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Grossmont Middle College High · El Cajon

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

Grossmont Middle College posts 53.3% 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.

8800 Grossmont College Drive, 92020 (opens in new tab)·Grossmont Union High·El Cajon·Grades 11-12·37 students·27% low-income·Magnet·2024–25 CAASPP·(619) 644-7524·Website
Magnet program — specialized public school with themed curriculum. Enrollment via district lottery, not neighborhood-based.
Alternative school — serves students who benefit from a non-traditional educational setting. Scores are not directly comparable to comprehensive schools.
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope7144
% Exceeded53%16%
% Met+90%36%
Grad rate91.7%87.6%
College readiness55.6%35.4%
Absence26.1%30.2%
Suspension1.8%3.6%
Scope Score
71
⭐ High Ceiling · Strong
ranked #98 statewide · #2 of 16 in Grossmont Union High

Grossmont Middle College High scores 71 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 95th 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 →

⭐ High Ceiling — Ask what happens for a kid who shows up behind — a high ceiling for the top can sit right next to thin support at the bottom, and the score alone won't show you which.

CDE CAASPP 2025

Most rating sites would stop at “90% proficient” and call it done. Grossmont Middle College deserves a closer read. The school sits in El Cajon, where one in four students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The headline number: 53.3% of students scored in the top band on the state test. The California average is 15.8%.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,160 high schools statewide

Has held the 95th-percentile line every tested year since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELARed(Declined Significantly)MathBlue(Increased Significantly)

The pandemic drop is behind this school: 90% of students meet the standard today, above the 84% who did in 2019.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 11100%96%82%82%93%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1168%76%41%71%87%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
90%
State 36%
Graduate
92%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
56%
State 35%

Of 100 students here: 90 are proficient by 11th grade → 92 graduate → 56 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 6 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
91.7%
State 87.6%
4.1pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
53.3%
State 15.8%
37.5pp above state avg
College readiness
55.6%
State 35.4%
AP exam pass rate above state avg
Met or exceeded
90.0%
State 35.7%
54.3pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
26.1%
State 30.2%
4.1pp below state avg
Suspension rate
1.8%
State 3.6%
1.8pp 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 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

All students at this school: 90% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 90%, district —, state 36%90%
WhiteWhite: this school 86%, district 46%, state 56%86% · −4 vs school

6 of 8 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 26.1%, district 25.7%, state 30.2%26.1% · −4.1pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 1.8%, district —, state 3.6%1.8% · −1.8pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1220.5%

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
Elementary
The Learning Choice Acade…
41
→
Middle
The Learning Choice Acade…
41
→
High
Grossmont Middle College …
71
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 19:1, district 23:119:1
Teaching staff4 teachers
Avg. experience21.5 years
Fully credentialed80%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$60,339 – $126,286
Principal salary$0 – $184,237
Superintendent salary$310,000

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course Breadth
AP courses offered0
AP exam qualifiers10 students
CTE pathway completers1 students

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $23,780, CA average $14,815$23,780 · spent at this school
Federal share$524 per student

$524 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$21,618 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
Instruction59%
Instruction support12%
Student services11%
Administration7%
Buildings & maintenance10%
Other1%

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$15,094 per pupil
2019$14,426 per pupil
2018$14,539 per pupil
2017$10,759 per pupil
2016$10,591 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

White73.0%
District 36.9% · CA 19.9%
Hispanic13.5%
District 44.5% · CA 56.1%
Other13.5%
District 9.4% · CA 9.0%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 27.0% (37pp below CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$76K · CA $85K
Median home value$813K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+27% · CA 35%
ZIP population57,842
Median age37 years

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

Worth Knowing

At 37 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California high school (≈1450).

On the state's science test (CAST), 75% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 but never enters the Scope Score.

Frequently asked questions

Is Grossmont Middle College High a good high school?

Grossmont Middle College High has a Scope Score of 71 out of 100, placing it in the 95th percentile of California high schools and ranked #98 statewide. 53.3% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 37.5 percentage points above 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 Grossmont Middle College High's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 90.0% of students at Grossmont Middle College High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 53.3% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 36.7% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 53.3% 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. 30 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Grossmont Middle College High rank in California?

Grossmont Middle College High ranks #98 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 95th 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 Grossmont Middle College High?

26.1% of students at Grossmont Middle College 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 1.8%, 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 Grossmont Middle College High compare to other schools in El Cajon?

Grossmont Middle College High scores 71/100 (95th 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 37 students. Use the schools in El Cajon page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

Your other options

All schools in El Cajon →

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%
91.7%
↑ vs CA 87.6% · 55th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
53.3%
↑ vs CA 15.8% · 90th pctile
College readiness · 20%
55.6%
↑ vs CA 35.4% · 62th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
90.0%
↑ vs CA 35.7% · 89th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
26.1%
↑ vs CA 30.2% · 53th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
1.8%
↑ vs CA 3.6% · 58th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 111567%27%7%0%93%+46
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 111540%47%0%13%87%+63
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/111250%25%25%0%

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

03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Grossmont Middle College High ←—7153.3%90.0%—1.8%
West Hills High2.4 mi6331.2%60.1%—2.5%
Grossmont High2.7 mi4720.5%40.6%—3.6%
IDEA Center1.7 mi194.3%20.5%—4.8%
California average—4415.8%35.7%—3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
91.7%
AP Exam Prepared
55.6%
A-G Completion
77.3%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
92.3%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrowth
20197294#12452.2%83.9%20.6%3.7%—
20227497#6668.0%86.0%22.0%1.6%—
20236086#29534.3%61.4%20.6%1.7%—
20246894#12151.0%76.6%25.9%1.7%—
20257195#9853.3%90.0%26.1%1.8%—
NO STATEWIDE TESTING 2020–21 (COVID) · SCORE AND PERCENTILE ARE RELATIVE TO EACH YEAR'S FIELD
What we can't show
  • — Subgroup results are suppressed for small student counts (fewer than 15 tested), following CDE privacy rules.
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
Group20192025Δ
Female22.0%28.6%+6.6pp
Male11.1%11.1%+0.0pp
Hispanic/Latino5.0%——
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged13.3%27.3%+14.0pp
All Students17.6%20.5%+2.9pp
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

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