ExploreMapCompareBlogSign in
North Monterey County High · CastrovillePublic

North Monterey County High: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.

North Monterey County posts 30% meeting the standard and 9.8% exceeding it, against 36% and 15.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.

13990 Castroville Boulevard, 95012 (opens in new tab)·North Monterey County Unified·Castroville·Grades 9-12·1,250 students·84% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(831) 633-5221
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope4647
% Exceeded10%16%
% Met+30%36%
Grad rate90.5%86.6%
College readiness48.1%33.9%
Absence29.1%30.2%
Suspension6.0%3.6%
Scope Score
46
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,220 statewide · #2 of 3 in North Monterey County Unified

North Monterey County High scores 46 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 44th 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.

CDE CAASPP 2025

Most rating sites would stop at “30% proficient” and call it done. North Monterey County deserves a closer read. The school sits in Castroville, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,160 high schools statewide

Has stayed near the 44th percentile since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELAOrange(Maintained)MathOrange(Increased)

This school hasn't fully recovered from the pandemic: 30% meet the standard today, versus 34% in 2019 — a gap worth asking about on a visit.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1157%42%49%52%52%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1111%3%10%8%8%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
30%
State 36%
Graduate
91%
State 87%
Pass an AP exam
48%
State 34%

Of 100 students here: 30 are proficient by 11th grade → 91 graduate → 48 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 7 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
90.5%
State 86.6%
3.9pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
9.8%
State 15.8%
6.1pp below state avg
College readiness
48.1%
State 33.9%
AP course or exam readiness above state avg
Met or exceeded
30.0%
State 35.7%
5.7pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
29.1%
State 30.2%
1.1pp below state avg
Suspension rate
6.0%
State 3.6%
2.3pp above state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
11.9%
State 18.0%
6.1pp 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 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 North Monterey County High in Castroville, 46.6% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 25.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. North Monterey County High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 20.9 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (5.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (50.0% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 42.6 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 223 students tested.

All students at this school: 30% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 30%, district —, state 36%30%
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 29%, district 22%, state 32%29% · −2 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 26%, district 20%, state 32%26% · −4 vs school
MaleMale: this school 26%, district 21%, state 42%26% · −4 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 34%, district 25%, state 44%34% · +4 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 5%, district 8%, state 11%5% · −25 vs school
HomelessHomeless: this school 22%, district 18%, state 22%22% · −8 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 9%, district 5%, state 15%9% · −22 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 73%, district 38%, state 56%73% · +43 vs school
AsianAsian: too few students to report‹11
FilipinoFilipino: too few students to report‹11
Two or More RacesTwo or More Races: too few students to report‹11
this school district, same group California, same group
AP access · 2020-21 federal civil rights snapshot (structural, dated — newest published; biennial)
Shown, never scored

In the 2020-21 federal collection — the newest there is — Students with disabilities students were 16% of North Monterey County's enrollment but 0% of its AP seats; ask the school what's changed since.

Hispanic81.4% AP · 87.8% enroll.
American Indian/Alaska Native0.0% AP · 0.2% enroll.
Asian0.5% AP · 0.4% enroll.
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander4.9% AP · 1.5% enroll.
Black0.0% AP · 0.1% enroll.
White12.7% AP · 9.6% enroll.
Two or more races0.5% AP · 0.4% enroll.
English learners0.0% AP · 13.1% enroll.
Students with disabilities0.5% AP · 16.1% enroll.

● share of AP enrollment vs share of total enrollment, this school only · not part of the Scope Score

Data source: U.S. Dept. of Education Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2020-21 (biennial; newest published)

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 29.1%, district 27.1%, state 30.2%29.1% · −1.1pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 6.0%, district —, state 3.6%6.0% · +2.3pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1229.0%

Where the path goes

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

K-12 Feeder Path
▼
High School
North Monterey County High
46/100
This school

Feeder patterns derived from NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries are approximate and may have changed — verify with your school district for current assignments.

Where graduates go

Context — never part of the Scope Score
65%
College-going rate, class of 2023

Where they went after graduation

Of North Monterey County's class of 2023, 65% 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: 272 completers, 65% enrolled somewhere within a year

University of California 20 (7%)California State University 35 (13%)California community college 116 (43%)In-state private 2 (1%)Out-of-state, 4-year 3 (1%)Out-of-state, 2-year 2 (1%)Not enrolled 94 (35%)

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, 24 of North Monterey County's 256 graduates enrolled in the University of California system — San Diego the most common landing, with 6 enrollees.

