How does Kathleen MacDonald High compare to other high schools in San Jose?

Kathleen MacDonald High has a Scope Score of 74.3/100, ranked #301 among California high schools. 26% of students exceed standard, with a total of 384 students tested across grades and subjects.

What percentage of students exceed standards at Kathleen MacDonald High?

25.7% of students at Kathleen MacDonald High exceed the state standard on CAASPP assessments, while 49.9% meet or exceed it. The gap between these two numbers reveals whether the school pushes students beyond basic proficiency.

What is the chronic absenteeism rate at Kathleen MacDonald High?

12.1% of students at Kathleen MacDonald High are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days). This metric reflects school culture and family engagement, and is weighted at 15% in the Scope Score.

Kathleen MacDonald High

High School

Santa Clara Unified San JoseSanta Clara County95134

📍 3588 Zanker Road

Scope Score

out of 100

State Rank

of 1,649 California high schools

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Scope Scores are SchoolScope's analysis of public data from the California Dept. of Education (CAASPP, chronic absenteeism, suspension rates). They are not official CDE ratings and should not be the sole basis for school decisions. See methodology.

School overview

Enrollment

434 students

Student-Teacher Ratio

18:1

Free/Reduced Lunch

38%

Teachers

24 full-time

College & career readiness

AP Exam Prepared

Not offered

This school may not offer AP courses

Data source: California Department of Education — ACGR, CCI, CGR reports

Dashboard indicators

How this school's scores changed from last year to this year

EL Proficiency (ELPAC)

32.6%

English learners at Level 4 (Well Developed) · 50 tested

Data source: California School Dashboard 2025, ELPAC 2024

Student demographics

Hispanic46.8%

White13.6%

Asian19.4%

Black1.8%

Other18.4%

Performance breakdown

Performance breakdown for Kathleen MacDonald High
Category	Percentage
Exceeded Standard	25.7%
Met Standard	24.2%
Below Standard	50.1%

Score Factors

Helping

✓Exceeded standard: 25.7%

10.0pp above state avg (state avg 15.7%)

20% weight

✓Met or exceeded: 49.9%

15.2pp above state avg (state avg 34.8%)

15% weight

✓Chronic absenteeism: 12.1%

22.2pp below state avg (state avg 34.3%)

10% weight

✓Baseline proficiency: 49.9%

Above state baseline (state avg 34.8%)

5% weight

Holding Back

▼Suspension rate: 5.6%

1.5pp above state avg (state avg 4.1%)

5% weight

Unlike traditional school ratings, we show our work. Every factor, its weight, and how this school compares to the state average — so you can decide what matters most to your family. The high school Scope Score is weighted across 5 dimensions. See full methodology →

What other rankings don't show you

Most rating sites report "50% proficient" for Kathleen MacDonald High and stop there. Here's what that number hides:

25.7% of students exceeded standard while 24.2% met it. That exceeded rate is 10.0 points above the state average of 15.7%. That's 5.5 points below the Santa Clara Unified district average of 31.2%. Compared to the 2 nearby schools within ~3 miles, this exceeded rate is 24.7 points higher (vs 1.0% average). The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

Chronic absenteeism is 12.1%, better than the state average of 34.3%.

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters →