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Charter high school

Vista Meridian Global Academy

Santa Ana, CA · Grades 9-12 · 260 students · Orange County Department of Education

The scores are below where anyone wants them. Here's what they don't tell you.

24% of tested students are Proficient or Advanced in English and 0% in math. 92.1% graduate in four years. Explore the evidence alongside the opportunities your child would use.

SchoolScope archetype

Building Momentum

What this means for your family

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.

How archetypes are assigned →

Math

0%

Grade 11 · Proficient or Advanced

English

24%

Grade 11 · Proficient or Advanced

Students

260

Total enrollment

Graduation

92.1%

Four-year graduation rate

What are you trying to decide?

The overall score is a starting point.

Look at subject results, trends and student groups, then consider the opportunities your child would use.

View school performance →

Academic performance

What do the results tell us?

2025 results · Grade 11 · weighted by students tested within each subject.

Proficient or Advanced combines Levels 3 and 4, formerly Standard Met and Standard Exceeded. California changed the names for 2025–26; the cut scores did not. About the labels →

Share at Proficient or Advanced

0%25%50%75%100%2024: 6%2025: 0%2024: 27%2025: 24%202420250%25%50%75%100%2024: 6%2025: 0%2024: 27%2025: 24%20242025
● Math┄ English

Gaps in the lines mark years without annual results.

Exact annual results
YearMathEnglish
20246%27%
20250%24%

Each year describes that year’s tested students. Changes between years do not follow the same children over time. Cohort-growth evidence, when available, is labeled separately below.

Annual results and the full academic record
Is it getting better · CAASPP 2024 to 2025

Has stayed near the 12th percentile since 2024.

Most rating sites would stop at “12% proficient” and call it done. Vista Meridian Global Academy deserves a closer read. Nearly all of its students qualify for free or reduced lunch (California: 64%) — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

Test scores are one lens, and at this school they're a rough one right now. The sections below show the fuller picture — including the parts that are working.

As a charter, Vista Meridian Global Academy enrolls by application rather than address. That changes how you get in, but it doesn't change the score.

55 tested · 1 of 1 grade published

Vista Meridian Global Academy scores 39 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 12th percentile of 1,647 California high schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Percentile among 1,647 high schools statewide
Year detailsYear2024 · 19th percentile · Scope Score 42 of 1002025 · 12th percentile · Scope Score 39 of 100
ELARed(Declined)MathRed(Declined Significantly)
ShowHide the by-grade tables, year by year
ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20242025
Grade 1127%24%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20242025
Grade 116%0%
Where students land · CAASPP 2024–25

One in ten of students here meet the standard. 1% clear it by a lot.

ELA24% met or exceeded
Exceeded 2%Met 22%Nearly Met 31%Not Met 45%
Math0% met or exceeded
Exceeded 0%Met 0%Nearly Met 13%Not Met 87%
Exceeded Met Nearly Met Not Met
California high schools · average20% exceeded · 43% met or exceeded
This school against the California average
2024–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
Scope% Exceeded% Met+Grad rateCollege readinessAbsenceSuspension
This school391%12%92.1%37.1%36.5%1.3%
CA average · High School5420%43%92.5%43.0%23.1%3.3%
This schoolCA avg
Scope3954
% Exceeded1%20%
% Met+12%43%
Grad rate92.1%92.5%
College readiness37.1%43.0%
Absence36.5%23.1%
Suspension1.3%3.3%

Students & opportunity

Who shares in the school’s results?

Who it works for · CAASPP 2024–25

Low-income students here meet the ELA standard behind the same group statewide.

At Vista Meridian Global Academy in Santa Ana, 24.1% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 14.5% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Vista Meridian Global Academy outperforms its district average for low-income students by 9.6 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (0.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (24.1% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 23.6 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 54 students tested.

Low-income students here trail the state average for their group by 14 points in ELA — worth asking how the school is closing that gap.

