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Options Secondary · San Diego

Options Secondary: This school runs ahead of the state average. The bar itself is the harder conversation.

Options Secondary posts 47% meeting the standard against 36% statewide — ahead of most, with real headroom above the bar.

3250 Palm Avenue, 91911 (opens in new tab)·Sweetwater Union High·San Diego·Grades 7-12·69 students·59% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(619) 796-7320·Website
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
Scope4244
% Exceeded9%16%
% Met+47%36%
Grad rate88.2%87.6%
College readiness40.0%35.4%
Absence35.9%30.2%
Suspension7.6%3.6%
Scope Score
42
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,231 statewide · #13 of 16 in Sweetwater Union High

Options Secondary scores 42 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 43rd 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 “47% proficient” and call it done. Options Secondary deserves a closer read. The school sits in San Diego, where more than half of 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 43rd percentile since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELABlue(Increased Significantly)MathBlue(Increased Significantly)

The pandemic drop is behind this school: 47% of students meet the standard today, above the 37% who did in 2019.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 864%36%23%
Grade 1158%40%50%53%65%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 827%29%15%
Grade 1115%7%17%13%29%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
47%
State 36%
Graduate
88%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
40%
State 35%

Of 100 students here: 47 are proficient by 11th grade → 88 graduate → 40 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 6 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
88.2%
State 87.6%
0.6pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
8.8%
State 15.8%
7.0pp below state avg
College readiness
40.0%
State 35.4%
AP exam pass rate above state avg
Met or exceeded
47.1%
State 35.7%
11.4pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
35.9%
State 30.2%
5.7pp above state avg
Suspension rate
7.6%
State 3.6%
4.0pp above state avg
Worth a school visit

Ask how the school challenges kids who clear the standard early. The gap between meeting and exceeding is where pacing shows.

  • Ask how the school follows up when a student starts missing days — chronic absence often starts outside the classroom, not inside it.
  • Ask what typically leads to a suspension, and what happens before it gets there.
  • 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.

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 35.9%, district 27.3%, state 30.2%35.9% · +5.7pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 7.6%, district —, state 3.6%7.6% · +4.0pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 7–835.7%
Grades 9–1240.6%

Where the path goes

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

K-12 Feeder Path
Elementary
No feeder data available for this level
High School
Options Secondary
42/100
This school

Estimated path based on proximity within the same district. 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 8:1, district 23:18:1
Teaching staff12 teachers
Avg. experience14.0 years
Fully credentialed86%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$55,375 – $124,275
Principal salary$0 – $187,294
Superintendent salary$300,404

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course Breadth
AP courses offered3
AP exam qualifiers2 students

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $5,652, CA average $14,815$5,652 · 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$1,063 per student

$1,063 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$18,370 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
Instruction58%
Instruction support16%
Student services8%
Administration8%
Buildings & maintenance8%
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$15,976 per pupil
2019$14,540 per pupil
2018$14,457 per pupil
2017$11,416 per pupil
2016$11,708 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Hispanic59.4%
District 72.2% · CA 56.1%
White27.5%
District 9.5% · CA 19.9%
Other8.7%
District 12.9% · CA 9.0%
Black2.9%
District 3.4% · CA 4.8%
Asian1.4%
District 2.0% · CA 10.2%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 59.4% (4pp below CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$82K · CA $85K
Median home value$636K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+20% · CA 35%
ZIP population85,542
Median age37 years

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

Worth Knowing

At 69 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California high school (≈1450).

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 Options Secondary a good high school?

Options Secondary has a Scope Score of 42 out of 100, placing it in the 43rd percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,231 statewide. 8.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 7.0 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 Options Secondary's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 47.1% of students at Options Secondary met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 8.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 38.2% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 8.8% 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. 34 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Options Secondary rank in California?

Options Secondary ranks #1,231 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 43rd 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 Options Secondary?

35.9% of students at Options Secondary are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 30.2%. The suspension rate is 7.6%. 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 Options Secondary compare to other schools in San Diego?

Options Secondary scores 42/100 (43rd 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 69 students. Use the schools in San Diego page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

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%
88.2%
↑ vs CA 87.6% · 51th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
8.8%
↓ vs CA 15.8% · 43th pctile
College readiness · 20%
40.0%
↑ vs CA 35.4% · 53th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
47.1%
↑ vs CA 35.7% · 58th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
35.9%
↓ vs CA 30.2% · 45th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
7.6%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 32th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 78
Grade 85
Grade 11176%59%35%0%65%+18
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 78
Grade 85
Grade 111712%18%6%65%29%+6
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/11225%18%64%14%

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
Options Secondary ←428.8%47.1%7.6%
Castle Park Senior High1.7 mi5213.5%36.8%4.7%
Montgomery Senior High0 mi5214.3%37.6%3.4%
Southwest Senior High1.6 mi509.6%32.8%5.9%
California average4415.8%35.7%3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
88.2%
AP Exam Prepared
40.0%
A-G Completion
46.7%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
57.1%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrowth
20194648#106417.3%36.5%28.3%8.0%
20223939#12856.7%23.3%35.4%3.3%
20234245#117313.9%33.3%40.2%6.7%
20244040#12828.8%32.7%37.0%6.6%
20254243#12318.8%47.1%35.9%7.6%
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
Female35.1%43.9%+8.8pp
Male21.1%35.1%+14.0pp
Hispanic/Latino28.9%44.9%+16.0pp
Students with Disabilities23.1%34.6%+11.5pp
English Learners12.5%54.5%+42.0pp
Homeless41.7%
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged31.4%43.4%+12.0pp
All Students29.0%39.7%+10.7pp
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