School Profile · Sonora
Dario Cassina High: The scores are below where anyone wants them. Here's what they don't tell you.
Dario Cassina posts low test scores — and test scores are one lens among several. If this is your zoned school, the numbers below are where to start a conversation, not where to end one.
251 South Barretta Street, 95370 (opens in new tab)·Sonora Union High·Sonora·Grades 10-12·44 students·75% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(209) 532-1587·Website
Continuation school — a small alternative high school designed for students at risk of not graduating. Focuses on credit recovery and flexible scheduling. Test scores and college-readiness rates are not directly comparable to comprehensive high schools.
Scope Score
22
🌱 Building Momentum · Needs Support
ranked #1,929 statewide · #3 of 3 in Sonora Union High
Dario Cassina High scores 22 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 11th 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 →
Most rating sites would stop at “14% proficient” and call it done. Dario Cassina deserves a closer read. The school sits in Sonora, where three in four students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.
Test scores are one lens, and at this school they're a rough one right now. The sections below show the fuller picture — including the parts that are working.
The story this school is actually telling
Proficient by 11th grade
14%
State 36%
Graduate
80%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
0%
State 35%
Of 100 students here: 14 are proficient by 11th grade → 80 graduate → 0 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.
The 6 things our score weighs
Graduation rate
80.0%
State 87.6%
7.6pp below state avg
Exceeded standard
4.0%
State 15.8%
11.8pp below state avg
College readiness
0.0%
State 35.4%
AP exam pass rate below state avg
Met or exceeded
14.0%
State 35.7%
21.7pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
58.0%
State 30.2%
27.8pp above state avg
Suspension rate
15.0%
State 3.6%
11.4pp above state avg
Worth a school visit
Ask what changed in the last two years, and what the school is asking families for. Growth shows up in these numbers a year or two after it shows up in classrooms.
Where the path goes
The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.
Your other options
Nearby High Schools
2 within ~3 mi · avg 43
Sonora High
Sonora Union High · 0.7 mi
Solid
52/100
Theodore Bird High
Sonora Union High · 0.1 mi
Developing
33/100
Nearby Elementary Schools
2 within ~3 mi · avg 31
Sonora Elementary
Sonora Elementary · 0.6 mi
Developing
37/100
Jamestown Elementary
Jamestown Elementary · 2.8 mi
Needs Support
26/100
Private alternatives nearby
Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.
The community around it
Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope ScoreStudent demographics
Hispanic20.4%
White68.2%
Other11.4%
GenderFemale 31.8%Male 65.9%Non-binary 2.3%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 75.0% (11pp above CA avg)
Resources & Access
Enrollment
44
1,406 below CA avg (~1,450)
Student-Teacher Ratio
15:1
6 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$24,380
District avg: $13,587 · CA avg: $14,815 · School-level · CDE ESSA
At Dario Cassina High in Sonora, 27.3% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 43.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Dario Cassina High trails its district average for low-income students by 16.4 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (0.0% Math proficient); White students (26.7% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 22 students tested.
Equity Gaps
Absenteeism · Disabilities+17.0pp
75.0% vs 58.0% overall · n=24
Suspension · Hispanic+18.3pp
33.3% vs 15.0% overall · n=15
Subgroups with fewer than 15 students are excluded for privacy. Gaps of less than 3 percentage points are not shown.
Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income22 tested
ELA 27.3%·Math 0.0%· -16.4pp vs district
White15 tested
ELA 26.7%·Math 0.0%· -26.9pp vs district
Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.
Funding Breakdown
Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$83K
$2K below CA median
Median Home Value
$448K
$211K below CA median
Bachelor's+
26%
9pp below CA avg
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
21.3 years avg experience
3 teachers
Teacher Credentials
47% fully credentialed
Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25
Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →
Frequently asked questions
Is Dario Cassina High a good high school?
Dario Cassina High has a Scope Score of 22 out of 100, placing it in the 11th percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,929 statewide. 4.0% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 11.8 percentage points below the California average of 15.8%. The Scope Score weights six dimensions for high schools: exceeded standard (43%), met or exceeded (22%), grade 3-to-5 growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are Dario Cassina High's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 14.0% of students at Dario Cassina High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 4.0% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 10.0% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 4.0% 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. 50 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Dario Cassina High rank in California?
Dario Cassina High ranks #1,929 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 11th 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 Dario Cassina High?
58.0% of students at Dario Cassina High are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 30.2%. The suspension rate is 15.0%. 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 Dario Cassina High compare to other schools in Sonora?
Dario Cassina High scores 22/100 (11th 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 44 students. Use the schools in Sonora page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
How does Dario Cassina High serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Dario Cassina High in Sonora, 27.3% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 43.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Dario Cassina High trails its district average for low-income students by 16.4 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (0.0% Math proficient); White students (26.7% ELA proficient). Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 22 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.
A low score doesn't tell the whole story. Read: Your School Scored Low — Here's What That Actually Means
For the data nerdsEvery number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
For the data nerds
Every number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Graduation rate · 25%
80.0%
↓ vs CA 87.6% · 41th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
4.0%
↓ vs CA 15.8% · 37th pctile
College readiness · 20%
0.0%
↓ vs CA 35.4% · 29th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
14.0%
↓ vs CA 35.7% · 35th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
58.0%
↓ vs CA 30.2% · 27th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
15.0%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 0th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
| ELA | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 25 | 8% | 20% | 24% | 48% | 28% | −19 |
| Math | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 25 | 0% | 0% | 8% | 92% | 0% | −23 |
| Science (CAST) | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5/8/11 | 26 | 4% | 4% | 58% | 35% |
CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.
| Subgroup · ELA | Tested | MET+ | vs district | vs CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socioeconomically Disadvantaged | 22 | 27.3% | −16 | −11 |
| White | 15 | 26.7% | −27 | −35 |
03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
| School | Dist | Scope | EXC | MET+ | Growth | Susp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dario Cassina High ← | — | 22 | 4.0% | 14.0% | — | 15.0% |
| Sonora High | 0.7 mi | 52 | 18.9% | 47.4% | — | 8.4% |
| Theodore Bird High | 0.1 mi | 33 | 2.4% | 14.9% | — | 1.0% |
| California average | — | 44 | 15.8% | 35.7% | — | 3.6% |
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
80.0%
AP Exam Prepared
Not offered
This school may not offer AP courses
A-G Completion
0.0%
This school may not offer A-G courses
College-Going Rate
22.9%
Scope Score history
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #1852 → #1925 → #1997 → #1959 → #1929
What we can't show
- — Low-income students here trail the state average for their group by 11 points in ELA — worth asking how the school is closing that gap.
Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=2,160 high schools · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue