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Porterville High · Porterville

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

Porterville posts 44% meeting the standard against 36% statewide — ahead of most, with real headroom above the bar.

465 West Olive Avenue, 93257 (opens in new tab)·Porterville Unified·Porterville·Grades 9-12·2,125 students·89% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(559) 782-7210
2019–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope4544
% Exceeded16%16%
% Met+44%36%
Grad rate94.5%87.6%
College readiness16.7%35.4%
Absence19.3%30.2%
Suspension4.7%3.6%
Scope Score
45
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,053 statewide · #3 of 8 in Porterville Unified

Porterville High scores 45 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 51st 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 “44% proficient” and call it done. Porterville deserves a closer read. The school sits in Porterville, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

Porterville's low-income kids hit 59.5% 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.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,160 high schools statewide

Has stayed near the 51st percentile since 2019.

CA Dashboard
ELAYellow(Declined Significantly)MathGreen(Increased Significantly)

Proficiency here is back to its pre-pandemic level — 44% meet the standard, about where the school stood in 2019.

ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1165%59%58%56%61%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 1122%17%21%22%27%

The story this school is actually telling

Proficient by 11th grade
44%
State 36%
Graduate
95%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
17%
State 35%

Of 100 students here: 44 are proficient by 11th grade → 95 graduate → 17 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.

59.5%
Low-income · ELA · met standard

Porterville's most underrated number

59.5% of low-income students met the ELA standard — versus 38.2% for the same group statewide. That's the strongest kind of signal a school can post: it holds across income lines.

Porterville low-income: 59.5%State low-income: 38.2%Porterville EL: 11.1%State EL: 10.4%

The 7 things our score weighs

Graduation rate
94.5%
State 87.6%
6.9pp above state avg
Exceeded standard
15.8%
State 15.8%
0.1pp below state avg
College readiness
16.7%
State 35.4%
AP exam pass rate below state avg
Met or exceeded
44.2%
State 35.7%
8.5pp above state avg
Chronic absenteeism
19.3%
State 30.2%
10.9pp below state avg
Suspension rate
4.7%
State 3.6%
1.0pp above state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
22.3%
State 18.0%
4.3pp 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 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.

How every group of students does here

At Porterville High in Porterville, 59.5% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 40.5% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Porterville High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 19.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (25.1% Math proficient); Hispanic students (59.6% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 60.9 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 395 students tested.

All students at this school: 44% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 44%, district —, state 36%44%
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 42%, district 33%, state 32%42% · −2 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 43%, district 34%, state 32%43% · −2 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 46%, district 36%, state 44%46% · +2 vs school
MaleMale: this school 42%, district 34%, state 42%42% · −3 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 7%, district 13%, state 11%7% · −37 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 0%, district 6%, state 15%0% · −44 vs school
WhiteWhite: this school 60%, district 40%, state 56%60% · +16 vs school

7 of 15 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

this school district, same group California, same group

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 19.3%, district 20.3%, state 30.2%19.3% · −10.9pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 4.7%, district —, state 3.6%4.7% · +1.0pp vs state
Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 9–1218.9%

Where the path goes

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

K-12 Feeder Path

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

The people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 25:1, district 23:125:1
Teaching staff89 teachers
Avg. experience13.2 years
Fully credentialed85%
First-year teachers6%
Intern / emergency permit4.8%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$67,408 – $131,482
Principal salary$208,781 – $226,362
Superintendent salary$332,007

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course Breadth
AP courses offered7
AP exam qualifiers45 students
CTE pathway completers99 students

What gets spent here

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $19,506, CA average $14,815$19,506 · spent at this school
Federal share$306 per student

$306 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$21,080 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
Instruction55%
Instruction support13%
Student services12%
Administration6%
Buildings & maintenance12%
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$13,250 per pupil
2019$12,791 per pupil
2018$13,584 per pupil
2017$12,321 per pupil
2016$11,848 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Hispanic85.7%
District 85.4% · CA 56.1%
White7.4%
District 8.5% · CA 19.9%
Other5.5%
District 4.7% · CA 9.0%
Asian1.1%
District 1.0% · CA 10.2%
Black0.3%
District 0.3% · CA 4.8%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 88.6% (25pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$60K · CA $85K
Median home value$288K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+14% · CA 35%
ZIP population80,467
Median age31 years

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

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 19% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 but never enters the Scope Score.

Frequently asked questions

Is Porterville High a good high school?

Porterville High has a Scope Score of 45 out of 100, placing it in the 51st percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,053 statewide. 15.8% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is near 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 Porterville High's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 44.2% of students at Porterville High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 15.8% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 28.4% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 15.8% 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. 869 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Porterville High rank in California?

Porterville High ranks #1,053 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 51st 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 Porterville High?

19.3% of students at Porterville 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 4.7%. 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 Porterville High compare to other schools in Porterville?

Porterville High scores 45/100 (51st 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 2,125 students. Use the schools in Porterville page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.

How does Porterville High serve low-income and underrepresented students?

At Porterville High in Porterville, 59.5% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 40.5% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Porterville High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 19.0 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (25.1% Math proficient); Hispanic students (59.6% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 60.9 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 395 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.

Your other options


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%
94.5%
↑ vs CA 87.6% · 58th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
15.8%
↓ vs CA 15.8% · 50th pctile
College readiness · 20%
16.7%
↓ vs CA 35.4% · 39th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
44.2%
↑ vs CA 35.7% · 56th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
19.3%
↑ vs CA 30.2% · 59th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
4.7%
↓ vs CA 3.6% · 45th pctile
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
22.3%
↑ vs CA 18.0% · 60th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 1143522%39%21%18%61%+14
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 114349%18%23%50%27%+4
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/114452%17%74%7%

CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged39559.5%+19+21
Hispanic/Latino38659.6%+18+21
English Learners5411.1%−3+1
03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Porterville High ←4515.8%44.2%4.7%
Monache High1.9 mi4916.1%39.4%2.8%
Porterville Military Academy2 mi4517.1%40.0%2.2%
Citrus High1.6 mi151.0%4.2%4.2%
California average4415.8%35.7%3.6%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
94.5%
AP Exam Prepared
16.7%
A-G Completion
50.4%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
55.0%
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrowth
20194649#103615.1%43.7%8.3%7.6%
20224451#103614.2%38.1%28.7%2.4%
20234451#105014.6%39.6%15.1%4.7%
20244553#100716.6%39.1%18.1%3.0%
20254551#105315.8%44.2%19.3%4.7%
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
Female8.4%19.2%+10.8pp
Male6.9%18.5%+11.6pp
Asian0.0%8.0%+8.0pp
Filipino0.0%27.3%+27.3pp
White9.1%5.3%-3.8pp
Hispanic/Latino7.5%17.4%+9.9pp
American Indian/Alaska Native11.9%47.8%+35.9pp
Two or More Races13.0%38.9%+25.9pp
Students with Disabilities9.6%33.6%+24.0pp
English Learners10.4%22.5%+12.1pp
Foster Youth26.7%45.0%+18.3pp
Military-Connected6.4%8.0%+1.6pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged9.3%19.8%+10.5pp
All Students7.7%18.9%+11.2pp
Homeless55.0%
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