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What advice would you give to incoming students at Sonora High?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
1,779
High
DISTRICT 1,575 · STATE 838
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·FULLERTON JOINT UNION HIGH·NCES 061476001814
Sonora High
401 South Palm St., La Habra, CA 90631 · (562) 266-2003 · Orange County
GRADES 09–12HIGH21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL1,779 STUDENTS
A-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 75% of California public high schools
- A-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- ABeats 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
23.8:1
75 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 21.1:1 · STATE 18.2:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
66%
1,183 students
DISTRICT 66% · 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 | 479 | 27% |
| Grade 10 | 425 | 24% |
| Grade 11 | 416 | 23% |
| Grade 12 | 459 | 26% |
Student demographics
43%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
68.1%
CA avg 49.1% . -2.9pp since 2014
Math
36.9%
CA avg 37.7% . -8.1pp since 2014
What this means: On the CAASPP, California's statewide test, about 68 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 37 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 3 points since 2014, while math scores are down about 8 points.
Performance levels, 2024-25
| Subject | Standard Exceeded | Standard Met | Standard Nearly Met | Standard Not Met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Arts | 36.7% | 31.4% | 19.0% | 12.9% |
| Math | 13.2% | 23.7% | 26.9% | 36.1% |
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 | 68.1% | 36.9% |
| 2023-24 | 72.2% | 39.1% |
| 2022-23 | 75.7% | 46.9% |
| 2021-22 | 79.7% | 44.4% |
| 2020-21 | 62.2% | 42.9% |
| 2018-19 | 74.4% | 38.1% |
| 2017-18 | 75.6% | 42.0% |
| 2016-17 | 76.7% | 42.0% |
| 2015-16 | 70.0% | 42.0% |
| 2014-15 | 71.0% | 45.0% |
% 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
54.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
40.6%
based on CA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+13.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 54% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 41% 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 Sonora High
Sonora High's state test result (54.1% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sonora High this school | 1,779 | 66.5% | 54.1% |
| El Modena High Orange | 1,795 | 69.0% | 44.2% |
| Piner High Santa Rosa | 1,434 | 64.4% | 27.1% |
| Pioneer High Woodland | 1,582 | 71.1% | 36.4% |
| Fullerton Union High Fullerton | 1,880 | 62.8% | 49.0% |
| Golden West High Visalia | 2,059 | 70.7% | 30.1% |
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 Sonora High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In California | In Orange County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 54.1% | #264 of 1,052 | #40 of 68 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 36.9% | #315 of 1,056 ▼ 49 | #43 of 69 ▼ 4 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 68.1% | #285 of 1,056 ▼ 87 | #36 of 69 ▼ 13 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -9.5pp | #47 of 1,044 | #4 of 68 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 1,779 | #401 of 2,093 | #42 of 105 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 23.8:1 | #1,091 of 1,352 | #63 of 85 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 42.5% | #797 of 1,351 | #52 of 85 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 66.5% | #923 of 1,575 | #51 of 95 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -8.3% | #519 of 802 | #53 of 71 |
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
1,779
+38 (+2%) vs 2020
+35% since 1990-91, when it was 1,317
Student : Teacher
23.8:1
was 24.9:1
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 | 1,779 | 74.6 | 23.8:1 | 66% (1,183) |
| 2023-24 | 1,707 | 74 | 23.1:1 | 57% (966) |
| 2022-23 | 1,730 | 72.8 | 23.8:1 | 60% (1,043) |
| 2020-21 | 1,741 | 70 | 24.9:1 | 40% (701) |
| 2017-18 | 1,941 | 68.3 | 28.4:1 | 49% (959) |
| 2015-16 | 1,882 | 66 | 28.5:1 | 46% (875) |
| 2010-11 | 2,050 | N/A | N/A | 44% (894) |
| 2000-01 | 1,927 | 75 | 25.7:1 | 1% (16) |
| 1990-91 | 1,317 | 55 | 23.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Sonora High.
Since 2017-18: students down 8% (1,941 to 1,779); teachers up 9% (68.3 to 74.6).
About Sonora High
In La Habra, California, Sonora High is a high-enrollment high school. The student body numbers 1,779 students, from grades 9 through 12. Average enrollment for high schools in California is about 838, so this school runs 112% larger than that.
Fullerton Joint Union High serves 12,597 students across 8 schools.
By race and ethnicity, Sonora High is 74% Hispanic. The rest of enrollment is 12% White, 10% Asian, and 2% multiracial. Census estimates put the Hispanic share of Orange County's population at about 34%. Sonora High has a diversity index of 43%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
The school employs the equivalent of 74.6 full-time teachers, for a ratio of 23.8:1. The average ratio among high schools in California is 18.2:1, lower than at this school. The free or reduced-price lunch rate at Sonora High is 66%. Public schools in Orange County average 55%.
allk12 grades Sonora High an A-. The grade compares the school only with California public high schools, because each state gives its own test.
On the allk12 BeatsExpectations measure, Sonora High is 13.5 points above the average proficiency rate on state tests predicted for its free or reduced-price lunch share: 54.1% actual, 40.6% predicted. That is outside both the top and bottom 10% in California.
Orange County has about 3,165,820 residents, and median household income is about $116,289, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 44%, and roughly 7% of residents are in poverty. The public schools of Orange County number 649 and enroll about 430,458.
Washington Middle is located about 0.8 miles from Sonora High. Within five miles are at least 8 other public schools. In a group of 9 nearby schools with scores, Sonora High ranks 2nd on average proficiency.
NCES lists the school's locale as Suburb: Large. That means it sits in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
Over 4 years, enrollment stayed close to where it was, going from 1,741 to 1,779. By 2024-25, the school had 23.8 students per teacher, compared with 24.9 in 2020-21.
The discussion area below is open to posts about school events, clubs, and volunteer needs. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Orange County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
3,165,820
Census ACS
Median income
$116,289
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
44%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
649
430,458 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Fullerton Joint Union High
- Troy HighHigh · 2,504 students
- Sunny Hills HighHigh · 2,337 students
- La Habra HighHigh · 1,881 students
- Fullerton Union HighHigh · 1,880 students
- Buena Park HighHigh · 1,682 students
- La Vista High (Continuation)High · 298 students
Other schools in La Habra
- La Habra HighHigh · 1,881 students
- Ladera Palma ElementaryElementary · 583 students
- Washington MiddleMiddle · 580 students
- Las Positas ElementaryElementary · 565 students
- Imperial MiddleMiddle · 495 students
- El Portal ElementaryElementary · 469 students
Other Sonora High schools
One other US public school is named Sonora High. Sonora High is the largest of the 2.
- Sonora HighSonora, CA · 880 students
Nearby schools
- Washington Middle0.8 mi · 580
- Sierra Vista Elementary0.8 mi · 467
- Ladera Palma Elementary1.2 mi · 583
- Hermosa Drive Elementary1.2 mi · 302
- Arovista Elementary1.3 mi · 460
- Arbolita Elementary1.3 mi · 379
Frequently asked questions
About Sonora HighHow large is Sonora High?
Sonora High enrolls approximately 1,779 students in grades 09-12.
Is Sonora High an elementary, middle, or high school?
Sonora High is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many students per teacher at Sonora High?
Approximately 23.8:1 students per teacher at Sonora High.
What is the student diversity at Sonora High?
Student demographics at Sonora High are roughly 12% White, 74% Hispanic, 1% Black, 10% Asian, 2% Two or more.
What district is Sonora High in?
Sonora High is part of Fullerton Joint Union High.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.