Applied59fall 2025, universitywide
Admitted50
Enrolled24
Where they landed (fall 2025)

6 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 enrollees, universitywide, 2014–2025

UC publishes this trend back to 1994 — no other destination has a comparable multi-year record

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, 65% of this class's predecessors enrolled in college somewhere within a year. More of the class of 2023 enrolled at community colleges (116) than at UC (20).

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 people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 22:1, district 23:122:1
Teaching staff62 teachers
Avg. experience9.4 years
Fully credentialed63%
First-year teachers8%
Intern / emergency permit2.1%
Course Breadth
AP exam qualifiers63 studentsCCI, participation not authorization
CTE pathway completers16 students
Advanced Coursework

North Monterey County's teachers are authorized to teach 12 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers — including Calculus BC, Calculus AB, and Physics 1.

AP subjects taught12
Math & Computer Science (2)Calculus AB · Calculus BC
Sciences (3)Biology · Chemistry · Physics 1
English (2)English Language and Composition · English Literature and Composition
History & Social Science (3)U.S. Government and Politics · United States History · World History: Modern
World Languages & Cultures (2)Spanish Language and Culture · Spanish Literature and Culture

Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, 2025 - 2026 audit year (authorization, not enrollment) · IB World Schools directory, name-matched · structural depth: 2020-21 federal snapshot, table 09

What gets spent here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $16,609, CA average $14,491$16,609 · spent at this school

These measure different things: this figure is spending attributed to this campus, while district-wide figures also include central administration, districtwide programs, and the state's pension contributions made on the district's behalf — costs that never get assigned to a single school. The district number runs higher at nearly every school, not just this one.

Federal share$194 per student

$194 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$23,874 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 support11%
Student services11%
Administration10%
Buildings & maintenance8%

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$14,578 per pupil
2019$13,673 per pupil
2018$13,821 per pupil
2017$12,794 per pupil
2016$12,162 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Hispanic90.6%
District 91.9% · CA 56.1%
White7.5%
District 6.2% · CA 19.9%
Other1.2%
District 1.3% · CA 9.0%
Asian0.5%
District 0.4% · CA 10.2%
Black0.2%
District 0.2% · CA 4.8%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 84.5% (21pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$80K · CA $85K
Median home value$599K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+8% · CA 35%
ZIP population10,814
Median age29 years

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

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 17% 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 North Monterey County High a good high school?

North Monterey County High has a Scope Score of 46 out of 100, placing it in the 44th percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,220 statewide. 9.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 6.1 percentage points below 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 North Monterey County High's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 30.0% of students at North Monterey County High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 9.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 20.3% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 9.8% 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. 510 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does North Monterey County High rank in California?

North Monterey County High ranks #1,220 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 44th 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 North Monterey County High?

29.1% of students at North Monterey County 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 6.0%. 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 North Monterey County High compare to other schools in Castroville?

North Monterey County High scores 46/100 (44th 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 1,250 students. Use the schools in Castroville page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

How does North Monterey County High serve low-income and underrepresented students?

At North Monterey County High in Castroville, 46.6% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 25.7% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. North Monterey County High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 20.9 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (5.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (50.0% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 42.6 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 223 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.

What AP courses are offered at North Monterey County High?

North Monterey County High's teachers are authorized to teach 12 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers, per the 2025 - 2026 AP Course Audit: Biology, Calculus AB, Calculus BC, Chemistry, English Language and Composition, English Literature and Composition, Physics 1, Spanish Language and Culture, Spanish Literature and Culture, U.S. Government and Politics, United States History, World History: Modern. Authorization means the school may teach a course, not that a section is running this year, and it's separate from AP exam pass rates. Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, analyzed by SchoolScope.

How many students from North Monterey County High go to UC?

In fall 2025, 24 North Monterey County High 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.

Your other options

All schools in Castroville →

Private alternatives nearby

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

A low score doesn't tell the whole story. Read: Your School Scored Low — Here's What That Actually Means

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%
90.5%
↑ vs CA 86.6% · 54th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
9.8%
↓ vs CA 15.8% · 43th pctile
College readiness · 20%
48.1%
↑ vs CA 33.9% · 58th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
30.0%
↓ vs CA 35.7% · 46th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
29.1%
↑ vs CA 30.2% · 51th pctile
▼ 1.5pp lower vs 2024
Suspension rate · 5%
6.0%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 39th pctile
▼ 2.0pp lower vs 2024
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
11.9%
↓ vs CA 18.0% · 43th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 1125716%36%22%26%52%+4
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 112533%5%20%72%8%−16

