ExploreMapCompareBlogSign in
Delta Charter · AptosCharter

Delta Charter: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.

Delta Charter posts 13% meeting the standard and 6.1% exceeding it, against 43% and 19.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.

6500 Soquel Drive Bldg 500, 95003 (opens in new tab)·Santa Cruz City High·Aptos·Grades 9-12·113 students·39% low-income·Charter·2024–25 CAASPP·(831) 477-5212·Website
Charter school — publicly funded, independently operated, open enrollment via lottery. Learn more
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope3654
% Exceeded6%20%
% Met+13%43%
Grad rate95.7%92.5%
College readiness0.0%43.0%
Absence40.5%23.1%
Suspension1.6%3.3%
Scope Score
36
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,543 statewide · #5 of 5 in Santa Cruz City High

Delta Charter scores 36 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 29th percentile of 1,647 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.

Most rating sites would stop at “13% proficient” and call it done. Delta Charter deserves a closer read. The school sits in Aptos, where one in three students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

As a charter, Delta Charter enrolls by application rather than address. That changes how you get in, but it doesn't change the score.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 1,647 high schools statewide

Has stayed near the 29th percentile since 2019.

ELAOrange(Increased)MathOrange(Increased)

This school hasn't fully recovered from the pandemic: 13% meet the standard today, versus 18% in 2019 — a gap worth asking about on a visit.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1130%31%28%27%24%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 117%7%5%8%2%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
13%
State 43%
Graduate
96%
State 92%
Pass an AP exam
0%
State 43%

Of 100 students here: 13 are proficient by 11th grade → 96 graduate → 0 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 6 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
95.7%
State 92.5%
3.2pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
6.1%
State 19.8%
13.7pp below state avg
College readiness
0.0%
State 43.0%
AP course or exam readiness below state avg
Met or exceeded
13.4%
State 43.2%
29.8pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
40.5%
State 23.1%
17.4pp above state avg
Suspension rate
1.6%
State 3.3%
1.7pp 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 how the school follows up when a student starts missing days — chronic absence often starts outside the classroom, not inside it.
  • 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 Delta Charter in Aptos, 13.3% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 41.0% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Delta Charter trails its district average for low-income students by 27.7 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: White students (28.6% ELA proficient); White students (4.8% Math proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 11.1 percentage points for low-income students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 15 students tested.

All students at this school: 13% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 13%, district —, state 43%13%
FemaleFemale: this school 18%, district 53%, state 44%18% · +5 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 17%, district 65%, state 56%17% · +3 vs school
MaleMale: this school 6%, district 48%, state 42%6% · −7 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 10%, district 30%, state 32%10% · −3 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 11%, district 30%, state 32%11% · −3 vs school

5 of 11 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

this school district, same group California, same group

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 40.5%, district 23.9%, state 23.1%40.5% · +17.4pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 1.6%, district —, state 3.3%1.6% · −1.7pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1243.7%

Where the path goes

The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.

K-12 Feeder Path
Elementary
No feeder data available for this level
High School
Delta CharterCharter
36/100
This school

Estimated path based on proximity within the same district. Contact your school district for official feeder information.

The people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 14:1, district 21:114:1
PrincipalJen Raanan
Teaching staff9 teachers
Avg. experience15.2 years
Fully credentialed55%
Course Breadth

What gets spent here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $14,106, CA average $14,491$14,106 · spent at this school
Federal share$84 per student

$84 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Context — never part of the Scope Score
White53.1%
District 47.1% · CA 19.9%
Hispanic38.9%
District 40.8% · CA 56.1%
Other7.1%
District 9.4% · CA 9.0%
Black0.9%
District 1.1% · CA 4.8%
GenderFemale 54.9%Male 43.4%Non-binary 1.8%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 38.9% (25pp below CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$148K · CA $85K
Median home value$1.20M · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+56% · CA 35%
ZIP population24,951
Median age48 years

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

Worth Knowing

At 113 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California high school (≈1450).

On the state's science test (CAST), 15% 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 Delta Charter a good high school?

