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Charter high school

High Tech High Mesa

San Diego, CA · Grades 9-12 · 435 students · SBC - High Tech High

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

90% of tested students are Proficient or Advanced in English and 49% in math. 99.0% graduate in four years. Explore the evidence alongside the opportunities your child would use.

SchoolScope archetype

Strong All-Around

What this means for your family

Ask about what we don't score — class size, electives, the feel of a classroom — strong numbers everywhere on paper don't mean every classroom feels the same.

How archetypes are assigned →

Contact

Math

49%

Grade 11 · Proficient or Advanced

English

90%

Grade 11 · Proficient or Advanced

Students

435

Total enrollment

Graduation

99.0%

Four-year graduation rate

What are you trying to decide?

The overall score is a starting point.

Look at subject results, trends and student groups, then consider the opportunities your child would use.

View school performance →

Academic performance

What do the results tell us?

2025 results · Grade 11 · weighted by students tested within each subject.

Proficient or Advanced combines Levels 3 and 4, formerly Standard Met and Standard Exceeded. California changed the names for 2025–26; the cut scores did not. About the labels →

Share at Proficient or Advanced

0%25%50%75%100%2022: 29%2023: 28%2024: 41%2025: 49%2022: 65%2023: 72%2024: 78%2025: 90%20222023202420250%25%50%75%100%2022: 29%2023: 28%2024: 41%2025: 49%2022: 65%2023: 72%2024: 78%2025: 90%2022202320242025
● Math┄ English

Gaps in the lines mark years without annual results.

Exact annual results
YearMathEnglish
202229%65%
202328%72%
202441%78%
202549%90%

Each year describes that year’s tested students. Changes between years do not follow the same children over time. Cohort-growth evidence, when available, is labeled separately below.

Annual results and the full academic record
Is it getting better · CAASPP 2022 to 2025

Climbed from the 52nd to the 79th percentile since 2022 — past roughly 400 high schools.

Most rating sites would stop at “69% proficient” and call it done. High Tech High Mesa deserves a closer read. Two in five of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch (California: 64%) — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

High Tech High Mesa's low-income kids hit 77.5% 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.

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

98 tested · 1 of 1 grade published

High Tech High Mesa scores 64 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 79th percentile of 1,647 California high schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Percentile among 1,647 high schools statewide
Year detailsYear2022 · 52nd percentile · Scope Score 52 of 1002023 · 55th percentile · Scope Score 54 of 1002024 · 71st percentile · Scope Score 60 of 1002025 · 79th percentile · Scope Score 64 of 100
ELABlue(Increased Significantly)MathGreen(Increased Significantly)
ShowHide the by-grade tables, year by year
ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade2022202320242025
Grade 1165%72%78%90%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade2022202320242025
Grade 1129%28%41%49%
Where students land · CAASPP 2024–25

Two-thirds of students here meet the standard. Two in five clear it by a lot.

ELA90% met or exceeded
Exceeded 59%Met 31%Nearly Met 4%Not Met 6%
Math49% met or exceeded
Exceeded 26%Met 23%Nearly Met 22%Not Met 29%
Exceeded Met Nearly Met Not Met
California high schools · average20% exceeded · 43% met or exceeded
This school against the California average
2022–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
Scope% Exceeded% Met+Grad rateCollege readinessAbsenceSuspension
This school6442%69%99.0%0.0%18.7%1.1%
CA average · High School5420%43%92.5%43.0%23.1%3.3%
This schoolCA avg
Scope6454
% Exceeded42%20%
% Met+69%43%
Grad rate99.0%92.5%
College readiness0.0%43.0%
Absence18.7%23.1%
Suspension1.1%3.3%

Students & opportunity

Who shares in the school’s results?

Who it works for · CAASPP 2024–25

Low-income students here meet the ELA standard ahead of the same group statewide.

77.5% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard — versus 38.2% for the same group statewide. This comparison does not tell us what caused the difference.

