Watsonville High: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.
Watsonville posts 29% meeting the standard and 8.6% exceeding it, against 43% and 19.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.
| Scope | % Exceeded | % Met+ | Grad rate | College readiness | Absence | Suspension | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| This school | 48 | 9% | 29% | 91.2% | 56.0% | 20.0% | 4.0% |
| CA average · High School | 54 | 20% | 43% | 92.5% | 43.0% | 23.1% | 3.3% |
Watsonville High scores 48 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 50th percentile of 1,647 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 “29% proficient” and call it done. Watsonville deserves a closer read. The school sits in Watsonville, where four in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.
The seven-year arc
Has stayed near the 50th percentile since 2019.
Proficiency here is back to its pre-pandemic level — 29% meet the standard, about where the school stood in 2019.
| Grade | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 48% | 32% | 32% | 34% | 39% |
| Grade | 2019 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 17% | 10% | 9% | 9% | 20% |
The story this school is actually telling
Of 100 students here: 29 are proficient by 11th grade → 91 graduate → 56 pass an AP exam. The gaps between those bars are the questions to ask.
The 7 things our score weighs
Ask what the school is working on next. Strong numbers tell you where a school is, not where it's going.
- 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 Watsonville High in Watsonville, 35.1% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 19.9% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Watsonville High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 15.2 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (19.5% Math proficient); Hispanic students (39.7% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 33.8 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 395 students tested.
6 of 14 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.
In the 2020-21 federal collection — the newest there is — English learners students were 26% of Watsonville's enrollment but 2% of its AP seats; ask the school what's changed since.
● share of AP enrollment vs share of total enrollment, this school only · not part of the Scope Score
Data source: U.S. Dept. of Education Office for Civil Rights, Civil Rights Data Collection, 2020-21 (biennial; newest published)
Showing up, and staying in class
Where the path goes
The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.
Feeder patterns derived from NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries are approximate and may have changed — verify with your school district for current assignments.
Where graduates go
Where they went after graduation
Of Watsonville's class of 2023, 68% enrolled in college somewhere within a year — a CSU, a community college, a UC, or out of state.
Class of 2023: 460 completers, 68% enrolled somewhere within a year
Percentages are computed by SchoolScope (count ÷ completers) from CDE-reported counts, not a CDE-native rate.
Data source: California Department of Education, 2023 cohort — the newest published; National Student Clearinghouse match.
In fall 2025, 31 of Watsonville's 467 graduates enrolled in the University of California system — Davis the most common landing, with 14 enrollees.
campuses never sum to the universitywide figure — students apply to several
Peak: 32 enrolled, 2022
UC publishes this trend back to 1994 — no other destination has a comparable multi-year record
UC is one road of many — the full destination mix for the class of 2023 is below. 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. By the state's 2023 count, 68% of this class's predecessors enrolled in college somewhere within a year. More of the class of 2023 enrolled at community colleges (239) than at UC (28).
Data source: University of California Office of the President (UC Information Center), fall 2025 admissions cycle · college-going rate: California Department of Education, 2023 cohort.
The people teaching here
Pay is set by the district, not the school.
Watsonville's teachers are authorized to teach 11 of the 40 AP subjects the College Board offers — including Calculus BC, Calculus AB, and Biology.
Data source: College Board AP Course Audit, 2025 - 2026 audit year (authorization, not enrollment) · IB World Schools directory, name-matched · structural depth: 2020-21 federal snapshot, table 09
What gets spent here
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.
$379 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.
The district's current expense of education per student, from CDE's annual SACS filing — the freshest district spending figure the state publishes.
District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.
Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →
The neighborhood it serves
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level
At 2,215 students, this school is well above the typical California high school (≈1450).
On the state's science test (CAST), 13% 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.
Frequently asked questions
Is Watsonville High a good high school?
What are Watsonville High's CAASPP test scores?
How does Watsonville High rank in California?
What is the attendance and school culture like at Watsonville High?
How does Watsonville High compare to other schools in Watsonville?
How does Watsonville High serve low-income and underrepresented students?
What AP courses are offered at Watsonville High?
How many students from Watsonville High go to UC?
Your other options
Nearby High Schools
2 within ~3 mi · avg 47
Private alternatives nearby
Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.