Met or exceeded · reading and math combined
All students at this school: 12% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 12%, district —, state 43%12%
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 12%, district 8%, state 32%12% · +0 vs school
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 12%, district 9%, state 32%12% · +0 vs school
MaleMale: this school 11%, district 10%, state 42%11% · −0 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 13%, district 15%, state 44%13% · +1 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 0%, district 1%, state 11%0% · −12 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 4%, district 7%, state 15%4% · −8 vs school
AsianAsian: too few students to report‹11
HomelessHomeless: too few students to report‹11
this school district, same group California, same group
ShowHide California's growth model by student group

No student-group growth record is available for this school in this data release.

Where graduates go

What happens after high school?

See the published graduate records below. Missing destination counts are not treated as zero.

College destinations and the full graduate record
Where graduates go · 2024–25

Where graduates go

Context — never part of the Scope Score

UC application funnel — one destination of six, tracked in detail because UC is the only source with 30 years of history
Applied10fall 2025, universitywide
Admitted6
Enrolled‹3
ShowHide the UC campus list
Where they landed (fall 2025)
Irvine ‹3Los Angeles ‹3Riverside ‹3

Campuses never sum to the universitywide figure — students apply to several.

UC is one road of many — this says nothing about graduates who chose a CSU, a private, or an out-of-state campus. 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.

Data source: University of California Office of the President (UC Information Center), fall 2025 admissions cycle.

The daily experience

What is it like to be a student here?

Students per teacher

Student–teacher ratio is a schoolwide staffing measure, not an average class size.

The people teaching · CDE staffing 2024–25

About 26 students for every teacher here.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Vista Meridian Global Academy's teachers are authorized to teach 2 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers — including English Literature and Composition and United States History.

Students per teacher26 · district 23
Teaching staff12 teachers
Avg. experience6.7 years
First-year teachers8%
PrincipalJay Proano
ShowHide what the district pays
Teacher salary schedule$52,803 – $136,867
Principal salary$176,650 – $176,650
Superintendent salary$336,600

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

Course breadth
AP exam qualifiers13 studentsCCI, participation not authorization
CTE pathway completers5 students
Advanced coursework
AP subjects taught2
ShowHide the 2 AP courses by discipline
English (1)English Literature and Composition
History & Social Science (1)United States History

Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, 2025 - 2026 audit year (authorization, not enrollment) · IB World Schools directory, name-matched

Attendance & discipline · 2024–25

Kids here miss more school, and get suspended less, than the state average.

36.5% of students miss a month or more of school, versus 23.1% statewide. High absence often tracks community stress — the data can't say why.

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 36.5%, district 14.6%, state 23.1%36.5% · +13.4pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 1.3%, district —, state 3.3%1.3% · −1.9pp vs state
This schoolDistrictCalifornia

Resources & neighborhood

What sits behind the school experience?

Explore school spending and the district budget
What gets spent · FY 2019–20

Its district spends $70,768 per student, more than the California average.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $70,768, CA average $14,491$70,768 · district average
District averageCalifornia
Where the district's dollars go · FY 2024–25 · CDE SACS
Instruction 26%Instruction support 46%Student services 8%Administration 14%Buildings & maintenance 5%

District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.

ShowHide the district's spending year by year
district detail, 2016–2020 — the newest published
2020$70,768 per pupil
2019$67,286 per pupil
2018$61,708 per pupil
2017$32,576 per pupil
2016$30,374 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood · ACS 2024

Nearly all of students here qualify for free or reduced lunch, versus three in five statewide.

Context — never part of the Scope Score

Worth knowing

At 260 students, this school is much smaller than the typical California high school (≈1450).

On the state's science test (CAST), 5% 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.

Hispanic or Latino96.9% · district 48.6% · CA 56.1%
Asian0.4% · district 16.0% · CA 10.2%
Black1.5% · district 2.7% · CA 4.8%
Other1.1% · district 10.0% · CA 9.0%
Free or reduced lunch99.2% · CA 64%
Median income$84K · CA $85K
Median home value$619K · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+13% · CA 35%
ZIP population62,447
Median age35 years

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

Culture & philosophy

What is the school’s approach?