Met or exceeded · reading and math combined
All students at this school: 69% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 69%, district —, state 43%69%
MaleMale: this school 73%, district —, state 42%73% · +4 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 66%, district —, state 44%66% · −4 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 54%, district —, state 32%54% · −16 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 76%, district —, state 56%76% · +7 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 50%, district —, state 32%50% · −19 vs school
AsianAsian: this school 84%, district —, state 72%84% · +15 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 50%, district —, state 15%50% · −19 vs school
Black/African AmericanBlack/African American: too few students to report‹11
FilipinoFilipino: too few students to report‹11
American Indian/Alaska NativeAmerican Indian/Alaska Native: too few students to report‹11
English LearnersEnglish Learners: too few students to report‹11
this school district, same group California, same group
ShowHide California's growth model by student group

No student-group growth record is available for this school in this data release.

Where graduates go

What happens after high school?

76%

Enrolled in college within a year

Class of 2023 · 74 of 97 completers · includes community colleges

97Completers
52%
Other colleges50 completers · Outside the California community college system
25%
California community colleges24 completers · Enrolled within a year
24%
Not recorded enrolled23 completers · No college enrollment in this reporting window

Destination data describes this earlier graduating class, separately from current-year test results and graduation. Percentages are rounded.

College destinations and the full graduate record
Where graduates go · 2024–25

Where graduates go

Context — never part of the Scope Score

76%
College-going rate, class of 2023

Where they went after graduation

Of High Tech High Mesa's class of 2023, 76% 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: 97 completers, 76% enrolled somewhere within a year

University of California 10 (10%)California State University 22 (23%)California community college 24 (25%)In-state private 8 (8%)Out-of-state, 4-year 10 (10%)Out-of-state, 2-year 0 (0%)Not enrolled 23 (24%)

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 High Tech High Mesa's 101 graduates enrolled in the University of California system — Santa Barbara the most common landing, with 3 enrollees.

Applied57fall 2025, universitywide
Admitted44
Enrolled10
ShowHide the UC campus list
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 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, 76% of this class's predecessors enrolled in college somewhere within a year. More of the class of 2023 enrolled at community colleges (24) than at UC (10).

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 daily experience

What is it like to be a student here?

Students per teacher

Student–teacher ratio is a schoolwide staffing measure, not an average class size.

The people teaching · CDE staffing 2024–25

About 22 students for every teacher here.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Students per teacher22 · district 21
Teaching staff25 teachers
Avg. experience5.3 years
First-year teachers20%
PrincipalBrett Peterson
Attendance & discipline · 2024–25

Kids here show up more, and get suspended less, than the state average.

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 18.7%, district 14.6%, state 23.1%18.7% · −4.4pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 1.1%, district —, state 3.3%1.1% · −2.2pp vs state
This schoolDistrictCalifornia

Resources & neighborhood

What sits behind the school experience?

The neighborhood · ACS 2024

Two in five of students here qualify for free or reduced lunch, versus three in five statewide.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Worth knowing

At 435 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California high school (≈1450).

On the state's science test (CAST), 45% 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.

Hispanic or Latino38.9% · district 55.1% · CA 56.1%
White37.9% · district 22.5% · CA 19.9%
Asian11.3% · district 8.6% · CA 10.2%
Black3.7% · district 3.5% · CA 4.8%
Other8.3% · district 10.3% · CA 9.0%
Free or reduced lunch40.5% · CA 64%
Median income$100K · CA $85K
Median home value$818K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+46% · CA 35%
ZIP population45,249
Median age39 years

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

Culture & philosophy

What is the school’s approach?

School-stated approach · questions for your visit

Look beyond the brochure

A source-reviewed culture summary is not available for this profile yet. Ask how teaching, student support and family communication work day to day.

Read the school’s own website ↗

Family voices

What would you want another family to know about the daily experience here?

Ask a current family: “When your child needs help, how does the school respond?”

Educator voices

What should families understand about teaching, support and the school community?

Ask an educator: “How do you adapt a typical day for children with different needs?”

Bring these questions on a visit →

Compare nearby schools

What are the alternatives?

Compare schools serving the same grade stage. Private schools have no comparable state-test score.

2025 · high schools · combined reading and math measures. Percentiles compare schools within their enrollment group.

