School Profile · Bakersfield
Vista Continuation High: The scores are below where anyone wants them. Here's what they don't tell you.
Vista Continuation posts low test scores — and attendance holds near the state average — families haven't checked out. If this is your zoned school, the numbers below are where to start a conversation, not where to end one.
200 P Street, 93304·Kern High·Bakersfield·Grades 9-12·221 students·94% low-income·2024–25 CAASPP·(661) 327-8561·Website
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
22
🌱 Building Momentum · Needs Support
ranked #1,557 statewide · #23 of 25 in Kern High
Vista Continuation High scores 22 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 10th 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 →
Most rating sites would stop at “7% proficient” and call it done. Vista Continuation deserves a closer read. The school sits in Bakersfield, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.
The headline number: 14.2% chronic absenteeism — versus 32.1% statewide. Attendance is the quietest strong signal a school can post.
The story this school is actually telling
Proficient by 11th grade
7%
State 35%
Graduate
70%
State 88%
Pass an AP exam
0%
State 36%
Of 100 students here: 7 are proficient by 11th grade → 70 graduate → 0 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.
The 7 things our score weighs
Graduation rate
70.4%
State 87.6%
17.2pp below state avg
Exceeded standard
0.0%
State 15.5%
15.5pp below state avg
College readiness
0.0%
State 35.5%
AP exam pass rate below state avg
Met or exceeded
7.0%
State 34.6%
27.6pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
14.2%
State 32.1%
17.9pp below state avg
Suspension rate
7.5%
State 4.0%
3.5pp above state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
7.1%
State 17.7%
10.6pp below state avg
Worth a school visit
Ask what changed in the last two years, and what the school is asking families for. Growth shows up in these numbers a year or two after it shows up in classrooms.
Where the path goes
The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.
Your other options
Nearby High Schools
3 within ~3 mi · avg 35
South High
Kern High · 2.3 mi
Developing
47/100
Bakersfield High
Kern High · 1 mi
Developing
40/100
Tierra Del Sol Continuation High
Kern High · 2 mi
Needs Support
20/100
Nearby Elementary Schools
3 within ~3 mi · avg 43
Downtown Elementary
Bakersfield City · 1.4 mi
Developing
48/100
Bessie E. Owens Elementary
Bakersfield City · 1.2 mi
Developing
43/100
Valley Oaks Charter
Kern County Office of Education · 2.3 mi
Developing
37/100
Nearby Middle Schools
2 within ~3 mi · avg 21
Curran Middle
Bakersfield City · 2.1 mi
Needs Support
22/100
Emerson Middle
Bakersfield City · 0.2 mi
Needs Support
20/100
Private alternatives nearby
Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.
Valley Achievement Center
Ming Ave · Nonsectarian · Grades 8-12 · 25 students
13:1Private4.3 mi
Bakersfield Adventist Academy
Bernard St · Pentecostal · Grades Pre-K-12 · 128 students
13:1Private3.9 mi
Bethel Christian
E California Ave · Amish · Grades Pre-K-12 · 41 students
8:1Private2.7 mi
Nigritian Academy
La Costa Ct · Presbyterian · Grades Pre-K-12 · 8 students
3:1Private4.8 mi
Golden State Baptist Schools
Woodrow Ave · Amish · Grades 1-11 · 7 students
4:1Private4.1 mi
The community around it
Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope ScoreStudent demographics
Hispanic82.8%
White5.0%
Asian1.8%
Black9.1%
Other1.4%
GenderFemale 47.1%Male 52.9%
Resources & Access
Enrollment
221
1,229 below CA avg (~1,450)
Free/Reduced Lunch
94%
30pp above CA avg (64%)
Student-Teacher Ratio
15:1
6 fewer students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$28,722
District avg: $13,940 · CA avg: $14,815 · School-level · CDE ESSA
EL Proficiency (ELPAC)
7.1% Level 4
Share of English Learners reaching full proficiency
Teacher Salary Range
$62,889 – $134,832
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
At Vista Continuation High in Bakersfield, 14.7% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 47.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Vista Continuation High trails its district average for low-income students by 32.4 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (1.1% Math proficient); Hispanic students (12.8% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 13.2 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 136 students tested.
