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Welcome to the Half Moon Bay High community. What's one thing that would make Half Moon Bay High even better?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
911
High
DISTRICT 468 · STATE 838
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CABRILLO UNIFIED·NCES 060678000599
Half Moon Bay High
1 Lewis Foster Dr., Half Moon Bay, CA 94019 · (650) 712-7200 · San Mateo County
GRADES 09–12HIGH31-TOWNREGULAR SCHOOL911 STUDENTS
D
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 8% 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.
- FBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- FThree-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
18.3:1
50 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 21.0:1 · STATE 18.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
26%
234 students
DISTRICT 27% · 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 | 211 | 23% |
| Grade 10 | 210 | 23% |
| Grade 11 | 257 | 28% |
| Grade 12 | 233 | 26% |
Student demographics
57%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 57% · 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
35.5%
CA avg 49.1% . -16.5pp since 2014
Math
21.0%
CA avg 37.7% . -13.0pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 36 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 21 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 16 points since 2014, while math scores are down about 13 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 11.2% | 24.3% | 23.8% | 40.6% |
| Math | 10.1% | 11.0% | 21.0% | 58.0% |
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 | 35.5% | 21.0% |
| 2023-24 | 47.7% | 30.7% |
| 2022-23 | 41.3% | 27.3% |
| 2021-22 | 53.7% | 27.7% |
| 2018-19 | 57.1% | 36.8% |
| 2017-18 | 61.1% | 44.0% |
| 2016-17 | 57.3% | 38.2% |
| 2015-16 | 59.0% | 40.0% |
| 2014-15 | 52.0% | 34.0% |
% 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
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of CA schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
33.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
64.5%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-30.8pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 34% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 64% typical for California schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
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 Half Moon Bay High
Half Moon Bay High's state test result (33.7% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half Moon Bay High this school | 911 | 25.7% | 33.7% |
| Santa Ynez Valley Union High Solvang | 801 | 27.1% | 43.7% |
| Soquel High Soquel | 1,074 | 29.1% | 53.8% |
| Ripon High Ripon | 1,051 | 26.2% | 52.4% |
| Liberty High Madera | 748 | 34.5% | 40.2% |
| Woodside High Woodside | 1,660 | 28.7% | 50.0% |
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 Half Moon Bay High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In California | In San Mateo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 33.7% | #689 of 1,052 | #16 of 17 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 21.0% | #641 of 1,056 ▼ 278 | #16 of 17 ▼ 3 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 35.5% | #949 of 1,056 ▼ 245 | #17 of 17 ▼ 1 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -12.4pp | #24 of 1,044 | #2 of 17 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 911 | #797 of 2,093 | #15 of 35 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 18.3:1 | #321 of 1,352 | #9 of 23 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 56.6% | #498 of 1,351 | #18 of 23 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 25.7% | #1,433 of 1,575 | #19 of 28 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -8.4% | #513 of 802 | #12 of 14 |
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
911
-149 (-14%) vs 2020
+13% since 1990-91, when it was 807
Student : Teacher
18.3:1
was 23.6:1
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 | 911 | 49.7 | 18.3:1 | 26% (234) |
| 2023-24 | 987 | 50.9 | 19.4:1 | 36% (355) |
| 2022-23 | 1,024 | 48.9 | 20.9:1 | 32% (329) |
| 2020-21 | 1,060 | 45 | 23.6:1 | 36% (379) |
| 2017-18 | 995 | 42.4 | 23.5:1 | 35% (345) |
| 2015-16 | 1,020 | 42 | 24.3:1 | 35% (355) |
| 2010-11 | 971 | N/A | N/A | 37% (359) |
| 2000-01 | 1,218 | 51 | 23.9:1 | 15% (188) |
| 1990-91 | 807 | 37 | 21.8:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Half Moon Bay High.
Since 2017-18: students down 8% (995 to 911); teachers up 17% (42.4 to 49.7).
About Half Moon Bay High
Half Moon Bay High, a medium-sized high school, is located in Half Moon Bay, California. The latest federal count shows 911 students in grades 9 through 12.
Cabrillo Unified operates 7 schools. Combined enrollment is 2,548 students.
At Half Moon Bay High, Hispanic students make up 51% of the student body. The school is also 41% White, 5% multiracial, and 3% Asian. That is higher than the 25% Hispanic share among all San Mateo County residents. The school's diversity index is 57%, meaning two students picked at random have a 57% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
The school has about 18.3 students per teacher and 49.7 full-time-equivalent teachers. For comparison, high schools in California average 18.2:1. About 26% of enrolled students meet the income rules for free or reduced-price lunch. Public schools in San Mateo County average 34%.
allk12 grades Half Moon Bay High a D. The grade compares the school only with California public high schools, because each state gives its own test.
The school's average proficiency rate on state tests, 33.7%, is 30.8 points below the 64.5% the model predicts from its free or reduced-price lunch share. That result is in the bottom 10% of California schools.
Within San Mateo County, the median household income is $158,855, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 54%, and about 4% of people live in poverty. Besides Half Moon Bay High, San Mateo County has 175 other public schools.
Manuel F. Cunha Intermediate is the public school closest to Half Moon Bay High, about 0.8 miles away. The count of other public schools within five miles is 4. On average proficiency, Half Moon Bay High is 5th of 6 nearby schools with test data.
Half Moon Bay High falls in the Town: Fringe locale category, used for schools in a town close to an urbanized area.
Over 4 years, Half Moon Bay High's enrollment declined 14%, to 911. The number of students per teacher fell from 23.6 to 18.3 over 4 years.
Questions about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news can be posted here. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
San Mateo County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
742,340
Census ACS
Median income
$158,855
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
54%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
176
82,403 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Cabrillo Unified
- Alvin S. Hatch ElementaryElementary · 544 students
- Manuel F. Cunha IntermediateMiddle · 521 students
- El Granada ElementaryElementary · 324 students
- Farallone View ElementaryElementary · 177 students
- Kings Mountain ElementaryElementary · 46 students
- Pilarcitos Alternative High (Continuation)High · 25 students
Other schools in Half Moon Bay
- Alvin S. Hatch ElementaryElementary · 544 students
- Manuel F. Cunha IntermediateMiddle · 521 students
- El Granada ElementaryElementary · 324 students
- Pilarcitos Alternative High (Continuation)High · 25 students
Nearby schools
- Manuel F. Cunha Intermediate0.8 mi · 521
- Pilarcitos Alternative High (Continuation)0.8 mi · 25
- Alvin S. Hatch Elementary0.9 mi · 544
- El Granada Elementary2.7 mi · 324
- Highlands Elementary5.5 mi · 379
- Hillcrest at Youth Services Center5.7 mi · 16
Frequently asked questions
About Half Moon Bay HighWhat is the total enrollment at Half Moon Bay High?
Half Moon Bay High enrolls approximately 911 students in grades 09-12.
What age range does Half Moon Bay High serve?
Half Moon Bay High serves students from grade 09 through grade 12.
How many students per teacher at Half Moon Bay High?
Approximately 18.3:1 students per teacher at Half Moon Bay High.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Half Moon Bay High?
At Half Moon Bay High, the student body is approximately 41% White, 51% Hispanic, 0% Black, 3% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Is Half Moon Bay High public or private?
Half Moon Bay High is a public K-12 school, overseen by Cabrillo Unified.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.