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What's the best and worst thing about the food at El Capitan High?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,793
High
DISTRICT 1,229 · STATE 838
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MERCED UNION HIGH·NCES 062466013098
El Capitan High
100 West Farmland, Merced, CA 95348 · (209) 384-5500 · Merced County
GRADES 09–12HIGH41-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL1,793 STUDENTS
C
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 26% of California public high schools
- CTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- C+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- C-Three-year trend Change in reading and math proficiency over the last three test years.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded California public high schools
Student : Teacher
21.2:1
85 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.1:1 · STATE 18.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
76%
1,367 students
DISTRICT 83% · STATE 65%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 495 | 28% |
| Grade 10 | 403 | 22% |
| Grade 11 | 434 | 24% |
| Grade 12 | 461 | 26% |
Student demographics
53%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 44% · STATE 62% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
CAASPP 2024-25 . % met or exceeded standardEnglish Language Arts
53.6%
CA avg 49.1% . -2.4pp since 2014
Math
14.3%
CA avg 37.7% . -6.7pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 54 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 14 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all California schools, those numbers are about 49 and 38. Reading and writing scores are down about 2 points since 2014, while math scores are down about 7 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 20.3% | 33.3% | 27.3% | 19.1% |
| Math | 3.6% | 10.7% | 26.7% | 59.0% |
Share of tested students at each CAASPP level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.
CAASPP results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 53.6% | 14.3% |
| 2023-24 | 49.7% | 13.6% |
| 2022-23 | 40.8% | 14.8% |
| 2021-22 | 56.1% | 16.3% |
| 2020-21 | 51.3% | 23.6% |
| 2018-19 | 59.6% | 25.0% |
| 2017-18 | 51.6% | 20.1% |
| 2016-17 | 59.3% | 23.9% |
| 2015-16 | 58.0% | 30.0% |
| 2014-15 | 56.0% | 21.0% |
% met or exceeded standard, all students and all tested grades.
Source: CAASPP. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
32.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
34.9%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-2.1pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 33% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 35% typical for California schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among California's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like El Capitan High
El Capitan High's state test result (32.8% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| El Capitan High this school | 1,793 | 76.2% | 32.8% |
| Hillcrest High Riverside | 1,780 | 75.6% | 42.3% |
| Merced High Merced | 1,943 | 79.4% | 27.6% |
| Buhach Colony High Atwater | 1,704 | 78.5% | 30.8% |
| Lindhurst High Olivehurst | 1,254 | 76.8% | 27.3% |
| Grace M. Davis High Modesto | 2,083 | 80.2% | 26.3% |
Matched among California high schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where El Capitan High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Merced County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 32.8% | #719 of 1,052 | #4 of 13 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 14.3% | #855 of 1,056 ▼ 53 | #7 of 13 no change |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 53.6% | #618 of 1,056 ▲ 37 | #3 of 13 no change |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -2.2pp | #241 of 1,044 | #4 of 13 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,793 | #396 of 2,093 | #4 of 24 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 21.2:1 | #711 of 1,352 | #10 of 14 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 53.2% | #605 of 1,351 | #1 of 14 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 76.2% | #713 of 1,575 | #15 of 17 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +7.8% | #159 of 327 | #5 of 9 |
Ranked against other public high schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
1,793
+7 (+0%) vs 2020
Student : Teacher
21.2:1
was 22.1:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 1,793 | 84.7 | 21.2:1 | 76% (1,367) |
| 2023-24 | 1,811 | 85.7 | 21.1:1 | 74% (1,342) |
| 2022-23 | 1,839 | 84.6 | 21.7:1 | 71% (1,303) |
| 2020-21 | 1,786 | 81 | 22.1:1 | 70% (1,250) |
| 2017-18 | 1,664 | 75 | 22.2:1 | 70% (1,160) |
| 2015-16 | 1,557 | 66 | 23.6:1 | 74% (1,155) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for El Capitan High.
Since 2017-18: students up 8% (1,664 to 1,793); teachers up 13% (75 to 84.7).
About El Capitan High
A high-enrollment high school in Merced, California, El Capitan High is part of Merced Union High. Students in grades 9 through 12 attend the school, which enrolls 1,793 students. The average among high schools in California is roughly 838 students; this school is 114% above that.
El Capitan High is part of Merced Union High, where 9 schools serve 11,061 students.
Roughly 65% of students at El Capitan High are Hispanic. Other reported shares: 14% White, 13% Asian, 5% Black, and 3% multiracial. That is close to the 63% Hispanic share among all Merced County residents. Pick two students at random and there is a 53% chance they belong to different racial or ethnic groups; that figure is the school's diversity index.
Teachers at the school number 84.7 full-time equivalents, and the ratio is 21.2:1. This ratio sits 3.0 above the 18.2:1 average for high schools in California. Roughly 76% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch.
allk12 grades El Capitan High a C. The grade compares the school only with California public high schools, because each state gives its own test.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 34.9% at El Capitan High; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 32.8%.
Merced County census figures show that the median household income is $65,510, roughly 15% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 16% of residents live below the federal poverty line. There are 117 public schools in Merced County, enrolling about 59,456 students in all.
Merced City School District Community Day is located about 2.0 miles from El Capitan High. Around the school, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. On proficiency, El Capitan High is ahead of the 32.1% nearby average, ranking 4th of 7.
NCES lists the school's locale as Rural: Fringe. That means it sits in rural territory close to an urban area.
Over 4 years, enrollment stayed close to where it was, going from 1,786 to 1,793.
To ask about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs, start a discussion on this page. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Merced County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
290,201
Census ACS
Median income
$65,510
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
15%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
16%
Below federal line
Schools in county
117
59,456 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Merced Union High
- Atwater HighHigh · 2,029 students
- Merced HighHigh · 1,943 students
- Golden Valley HighHigh · 1,917 students
- Buhach Colony HighHigh · 1,704 students
- Livingston HighHigh · 1,169 students
- Yosemite High (Continuation)High · 342 students
Other schools in Merced
- Merced HighHigh · 1,943 students
- Golden Valley HighHigh · 1,917 students
- Weaver MiddleMiddle · 1,073 students
- Pioneer ElementaryElementary · 1,055 students
- Merced County Special EducationCombined · 942 students
- Farmdale ElementaryElementary · 919 students
Other El Capitan High schools
One other US public school is named El Capitan High. El Capitan High is the 2nd largest of the 2.
- El Capitan HighLakeside, CA · 1,810 students
Nearby schools
- Merced City School District Community Day2.0 mi · 22
- Herbert H. Cruickshank Middle2.0 mi · 624
- Come Back Charter2.5 mi · 128
- Allan Peterson Elementary2.8 mi · 690
- Rudolph Rivera Elementary2.9 mi · 917
- Rudolph Rivera Middle2.9 mi · 608
Frequently asked questions
About El Capitan HighHow many students attend El Capitan High?
El Capitan High enrolls approximately 1,793 students in grades 09-12.
What grades does El Capitan High serve?
El Capitan High serves grades 09-12.
What is the student-teacher ratio at El Capitan High?
The student-to-teacher ratio at El Capitan High is approximately 21.2:1 (85 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at El Capitan High?
At El Capitan High, the student body is approximately 14% White, 65% Hispanic, 5% Black, 13% Asian, 3% Two or more.
Is El Capitan High public or private?
El Capitan High is a public K-12 school, overseen by Merced Union High.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.