School-stated approach · questions for your visit

Look beyond the brochure

A source-reviewed culture summary is not available for this profile yet. Ask how teaching, student support and family communication work day to day.

Read the school’s own website ↗

Family voices

What would you want another family to know about the daily experience here?

Ask a current family: “When your child needs help, how does the school respond?”

Educator voices

What should families understand about teaching, support and the school community?

Ask an educator: “How do you adapt a typical day for children with different needs?”

Bring these questions on a visit →

Compare nearby schools

What are the alternatives?

Compare schools serving the same grade stage. Private schools have no comparable state-test score.

2025 · high schools · combined reading and math measures. Percentiles compare schools within their enrollment group.

Private options →
SchoolTypePerformance bandAdvancedProficient or AdvancedDistanceSelect
Vista Meridian Global AcademyCharterNeeds Support1%12%School being viewed
OCSACharterStrong48%75%2.0 mi
Middle College HighPublicStrong44%75%2.1 mi
Segerstrom HighPublicStrong20%47%2.2 mi
Open the comparison tool →
More nearby public and private options
Your other options

Your other options

Nearby public schools across grade levels, plus private options within 10 miles.

All schools in Santa Ana →

Private schools do not receive a Scope Score or statewide ranking on SchoolScope.

8 private schools within 10 miles
Not scored
What should I check before applying?
District public
Confirm the attendance boundary and any permit options.
Charter
Check applications, priorities and deadlines with each school.
Private
Confirm admission requirements, tuition and financial aid.

Moving & enrollment

Which schools could serve my child?

Check enrollment with this charter school

Ask the school about applications, priorities and deadlines for your child’s grade.

School website →

Schools across the K–12 journey

Source: proximity. Schools are grouped by grade stage. Nearby schools are not confirmed feeder links or address assignments. Verify the current path and eligibility with the district.

Charter enrollment details

Plan your next step

What should I do next?

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.

  • Ask how the school follows up when a student starts missing days — chronic absence often starts outside the classroom, not inside it.
  • 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.
Questions

Frequently asked questions

Is Vista Meridian Global Academy a good high school?
Vista Meridian Global Academy has a Scope Score of 39 out of 100, placing it in the 12th percentile of California high schools and ranked #1,450 statewide. 0.9% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 18.9 percentage points below the California average of 19.8%. 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 Vista Meridian Global Academy's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 11.8% of students at Vista Meridian Global Academy met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 0.9% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 10.9% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 0.9% went beyond it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it shows how many students go beyond the standard rather than only meeting it. 109 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does Vista Meridian Global Academy rank in California?
Vista Meridian Global Academy ranks #1,450 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 12th 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 Meridian Global Academy?
36.5% of students at Vista Meridian Global Academy are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 23.1%. The suspension rate is 1.3%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. 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 Meridian Global Academy compare to other schools in Santa Ana?
Vista Meridian Global Academy scores 39/100 (12th 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 260 students. Use the schools in Santa Ana page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
How does Vista Meridian Global Academy serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At Vista Meridian Global Academy in Santa Ana, 24.1% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 14.5% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Vista Meridian Global Academy outperforms its district average for low-income students by 9.6 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (0.0% Math proficient); Hispanic students (24.1% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 23.6 percentage points for english learner students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 54 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 Vista Meridian Global Academy?
Vista Meridian Global Academy's teachers are authorized to teach 2 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers, per the 2025 - 2026 AP Course Audit: English Literature and Composition, United States History. 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 Vista Meridian Global Academy go to UC?
UC masks this number for Vista Meridian Global Academy — fewer than three enrollees in fall 2025 — a privacy protection for small cohorts, not a signal about the school. Data source: University of California Office of the President (UC Information Center).

Use the published evidence to prepare questions, then verify fit and access with the school.

Behind the evidence

Inspect the full record

Public sources, visible methods and the underlying school record. Source years and limitations stay attached to the evidence.

How the Scope Score is calculated

On a narrow screen, scroll the table sideways to see the state comparison and weights.