A low score doesn't tell the whole story. Read: Your School Scored Low — Here's What That Actually Means
Every number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and nearest schools.
| ELA | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 447 | 10% | 29% | 30% | 32% | 39% | −10 |
| Math | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 11 | 447 | 8% | 12% | 23% | 57% | 20% | −4 |
We show the grade rows CDE publishes for this school. A missing grade or dash can mean the school does not serve that grade, no valid result was published, or the tested group was too small to report. It does not mean zero.
| Science (CAST) | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schoolwide | 467 | 1% | 12% | 70% | 17% |
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 · ELA | Tested | MET+ | vs district | vs CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socioeconomically Disadvantaged | 395 | 35.1% | +15 | −3 |
| Hispanic/Latino | 438 | 39.7% | +18 | +1 |
| English Learners | 94 | 7.5% | +2 | −3 |
| School | Dist | Scope | EXC | MET+ | Grade gap | Cohort growth | Susp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Watsonville High ← | — | 48 | 8.6% | 29.4% | — | — | 4.0% |
| Pajaro Valley High | 2.1 mi | 50 | 5.8% | 24.4% | — | — | 3.3% |
| Diamond Technology Institute | 1.3 mi | 44 | 13.3% | 36.9% | — | — | 3.0% |
| California average | — | 54 | 19.8% | 43.2% | — | — | 3.3% |
| Year | Scope | Pctile | Rank | Exc | Met+ | Absent | Susp | Grade gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 51 | 56 | #904 | 10.6% | 32.4% | 11.6% | 3.5% | — |
| 2022 | 46 | 49 | #1075 | 5.9% | 20.9% | 28.4% | 2.6% | — |
| 2023 | 47 | 47 | #1144 | 5.2% | 20.5% | 23.0% | 3.5% | — |
| 2024 | 46 | 47 | #1135 | 5.9% | 21.4% | 19.7% | 4.9% | — |
| 2025 | 48 | 50 | #1081 | 8.6% | 29.4% | 20.0% | 4.0% | — |
| Group | 2019 | 2025 | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Female | 11.0% | 21.1% | +10.1pp |
| Male | 11.2% | 18.2% | +7.0pp |
| Asian | 0.0% | — | — |
| Hispanic/Latino | 10.6% | 19.4% | +8.8pp |
| Students with Disabilities | 19.5% | 28.1% | +8.6pp |
| English Learners | 16.5% | 24.1% | +7.6pp |
| Foster Youth | 30.0% | — | — |
| Homeless | 15.8% | 19.8% | +4.0pp |
| Military-Connected | 6.7% | 19.3% | +12.6pp |
| Socioeconomically Disadvantaged | 11.2% | 20.5% | +9.3pp |
| All Students | 11.1% | 19.6% | +8.5pp |
| Year | Applied | Admitted | Enrolled | GPA (applied) | GPA (admitted) | GPA (enrolled) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 84 | 67 | 31 | 3.77 | 3.88 | 4.00 |
| 2024 | 79 | 57 | 22 | 3.68 | 3.87 | 4.01 |
| 2023 | 81 | 60 | 29 | 3.75 | 3.88 | 3.97 |
| 2022 | 88 | 62 | 32 | 3.77 | 3.95 | 4.04 |
| 2021 | 68 | 41 | 16 | 3.52 | 3.80 | 3.91 |
| 2020 | 78 | 57 | 24 | 3.72 | 3.81 | 3.96 |
| 2019 | 72 | 43 | 23 | 3.60 | 3.82 | 3.92 |
| 2018 | 82 | 40 | 14 | 3.48 | 3.78 | 3.93 |
| 2017 | 64 | 36 | 26 | 3.55 | 3.87 | 3.95 |
| 2016 | 60 | 23 | 13 | 3.24 | 3.65 | 3.78 |
| 2015 | 93 | 47 | 16 | 3.50 | 3.77 | 3.87 |
| 2014 | 84 | 50 | 31 | 3.59 | 3.83 | 3.92 |
‹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.
