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Escondido High · Escondido

Escondido High: High scores, healthy climate, strong attendance. We looked for a catch — we didn't find one.

Escondido posts 17.8% exceeding the standard — versus 15.8% statewide — with climate numbers better than most. That doesn't make it perfect. It makes it worth a visit to find what numbers can't measure.

1535 North Broadway, 92026 (opens in new tab)·Escondido Union High·Escondido·Grades 9-12·1,656 students·83% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(760) 291-4000·Website
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope4844
% Exceeded18%16%
% Met+40%36%
Grad rate84.4%87.6%
College readiness74.0%35.4%
Absence23.5%30.2%
Suspension6.1%3.6%
Scope Score
48
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #894 statewide · #5 of 8 in Escondido Union High

Escondido High scores 48 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 59th 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.

Most rating sites would stop at “40% proficient” and call it done. Escondido deserves a closer read. The school sits in Escondido, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

Escondido's low-income kids hit 60.0% proficiency in ELA — a number the same group reaches at 38.2% statewide. If you're trying to read past zip-code-driven test scores, that's the signal worth weighing.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,160 high schools statewide

Has stayed near the 59th percentile since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELAYellow(Declined Significantly)MathYellow(Declined Significantly)

Proficiency here is back to its pre-pandemic level — 40% meet the standard, about where the school stood in 2019.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1160%47%58%60%61%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1120%14%12%21%20%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
40%
State 36%
Graduate
84%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
74%
State 35%

Of 100 students here: 40 are proficient by 11th grade → 84 graduate → 74 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

60.0%
Low-income · ELA · met standard

Escondido's most underrated number

60.0% of low-income students met the ELA standard — versus 38.2% for the same group statewide. That's the strongest kind of signal a school can post: it holds across income lines.

Escondido low-income: 60.0%State low-income: 38.2%Escondido EL: 18.5%State EL: 10.4%

The 7 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
84.4%
State 87.6%
3.2pp below state avg
Exceeded standard
17.8%
State 15.8%
1.9pp above state avg
College readiness
74.0%
State 35.4%
AP exam pass rate above state avg
Met or exceeded
40.3%
State 35.7%
4.6pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
23.5%
State 30.2%
6.7pp below state avg
Suspension rate
6.1%
State 3.6%
2.5pp above state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
8.8%
State 18.0%
9.2pp 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 whether extra support — tutoring, counseling, small groups — reaches kids across income lines, not just the students already ahead.
  • 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 Escondido High in Escondido, 60.0% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 51.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Escondido High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 8.8 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (18.2% Math proficient); Hispanic students (58.5% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 42.8 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 305 students tested.

All students at this school: 40% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 40%, district —, state 36%40%
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 39%, district 34%, state 32%39% · −1 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 38%, district 32%, state 32%38% · −3 vs school
MaleMale: this school 35%, district 35%, state 42%35% · −5 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 46%, district 41%, state 44%46% · +6 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 10%, district 5%, state 11%10% · −31 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 11%, district 11%, state 15%11% · −29 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 55%, district 61%, state 56%55% · +15 vs school
HomelessHomeless: this school 18%, district 20%, state 22%18% · −22 vs school

7 of 16 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 23.5%, district 22.4%, state 30.2%23.5% · −6.7pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 6.1%, district —, state 3.6%6.1% · +2.5pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1223.2%

Where the path goes

The path below is estimated from nearby schools in the same district — scores shown for each next step.

Estimated K-12 Path
High
Escondido High
48
This school

Estimated K-12 path based on district and proximity. Actual attendance zones may differ. 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 18:1, district 21:118:1
Teaching staff95 teachers
Avg. experience16.7 years
Fully credentialed79%
First-year teachers2%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$64,175 – $137,909
Principal salary$0 – $194,134
Superintendent salary$288,519

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course Breadth
AP courses offered35
AP exam qualifiers188 students
CTE pathway completers95 students

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $23,590, CA average $14,815$23,590 · spent at this school
Federal share$1,164 per student

$1,164 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$23,884 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
Instruction51%
Instruction support19%
Student services10%
Administration7%
Buildings & maintenance11%
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$15,874 per pupil
2019$14,487 per pupil
2018$14,895 per pupil
2017$10,600 per pupil
2016$10,146 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Hispanic80.6%
District 65.9% · CA 56.1%
White11.6%
District 23.6% · CA 19.9%
Other3.2%
District 5.6% · CA 9.0%
Asian3.0%
District 3.2% · CA 10.2%
Black1.6%
District 1.7% · CA 4.8%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 82.7% (19pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$105K · CA $85K
Median home value$714K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+34% · CA 35%
ZIP population53,075
Median age40 years

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

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 23% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 but never enters the Scope Score.

Frequently asked questions

Is Escondido High a good high school?

Escondido High has a Scope Score of 48 out of 100, placing it in the 59th percentile of California high schools and ranked #894 statewide. 17.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is near 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 Escondido High's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 40.3% of students at Escondido High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 17.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 22.6% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 17.8% 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. 707 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Escondido High rank in California?

Escondido High ranks #894 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 59th 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 Escondido High?

23.5% of students at Escondido 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 6.1%. 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 Escondido High compare to other schools in Escondido?

Escondido High scores 48/100 (59th 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 1,656 students. Use the schools in Escondido page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

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

At Escondido High in Escondido, 60.0% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 51.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Escondido High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 8.8 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (18.2% Math proficient); Hispanic students (58.5% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 42.8 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 305 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 peer comparisons.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Graduation rate · 25%
84.4%
↓ vs CA 87.6% · 46th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
17.8%
↑ vs CA 15.8% · 52th pctile
College readiness · 20%
74.0%
↑ vs CA 35.4% · 72th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
40.3%
↑ vs CA 35.7% · 53th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
23.5%
↑ vs CA 30.2% · 55th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
6.1%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 39th pctile
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
8.8%
↓ vs CA 18.0% · 38th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 1135128%33%19%20%61%+14
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 113567%12%22%58%20%−4
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/113771%22%67%10%

CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged30560.0%+9+22
Hispanic/Latino28758.5%+9+20
English Learners8118.5%+10+8
03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Escondido High ←4817.8%40.3%6.1%
Classical Academy High1.5 mi6732.1%61.4%0.6%
Escondido Charter High2.2 mi6631.4%61.9%1.0%
California average4415.8%35.7%3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
84.4%
AP Exam Prepared
74.0%
A-G Completion
43.3%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
60.7%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrowth
20195263#76214.6%39.7%15.3%2.7%
20224553#9779.6%30.5%39.1%4.4%
20234658#91313.6%35.0%33.4%7.0%
20245067#70218.7%40.5%29.5%3.4%
20254859#89417.8%40.3%23.5%6.1%
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
Female15.8%21.5%+5.7pp
Male14.3%24.7%+10.4pp
Asian8.2%8.0%-0.2pp
Black/African American15.3%27.6%+12.3pp
White9.3%3.3%-6.0pp
Hispanic/Latino14.7%24.0%+9.3pp
Students with Disabilities25.3%28.2%+2.9pp
English Learners19.9%33.2%+13.3pp
Foster Youth57.1%
Homeless41.5%38.9%-2.6pp
Military-Connected5.3%
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged15.4%23.7%+8.3pp
All Students15.0%23.2%+8.2pp
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 · 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