Delta Charter has a Scope Score of 36 out of 100, placing it in the 29th percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,543 statewide. 6.1% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 13.7 percentage points below the California average of 19.8%. 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 Delta Charter's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 13.4% of students at Delta Charter met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 6.1% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 7.3% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 6.1% 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. 82 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Delta Charter rank in California?

Delta Charter ranks #1,543 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 29th 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 Delta Charter?

40.5% of students at Delta Charter are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 23.1%. The suspension rate is 1.6%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. 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 Delta Charter compare to other schools in Aptos?

Delta Charter scores 36/100 (29th 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 113 students. Use the schools in Aptos page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

How does Delta Charter serve low-income and underrepresented students?

At Delta Charter in Aptos, 13.3% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 41.0% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Delta Charter trails its district average for low-income students by 27.7 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: White students (28.6% ELA proficient); White students (4.8% Math proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 11.1 percentage points for low-income students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 15 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.

Your other options

Private alternatives nearby

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


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%
95.7%
↑ vs CA 92.5% · 60th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
6.1%
↓ vs CA 19.8% · 40th pctile
College readiness · 20%
0.0%
↓ vs CA 43.0% · 31th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
13.4%
↓ vs CA 43.2% · 34th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
40.5%
↓ vs CA 23.1% · 42th pctile
▲ 2.5pp higher vs 2024
Suspension rate · 5%
1.6%
↑ vs CA 3.3% · 59th pctile
▼ 1.9pp lower vs 2024
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 114110%15%44%32%24%−24
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 11412%0%24%73%2%−21

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
Schoolwide785%10%69%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 Disadvantaged1513.3%−28−25
White2128.6%−47−33
03Nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score · Grade gap = grade 3 vs grade 5, this year, different students; Cohort growth = one school's returning cohort tracked across grades (mostly, not exactly, the same kids), in scale-score points — that's the measurement the Scope Score weights
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Grade gapCohort growthSusp
Delta Charter ←366.1%13.4%1.6%
Soquel High1.8 mi6421.6%53.4%1.3%
California average5419.8%43.2%3.3%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
95.7%
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
51.4%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrade gap
20193429#14513.0%18.5%40.6%7.9%
20223630#14693.8%19.1%44.7%3.4%
20233629#15272.5%16.6%41.7%2.4%
20243730#15025.4%17.5%38.0%3.4%
20253629#15436.1%13.4%40.5%1.6%
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
What we can't show
  • — Low-income students here trail the state average for their group by 25 points in ELA — worth asking how the school is closing that gap.
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
Group20192025Δ
Female50.7%43.7%-7.0pp
Male44.7%43.4%-1.3pp
Hispanic/Latino56.3%50.0%-6.3pp
Students with Disabilities44.0%48.0%+4.0pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged58.7%46.0%-12.7pp
All Students47.4%43.7%-3.7pp
09Advanced coursework — 2020-21 federal civil-rights snapshotstructural, dated — newest published; biennial
MeasureThis school
AP offerednot offered
AP course countnot reported
AP enrollmentnot reported
IB participationnot offered
Dual enrollmentoffered · 15 enrolled
Algebra I in grade 8not reported
Calculus sections0
Physics sections0
Chemistry sections0
Total enrollment (CRDC)109

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 California00.0%
California State University12.9%
California community college1748.6%
In-state private00.0%
Out-of-state, 4-year00.0%
Out-of-state, 2-year00.0%
Not enrolled1748.6%

35 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.

Embed this scorecard
<iframe
  src="https://schoolscope.co/embed/school/delta-charter-0187"
  width="100%" height="210" loading="lazy"
  style="border:0;border-radius:12px"
  title="Delta Charter — SchoolScope scorecard">
</iframe>

Free to embed with the credit link. Data updates automatically.

EXC = exceeded standard · MET+ = met or exceeded ("proficient") · Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=1,647 high schools · Vintages: climate subgroups 2019+2025 · district finance per its label · ACS 2022 · 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