| Campus | Year | Applied | Admitted | Enrolled |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Berkeley | 2025 | 59 | 6 | 3 |
| Berkeley | 2024 | 39 | 6 | 4 |
| Berkeley | 2023 | 49 | 5 | ‹3 |
| Berkeley | 2022 | 53 | 9 | 6 |
| Berkeley | 2021 | 40 | 9 | ‹3 |
| Davis | 2025 | 57 | 30 | 14 |
| Davis | 2024 | 47 | 22 | 5 |
| Davis | 2023 | 50 | 18 | 8 |
| Davis | 2022 | 56 | 17 | 3 |
| Davis | 2021 | 46 | 15 | 5 |
| Irvine | 2025 | 38 | 11 | 4 |
| Irvine | 2024 | 33 | 6 | ‹3 |
| Irvine | 2023 | 28 | 3 | ‹3 |
| Irvine | 2022 | 34 | 3 | ‹3 |
| Irvine | 2021 | 21 | ‹3 | ‹3 |
| Los Angeles | 2025 | 49 | ‹3 | ‹3 |
| Los Angeles | 2024 | 48 | 5 | ‹3 |
| Los Angeles | 2023 | 41 | ‹3 | ‹3 |
| Los Angeles | 2022 | 53 | 5 | ‹3 |
| Los Angeles | 2021 | 31 | 5 | 3 |
| Merced | 2025 | 26 | 23 | ‹3 |
| Merced | 2024 | 19 | 17 | ‹3 |
| Merced | 2023 | 24 | 21 | ‹3 |
| Merced | 2022 | 23 | 20 | 3 |
| Merced | 2021 | 22 | 17 | 4 |
| Riverside | 2025 | 19 | 17 | ‹3 |
| Riverside | 2024 | 8 | 5 | ‹3 |
| Riverside | 2023 | 12 | 8 | ‹3 |
| Riverside | 2022 | 7 | 7 | ‹3 |
| Riverside | 2021 | 13 | 5 | ‹3 |
| San Diego | 2025 | 37 | 11 | ‹3 |
| San Diego | 2024 | 37 | 17 | 4 |
| San Diego | 2023 | 24 | 12 | 3 |
| San Diego | 2022 | 45 | 30 | 9 |
| San Diego | 2021 | 20 | 10 | ‹3 |
| Santa Barbara | 2025 | 29 | 15 | 3 |
| Santa Barbara | 2024 | 38 | 16 | 3 |
| Santa Barbara | 2023 | 26 | 12 | 5 |
| Santa Barbara | 2022 | 29 | 15 | 4 |
| Santa Barbara | 2021 | 29 | 13 | ‹3 |
| Santa Cruz | 2025 | 51 | 35 | 5 |
| Santa Cruz | 2024 | 44 | 36 | 5 |
| Santa Cruz | 2023 | 51 | 28 | 5 |
| Santa Cruz | 2022 | 47 | 22 | 6 |
| Santa Cruz | 2021 | 41 | 16 | ‹3 |
| Universitywide | 2025 | 84 | 67 | 31 |
| Universitywide | 2024 | 79 | 57 | 22 |
| Universitywide | 2023 | 81 | 60 | 29 |
| Universitywide | 2022 | 88 | 62 | 32 |
| Universitywide | 2021 | 68 | 41 | 16 |
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.
| Subject | Taught by |
|---|---|
| Biology | this school |
| Calculus AB | this school |
| Calculus BC | this school |
| English Language and Composition | this school |
| English Literature and Composition | this school |
| Human Geography | this school |
| Precalculus | this school |
| Spanish Language and Culture | this school |
| Spanish Literature and Culture | this school |
| U.S. Government and Politics | this school |
| United States History | this school |
Authorization ≠ a section running this year — the Ledger records what the school may teach, not seat counts.
| Measure | This school |
|---|---|
| AP offered | offered |
| AP course count | 10 |
| AP enrollment | 293 |
| IB participation | not offered |
| Dual enrollment | offered · 95 enrolled |
| Algebra I in grade 8 | not reported |
| Calculus sections | 2 |
| Physics sections | 5 |
| Chemistry sections | 29 |
| Total enrollment (CRDC) | 2,317 |
Shown, never scored — no entry to any composite. NULL/reserve codes render "not reported," never a fabricated zero. The equity block above this table (§4) is the per-subgroup view of this same collection.
| Destination | Completers | % (derived) |
|---|---|---|
| University of California | 28 | 6.1% |
| California State University | 33 | 7.2% |
| California community college | 239 | 52.0% |
| In-state private | 6 | 1.3% |
| Out-of-state, 4-year | 6 | 1.3% |
| Out-of-state, 2-year | 0 | 0.0% |
| Not enrolled | 148 | 32.2% |
460 completers, class of 2023 · state-reported college-going rate 68% · % column is computed by SchoolScope (count ÷ completers), not a CDE-native rate · a missing cell is CDE suppression, never a fabricated zero · source: CDE 12-mo CGR, 2023 cohort (the newest published), National Student Clearinghouse match — a different, older vintage than the fall 2025 UC admissions rows in tables 06-07 above.
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