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
Schoolwide2592%15%70%13%

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 Disadvantaged22346.6%+21+8
Hispanic/Latino24050.0%+22+11
English Learners639.5%+2−1
03Nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score · Grade gap = grade 3 vs grade 5, this year, different students; Cohort growth = the same students tracked across grades, in scale-score points — that's the measurement the Scope Score weights
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Grade gapCohort growthSusp
North Monterey County High ←—469.8%30.0%——6.0%
California average—4715.8%35.7%——3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
90.5%
AP Exam Prepared
48.1%
A-G Completion
45.3%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
65.4%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrade gap
20194849#10469.3%34.1%18.6%6.9%—
20224545#11549.1%22.5%38.5%5.2%—
20234749#11069.1%29.3%31.7%4.9%—
20244648#112410.3%30.1%30.7%8.0%—
20254644#12209.8%30.0%29.1%6.0%—
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
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
Group20192025Δ
Female21.0%27.5%+6.5pp
Male15.5%30.3%+14.8pp
White5.9%——
Hispanic/Latino16.8%29.1%+12.3pp
Students with Disabilities33.8%41.7%+7.9pp
English Learners23.4%31.8%+8.4pp
Homeless21.3%31.9%+10.6pp
Military-Connected22.4%21.6%-0.8pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged18.5%29.7%+11.2pp
All Students18.2%29.0%+10.8pp
06UC admissions, universitywide2014–2025 · summed across CEEB codes at query time
YearAppliedAdmittedEnrolledGPA (applied)GPA (admitted)GPA (enrolled)
20255950243.853.924.17
20244933153.864.024.05
20236741213.703.954.05
20224130143.883.994.11
20215034103.854.034.10
20204235143.883.944.11
20195637193.924.104.19
20186441193.723.953.96
20174726173.613.964.01
20164830123.663.884.04
2015381973.593.963.96
20143619113.573.793.91

‹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.

07UC admissions by campuslatest falls on file
CampusYearAppliedAdmittedEnrolled
Berkeley2025295‹3
Berkeley2024354‹3
Berkeley202346104
Berkeley202230‹3‹3
Berkeley2021205‹3
Davis20253920‹3
Davis202438145
Davis202342163
Davis20222912‹3
Davis2021246‹3
Irvine202525133
Irvine2024204‹3
Irvine202326‹3‹3
Irvine2022205‹3
Irvine202126‹3‹3
Los Angeles2025354‹3
Los Angeles202426‹3‹3
Los Angeles202341‹3‹3
Los Angeles20222633
Los Angeles202124‹3‹3
Merced20252222‹3
Merced202455‹3
Merced202311103
Merced20221413‹3
Merced202199‹3
Riverside20251919‹3
Riverside202453‹3
Riverside202393‹3
Riverside202277‹3
Riverside202175‹3
San Diego202532166
San Diego2024197‹3
San Diego202328116
San Diego202217105
San Diego2021207‹3
Santa Barbara20253511‹3
Santa Barbara2024168‹3
Santa Barbara2023309‹3
Santa Barbara2022188‹3
Santa Barbara2021248‹3
Santa Cruz202532206
Santa Cruz202429195
Santa Cruz20234016‹3
Santa Cruz202218113
Santa Cruz20212719‹3
Universitywide2025595024
Universitywide2024493315
Universitywide2023674121
Universitywide2022413014
Universitywide2021503410

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.

08AP course catalog2025 - 2026
SubjectTaught by
Biologythis school
Calculus ABthis school
Calculus BCthis school
Chemistrythis school
English Language and Compositionthis school
English Literature and Compositionthis school
Physics 1this school
Spanish Language and Culturethis school
Spanish Literature and Culturethis school
U.S. Government and Politicsthis school
United States Historythis school
World History: Modernthis school

Authorization ≠ a section running this year — the Ledger records what the school may teach, not seat counts.

09Advanced coursework — 2020-21 federal civil-rights snapshotstructural, dated — newest published; biennial
MeasureThis school
AP offeredoffered
AP course count10
AP enrollment204
IB participationnot offered
Dual enrollmentoffered · 158 enrolled
Algebra I in grade 8not reported
Calculus sections1
Physics sections2
Chemistry sections11
Total enrollment (CRDC)1,256

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 California207.3%
California State University3512.9%
California community college11642.6%
In-state private20.7%
Out-of-state, 4-year31.1%
Out-of-state, 2-year20.7%
Not enrolled9434.6%

272 completers, class of 2023 · state-reported college-going rate 65% · % 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/north-monterey-county-high-0034"
  width="100%" height="210" loading="lazy"
  style="border:0;border-radius:12px"
  title="North Monterey County High — 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=2,160 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 · AP Course Ledger 2025 - 2026 (November refresh; authorization not enrollment) · 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

← Browse all schools