeley20213385
Davis20251910‹3
Davis20243117‹3
Davis20232213‹3
Davis2022229‹3
Davis202136163
Irvine2025236‹3
Irvine2024347‹3
Irvine2023388‹3
Irvine202225‹3‹3
Irvine2021216‹3
Los Angeles202529‹3‹3
Los Angeles2024403‹3
Los Angeles2023353‹3
Los Angeles202226‹3‹3
Los Angeles2021415‹3
Merced20251918‹3
Merced20241111‹3
Merced20231111‹3
Merced20221311‹3
Merced20211613‹3
Riverside20252219‹3
Riverside20241812‹3
Riverside202395‹3
Riverside202295‹3
Riverside2021134‹3
San Diego20252410‹3
San Diego202445255
San Diego202340196
San Diego20222016‹3
San Diego20213113‹3
Santa Barbara202526164
Santa Barbara202441194
Santa Barbara202338185
Santa Barbara202225185
Santa Barbara202150193
Santa Cruz20251612‹3
Santa Cruz20242818‹3
Santa Cruz20232415‹3
Santa Cruz2022189‹3
Santa Cruz20213015‹3
Universitywide2025484010
Universitywide2024705521
Universitywide2023644118
Universitywide2022493215
Universitywide2021754716

Σ campuses ≠ universitywide — students apply to several campuses; the Universitywide row (muted) is its own independent count, never a sum of the rows above it.

08AP course catalog2025 - 2026
SubjectTaught by
3-D Art and Designthis school
Calculus ABthis school
Calculus BCthis school
Computer Science Principlesthis school
Environmental Sciencethis school
Macroeconomicsthis school
Music Theorythis school
U.S. Government and Politicsthis school

Authorization ≠ a section running this year — the Ledger records what the school may teach, not seat counts.

09Advanced coursework — 2020-21 federal civil-rights snapshotstructural, dated — newest published; biennial
MeasureThis school
AP offeredoffered
AP course count13
AP enrollment435
IB participationnot offered
Dual enrollmentoffered · 507 enrolled
Algebra I in grade 8not reported
Calculus sections2
Physics sections4
Chemistry sections13
Total enrollment (CRDC)3,058

Shown, never scored — no entry to any composite. NULL/reserve codes render "not reported," never a fabricated zero. The equity block above this table (§4) is the per-subgroup view of this same collection.

10College destinationsclass of 2023 · CDE 12-mo College-Going Rate
DestinationCompleters% (derived)
University of California173.0%
California State University5810.4%
California community college18533.1%
In-state private91.6%
Out-of-state, 4-year173.0%
Out-of-state, 2-year10.2%
Not enrolled27148.6%

558 completers, class of 2023 · state-reported college-going rate 51% · % column is computed by SchoolScope (count ÷ completers), not a CDE-native rate · a missing cell is CDE suppression, never a fabricated zero · source: CDE 12-mo CGR, 2023 cohort (the newest published), National Student Clearinghouse match — a different, older vintage than the fall 2025 UC admissions rows in tables 06-07 above.

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EXC = exceeded standard · MET+ = met or exceeded ("proficient") · Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=2,160 high schools · Vintages: climate subgroups 2019+2025 · district finance per its label · ACS 2022 · UC Infocenter (annual refresh, summer) — ‹5/‹3 = masked, never summed across campuses · AP Course Ledger 2025 - 2026 (November refresh; authorization not enrollment) · CRDC 2020-21 (biennial; next expected 2021-22) · CDE 12-mo CGR 2023 cohort, National Student Clearinghouse match · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue

SchoolScope scores and verdicts are our interpretation of public California Department of Education data — independent analysis, not an official rating. How we analyze · Request a correction

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