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School Profile · Arcata

Pacific Coast High (Continuation): No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.

Pacific Coast High (Continuation) posts 19% meeting the standard and 3.9% exceeding it, against 35% and 15.5% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.

1720 M Street, 95521 (opens in new tab)·Northern Humboldt Union High·Arcata·Grades 9-12·24 students·58% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(707) 822-2443
Continuation school — a small alternative high school designed for students at risk of not graduating. Focuses on credit recovery and flexible scheduling. Test scores and college-readiness rates are not directly comparable to comprehensive high schools.
Scope Score
40
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,189 statewide · #3 of 3 in Northern Humboldt Union High

Pacific Coast High (Continuation) scores 40 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 32nd percentile of 1,739 California high schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →

CDE CAASPP 2025

Most rating sites would stop at “19% proficient” and call it done. Pacific Coast High (Continuation) deserves a closer read. The school sits in Arcata, where more than half of students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
19%
State 35%
Graduate
100%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
0%
State 36%

Of 100 students here: 19 are proficient by 11th grade → 100 graduate → 0 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

The 6 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
100.0%
State 87.6%
12.4pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
3.9%
State 15.5%
11.6pp below state avg
College readiness
0.0%
State 35.5%
AP exam pass rate below state avg
Met or exceeded
19.2%
State 34.6%
15.4pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
36.8%
State 32.1%
4.7pp above state avg
Suspension rate
3.1%
State 4.0%
0.9pp 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.

Where the path goes

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

Your other options

All schools in Arcata →

Private alternatives nearby

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

The community around it

Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope Score

Student demographics

Hispanic25.0%
White54.2%
Asian4.2%
Other16.7%
GenderFemale 54.2%Male 45.8%Non-binary 2.5%
Resources & Access
Enrollment
24
1,426 below CA avg (~1,450)
Free/Reduced Lunch
58%
5pp below CA avg (64%)
Student-Teacher Ratio
12:1
9 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$26,845
District avg: $14,551 · CA avg: $14,815 · School-level · CDE ESSA
Equity Gaps
Absenteeism · Low-Income+6.8pp
43.6% vs 36.8% overall · n=39

Subgroups with fewer than 15 students are excluded for privacy. Gaps of less than 3 percentage points are not shown.

Funding Breakdown
Instruction 61%Support 38%Other 1%

Source: NCES F-33 (2019–2020) · Full district breakdown →

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$53K
$32K below CA median
Median Home Value
$501K
$158K below CA median
Bachelor's+
46%
11pp above CA avg
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
15.8 years avg experience
4 teachers
Teacher Credentials
100% fully credentialed

Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25

Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →
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%
100.0%
↑ vs CA 87.6% · 65th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
3.9%
↓ vs CA 15.5% · 38th pctile
College readiness · 20%
0.0%
↓ vs CA 35.5% · 29th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
19.2%
↓ vs CA 34.6% · 39th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
36.8%
↓ vs CA 32.1% · 46th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
3.1%
↑ vs CA 4.0% · 54th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 11138%23%15%54%31%−16
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 11130%8%23%69%8%−16
03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Pacific Coast High (Continuation) ←—403.9%19.2%—3.1%
Arcata High0 mi6523.4%51.2%—4.2%
California average—4715.5%34.6%—4.0%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
100.0%
AP Exam Prepared
Not offered
This school may not offer AP courses
A-G Completion
0.0%
This school may not offer A-G courses
College-Going Rate
19.5%
Scope Score history
43%40%'19'22'23'25
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #1054 → #939 → #1007 → #1189
What we can't show
  • — Subgroup results are suppressed for small student counts (fewer than 15 tested), following CDE privacy rules.
Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=1,739 high schools · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue

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

Frequently asked questions

Is Pacific Coast High (Continuation) a good high school?
Pacific Coast High (Continuation) has a Scope Score of 40 out of 100, placing it in the 32nd percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,189 statewide. 3.9% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 11.6 percentage points below the California average of 15.5%. The Scope Score weights six dimensions for high schools: exceeded standard (43%), met or exceeded (22%), grade 3-to-5 growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are Pacific Coast High (Continuation)'s CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 19.2% of students at Pacific Coast High (Continuation) met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 3.9% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 15.4% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 3.9% 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. 26 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Pacific Coast High (Continuation) rank in California?
Pacific Coast High (Continuation) ranks #1,189 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 32nd 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 Pacific Coast High (Continuation)?
36.8% of students at Pacific Coast High (Continuation) are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 32.1%. The suspension rate is 3.1%. 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 Pacific Coast High (Continuation) compare to other schools in Arcata?
Pacific Coast High (Continuation) scores 40/100 (32nd 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 24 students. Use the schools in Arcata page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
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