What the score weighs · CAASPP 2024–25

The 6 things our score weighs

What the score weighs
What we weighHereStateWeight
Graduation rate92.1%92.5%25%
Exceeded standard0.9%19.8%22%
College readiness37.1%43.0%20%
Met or exceeded11.8%43.2%18%
Chronic absenteeism36.5%23.1%5%
Suspension rate1.3%3.3%5%

Source CAASPP 2025 · California Department of Education. Measures graduation, test performance, college readiness, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How the score is built

A closer look at the evidence

Vista Meridian Global Academy: reading the evidence

Vista Meridian Global Academy posts low test scores — and suspensions run below the state rate (1.3% vs 3.3%). If this is your zoned school, the numbers below are where to start a conversation, not where to end one.

Subject proficiency describes tested students, while graduation describes a graduating cohort. These figures are not successive stages followed by the same students.

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.

Explore the underlying data →
Every number: score factors, grades, student groups and downloads
Every number · For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and nearest schools.

Vista Meridian Global Academy is ranked #1,450 statewide · #6 of 6 in Orange County Department of Education.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Score factors
FactorSchoolStateWeight
Graduation rate92.1%92.5%25%
Exceeded standard0.9%19.8%22%
College readiness37.1%43.0%20%
Met or exceeded11.8%43.2%18%
Chronic absenteeism36.5%23.1%5%
Suspension rate1.3%3.3%5%
Graduation rate
↓ vs CA 92.5% · index 56 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Exceeded standard
↓ vs CA 19.8% · index 34 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
College readiness
↓ vs CA 43.0% · index 52 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Met or exceeded
↓ vs CA 43.2% · index 33 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint
Chronic absenteeism
↓ vs CA 23.1% · index 45 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint · ▲ 9.8pp higher vs 2024
Suspension rate
↑ vs CA 3.3% · index 60 · 50 = CA high-school midpoint · ▲ 0.1pp higher vs 2024
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ShowHide table 02 — By grade & subgroup
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 11552%22%31%45%24%−25
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 11540%0%13%87%0%−24

We show the grade rows CDE publishes for this school. A missing grade or dash can mean the school does not serve that grade, that we hold no valid result for it, or that the tested group was too small to report. It does not mean zero.

Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Schoolwide580%5%79%16%

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 Disadvantaged5424.1%+10−14
Hispanic/Latino5424.1%+10−15
English Learners190.0%−2−10
03Nearest high schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+Susp
Vista Meridian Global Academy ←390.9%11.8%1.3%
OCSA2 mi8448.1%75.3%1.1%
Middle College High2.1 mi6743.9%75.3%1.3%
Segerstrom High2.2 mi6419.9%46.6%3.5%
California average5419.8%43.2%3.3%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
ShowHide table 04 — More measures
Graduation Rate
92.1%
AP Exam Prepared
37.1%
A-G Completion
53.4%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSusp
20244219#13223.2%16.9%26.6%1.2%
20253912#14500.9%11.8%36.5%1.3%
What we can't show
  • — Low-income students here trail the state average for their group by 14 points in ELA — worth asking how the school is closing that gap.
05UC admissions, universitywide2025–2025 · summed across CEEB codes at query time
ShowHide table 05 — UC admissions, universitywide
YearAppliedAdmittedEnrolledGPA (applied)GPA (admitted)GPA (enrolled)
2025106‹34.004.02

‹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.

06UC admissions by campuslatest falls on file
ShowHide table 06 — UC admissions by campus
CampusYearAppliedAdmittedEnrolled
Irvine20258‹3‹3
Los Angeles20258‹3‹3
Riverside202554‹3
Universitywide2025106‹3

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.

07AP course catalog2025 - 2026
ShowHide table 07 — AP course catalog
SubjectTaught by
English Literature and Compositionthis school
United States Historythis school

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

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EXC = exceeded standard · MET+ = met or exceeded ("proficient") · Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=1,647 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) · Data updated 2026-09-18

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

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