Private options →
SchoolTypePerformance bandAdvancedProficient or AdvancedDistanceSelect
High Tech High MesaCharterStrong42%69%School being viewed
School for Entrepreneurship and TechnologyCharterStrong39%69%2.0 mi
Kearny College ConnectionsPublicSolid32%57%1.7 mi
Kearny School of Biomedical Science and TechnologyPublicSolid21%49%1.7 mi
Open the comparison tool →
More nearby public and private options
Your other options

Your other options

Nearby public schools across grade levels, plus private options within 10 miles.

All schools in San Diego →

Private schools do not receive a Scope Score or statewide ranking on SchoolScope.

13 private schools within 10 miles
Not scored
What should I check before applying?
District public
Confirm the attendance boundary and any permit options.
Charter
Check applications, priorities and deadlines with each school.
Private
Confirm admission requirements, tuition and financial aid.

Moving & enrollment

Which schools could serve my child?

Check enrollment with this charter school

Ask the school about applications, priorities and deadlines for your child’s grade.

School website →

Schools across the K–12 journey

Source: proximity. Schools are grouped by grade stage. Nearby schools are not confirmed feeder links or address assignments. Verify the current path and eligibility with the district.

Charter enrollment details

Plan your next step

What should I do next?

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 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.
Questions

Frequently asked questions

Is High Tech High Mesa a good high school?
High Tech High Mesa has a Scope Score of 64 out of 100, placing it in the 79th percentile of California high schools and ranked #348 statewide. 42.4% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 22.5 percentage points above 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 High Tech High Mesa's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 69.4% of students at High Tech High Mesa met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 42.4% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 27.0% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 42.4% went beyond it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it shows how many students go beyond the standard rather than only meeting it. 196 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does High Tech High Mesa rank in California?
High Tech High Mesa ranks #348 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 79th 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 High Tech High Mesa?
18.7% of students at High Tech High Mesa are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 23.1%. The suspension rate is 1.1%, 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 High Tech High Mesa compare to other schools in San Diego?
High Tech High Mesa scores 64/100 (79th 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 435 students. Use the schools in San Diego page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
How does High Tech High Mesa serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At High Tech High Mesa in San Diego, 77.5% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025 and 38.2% statewide. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (30.0% Math proficient); White students (91.7% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 12.3 percentage points for low-income students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 40 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.
How many students from High Tech High Mesa go to UC?
In fall 2025, 10 High Tech High Mesa 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.

Use the published evidence to prepare questions, then verify fit and access with the school.

Behind the evidence

Inspect the full record

Public sources, visible methods and the underlying school record. Source years and limitations stay attached to the evidence.

How the Scope Score is calculated

On a narrow screen, scroll the table sideways to see the state comparison and weights.

What the score weighs · CAASPP 2024–25

How far the top scorers get carries this score.

42.4% of students scored in the top band on the state test. The California average is 19.8%.

What the score weighs
What we weighHereStateWeight
Graduation rate99.0%92.5%25%
Exceeded standard42.4%19.8%22%
College readiness0.0%43.0%20%
Met or exceeded69.4%43.2%18%
Chronic absenteeism18.7%23.1%5%
Suspension rate1.1%3.3%5%

Source CAASPP 2025 · California Department of Education. Measures graduation, test performance, college readiness, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How the score is built

A closer look at the evidence

High Tech High Mesa: reading the evidence

High Tech High Mesa posts 42.4% exceeding the standard — versus 19.8% 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.

Subject proficiency describes tested students, while graduation describes a graduating cohort. These figures are not successive stages followed by the same students.

Ask about what we don't score — class size, electives, the feel of a classroom — strong numbers everywhere on paper don't mean every classroom feels the same.

Explore the underlying data →
Every number: score factors, grades, student groups and downloads
Every number · For the data nerds

Every number on this page

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

High Tech High Mesa is ranked #348 statewide · #1 of 3 in SBC - High Tech High.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Score factors
FactorSchoolStateWeight
Graduation rate99.0%92.5%25%
Exceeded standard42.4%19.8%22%
College readiness0.0%43.0%20%
Met or exceeded69.4%43.2%18%
Chronic absenteeism18.7%23.1%5%
Suspension rate1.1%3.3%5%
Graduation rate
↑ vs CA 92.5% · index 63 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Exceeded standard
↑ vs CA 19.8% · index 78 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
College readiness
↓ vs CA 43.0% · index 31 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Met or exceeded
↑ vs CA 43.2% · index 74 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Chronic absenteeism
↑ vs CA 23.1% · index 59 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint · ▲ 1.6pp higher vs 2024
Suspension rate
↑ vs CA 3.3% · index 61 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint · ▼ 0.9pp lower vs 2024
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ShowHide table 02 — By grade & subgroup
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 119859%31%4%6%90%+41
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 119826%23%22%29%49%+25