Equity Gaps
Suspension · Disabilities+6.8pp
14.3% vs 7.5% overall · n=35
ELA · English Learner−13.2pp
0.0% vs 13.2% overall · n=27
Subgroups with fewer than 15 students are excluded for privacy. Gaps of less than 3 percentage points are not shown.
Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income136 tested
ELA 14.7%·Math 1.1%· -32.4pp vs district
Hispanic127 tested
ELA 12.8%·Math 1.1%· -35.6pp vs district
English Learner27 tested
ELA 0.0%·Math 4.3%· -7.4pp vs district
Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.
Funding Breakdown
Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$51K
$34K below CA median
Median Home Value
$241K
$418K below CA median
Bachelor's+
11%
24pp below 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
14.0 years avg experience
26 teachers · 15% second-year
Teacher Credentials
70% fully credentialed
CTE Pathway Completers
2 completed a career pathway
Sources: CDE SARC · CDE College/Career Indicator, 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 nerdsEvery number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
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%
70.4%
↓ vs CA 87.6% · 29th pctile
Exceeded standard · 22%
0.0%
↓ vs CA 15.5% · 34th pctile
College readiness · 20%
0.0%
↓ vs CA 35.5% · 29th pctile
Met or exceeded · 18%
7.0%
↓ vs CA 34.6% · 31th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
14.2%
↑ vs CA 32.1% · 64th pctile
Suspension rate · 5%
7.5%
↓ vs CA 4.0% · 35th pctile
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
7.1%
↓ vs CA 17.7% · 34th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
| ELA | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 114 | 0% | 13% | 24% | 63% | 13% | −34 |
| Math | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 110 | 0% | 1% | 10% | 89% | 1% | −22 |
| Science (CAST) | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5/8/11 | 94 | 0% | 1% | 61% | 38% |
CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.
| Subgroup · ELA | Tested | MET+ | vs district | vs CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socioeconomically Disadvantaged | 136 | 14.7% | −32 | −23 |
| Hispanic/Latino | 127 | 12.8% | −36 | −26 |
| English Learners | 27 | 0.0% | −7 | −10 |
03Peer comparison · nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
| School | Dist | Scope | EXC | MET+ | Growth | Susp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vista Continuation High ← | — | 22 | 0.0% | 7.0% | — | 7.5% |
| South High | 2.3 mi | 47 | 14.3% | 35.1% | — | 9.8% |
| Bakersfield High | 1 mi | 40 | 8.8% | 29.7% | — | 9.7% |
| Tierra Del Sol Continuation High | 2 mi | 20 | 0.4% | 2.8% | — | 8.0% |
| California average | — | 47 | 15.5% | 34.6% | — | 4.0% |
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
Graduation Rate
70.4%
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
21.2%
Scope Score history
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · no testing 2020–21 (COVID) · rank #1594 → #1635 → #1673 → #1503 → #1557
What we can't show
- — Low-income students here trail the state average for their group by 23 points in ELA — worth asking how the school is closing that gap.
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 Vista Continuation High a good high school?
Vista Continuation High has a Scope Score of 22 out of 100, placing it in the 10th percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,557 statewide. 0.0% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 15.5 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 Vista Continuation High's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 7.0% of students at Vista Continuation High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 0.0% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 7.0% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 0.0% 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. 224 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Vista Continuation High rank in California?
Vista Continuation High ranks #1,557 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 10th 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 Vista Continuation High?
14.2% of students at Vista Continuation High are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 32.1%. The suspension rate is 7.5%. 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 Vista Continuation High compare to other schools in Bakersfield?
Vista Continuation High scores 22/100 (10th 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 221 students. Use the schools in Bakersfield page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
How does Vista Continuation High serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Vista Continuation High in Bakersfield, 14.7% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 47.2% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Vista Continuation High trails its district average for low-income students by 32.4 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (1.1% Math proficient); Hispanic students (12.8% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 13.2 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 136 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.