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

Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Schoolwide9711%34%40%14%

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 Disadvantaged4077.5%+39
White3691.7%+30
Hispanic/Latino3281.3%+42
03Nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Susp
High Tech High Mesa ←6442.4%69.4%1.1%
School for Entrepreneurship and Technology2 mi6238.8%69.0%3.2%
Kearny College Connections1.7 mi5631.8%56.5%1.3%
Kearny School of Biomedical Science and Technology1.7 mi5620.6%49.4%0.6%
California average5419.8%43.2%3.3%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
ShowHide table 04 — More measures
Graduation Rate
99.0%
AP Exam Prepared
Not offered
This school may not offer AP courses
A-G Completion
98.0%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
76.3%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSusp
20225252#76623.7%47.4%24.3%3.9%
20235455#73723.3%49.6%22.5%2.0%
20246071#47335.5%59.3%17.0%1.9%
20256479#34842.4%69.4%18.7%1.1%
05UC admissions, universitywide2022–2025 · summed across CEEB codes at query time
ShowHide table 05 — UC admissions, universitywide
YearAppliedAdmittedEnrolledGPA (applied)GPA (admitted)GPA (enrolled)
20255744104.074.114.21
20246144104.004.034.04
20236327123.994.114.18
20224931154.094.144.25

‹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.

06UC admissions by campuslatest falls on file
ShowHide table 06 — UC admissions by campus
CampusYearAppliedAdmittedEnrolled
Berkeley202524‹3‹3
Berkeley2024353‹3
Berkeley2023273‹3
Berkeley2022256‹3
Davis20252113‹3
Davis2024164‹3
Davis2023125‹3
Davis20221774
Irvine2025345‹3
Irvine202427‹3‹3
Irvine2023304‹3
Irvine2022255‹3
Los Angeles2025283‹3
Los Angeles2024273‹3
Los Angeles20233533
Los Angeles2022314‹3
Merced20252120‹3
Merced202498‹3
Merced202377‹3
Merced202277‹3
Riverside20252724‹3
Riverside20242117‹3
Riverside2023115‹3
Riverside202275‹3
San Diego20254311‹3
San Diego2024446‹3
San Diego20234893
San Diego20223273
Santa Barbara20252283
Santa Barbara2024289‹3
Santa Barbara2023308‹3
Santa Barbara2022263‹3
Santa Cruz20252620‹3
Santa Cruz20242815‹3
Santa Cruz2023206‹3
Santa Cruz20222411‹3
Universitywide2025574410
Universitywide2024614410
Universitywide2023632712
Universitywide2022493115

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.

07Advanced coursework — 2020-21 federal civil-rights snapshotstructural, dated — newest published; biennial
ShowHide table 07 — Advanced coursework — 2020-21 federal civil-rights snapshot
MeasureThis school
AP offerednot offered
AP course countnot reported
AP enrollmentnot reported
IB participationnot offered
Dual enrollmentnot offered
Algebra I in grade 8not reported
Calculus sections0
Physics sections15
Chemistry sections10
Total enrollment (CRDC)349

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.

08College destinationsclass of 2023 · CDE 12-mo College-Going Rate
ShowHide table 08 — College destinations
DestinationCompleters% (derived)
University of California1010.3%
California State University2222.7%
California community college2424.7%
In-state private88.3%
Out-of-state, 4-year1010.3%
Out-of-state, 2-year00.0%
Not enrolled2323.7%

97 completers, class of 2023 · state-reported college-going rate 76% · % 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=1,647 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 · CRDC 2020-21 (biennial; next expected 2021-22) · CDE 12-mo CGR 2023 cohort, National Student Clearinghouse match · Data updated 2026-09-18

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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