Durham High School

Durham · Butte County · Durham Unified · Public

Public Butte County 🏛 Durham Unified → ~72 seniors CDS 0461432…
📄 Shareable scorecard →

📋 At a glance

Programs & features
  • ✅ Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
  • 🔢 1 calculus classes · 2 physics · 3 chemistry
Academic signals
  • 🎓 AP rigor: Bottom 40% of US high schools
  • 📝 SAT/ACT participation: Bottom 37% by test-taker volume
  • 🎓 4-yr grad rate: 92% (60th percentile nationally)

Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts ACGR, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.

💡

How Durham High School compares for families

Real college outcomes data available below.

  • Statewide5.6% UC Reach — 12.5 points below the California median of 18.1%.
  • vs Similar SchoolsRight at the peer median (5.0% UC Reach) across the 5 most similar nearby schools.

🎓 Academic rigor

AP + advanced-course offerings

Moderate — some AP / advanced course access

Bottom 40% of US high schools

50th 90th ↑ this school
Less rigorMore rigorMost rigor
Advanced math classes
2
1 calculus · 1 advanced
Lab science classes
5
2 physics · 3 chemistry
Other rigor signals
✅ Dual-enrollment program

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).

SAT / ACT participation

CRDC federal data · 2020-21

Bottom 37% by test-taker volume

50th 90th
SAT/ACT test-takers
39
11th-12th graders who took 1+ college admissions test
Test-taking intensity
12.2
takers per 100 students in grades 9-12
Compared against
18,426
US high schools reporting SAT/ACT participation

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.

🎓 4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts

What % of students graduate on time?

60th percentile nationally

50th 90th
4-year graduation rate
92%
Range: 90–94%
4-year cohort size
70
Students in the 9th-grade entry class tracked over 4 years
Compared against
17,988
US high schools reporting 4-year ACGR

Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.

🏛️ Federal Title I context

Title I Targeted Assistance eligible

35-39% FRPL — qualifies for Title I Targeted Assistance

38.8%
FRPL rate — % of students who qualify for the federal Free or Reduced-Price Lunch program. This is the underlying federal income-eligibility signal Title I designations are computed from (ESEA Sec. 1113).
0% (no FRPL) 35% TA · 40% Schoolwide 100% (universal FRPL)

35-39% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. The school can receive Title I funds targeted to identified students (not schoolwide).

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, free/reduced-price lunch eligibility. The actual Title I designation is a district decision and may differ from eligibility — but the federal eligibility math is what we show here. We don't claim to assert whether the district formally chose to enroll this school in Title I.

📊 Key takeaway · Class of 2025

Durham High School sent 17 applications to the six most selective University of California campuses and 23.5% were admitted, producing a UC Reach of 5.6%12.5 percentage points below the California median of 18.1%, higher than 5% of California high schools..

University of California outcomes · Class of 2025
UC Reach
6%
4 admits / 72 seniors
On the peer median (5.0%) · Ranked #2 of 6 similar schools
5-year trend
2020 · 4.2% 2025 · 5.6%
Where this sits on the California curve
CA median
18.1%
Peer median
5.0%
Top 10%
51.2%
This school
5.6%
0%50%100%
CA median 18.1% Top 10% ≥ 51.2% This school 5.6%

Higher than 5% of California high schools (978 ranked, ≥50 seniors)

📊 What this number means

Durham High School's UC Reach of 5.6% is below the California median (18.1%). The top 10% of CA schools achieve 51.2% or higher.

Overall, Durham High School's UC Reach is higher than 5% of California high schools (978 ranked).

UC Application Reach
23.6%
17 applications
In context: CA median 74.9% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 241.0% · higher than 5% of CA HS.
UC Admit Rate
23.5%
4 / 17 applications
In context: CA median 26.1% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 40.5% · higher than 36% of CA HS.
UC Yield Rate
N/A
None enrolled of 4 admitted
Yield vs. Enrollment Reach: Yield answers "of UC admits, what % chose UC?" — denominator is just the admits. A small admitted cohort can post a low yield even when the school sends a healthy share of its class to UC.
UC Enrollment Reach
N/A
None enrollees / 72 seniors
Enrollment Reach vs. Yield: Reach answers "of the whole senior class, what % ended up at UC?" — denominator is everyone. High Yield with low Enrollment Reach is common at elite privates: most admits matriculate, but the school sends most of its class to non-UC selective colleges.
Student-Counselor Ratio
326:1
1.0 FTE counselors · 326 students
In context: CA median 338:1 · ASCA target 250:1.
A-G Completion
48%
33 of 69 graduates · 2024-25 cohort
In context: CA median 55.9% · -8.1 pp vs. median · Butte Co. 28.7%.
Selective UC Reach (UCSD, UCSB, UCI, UCD)
N/A
Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA)
N/A
Senior Class Size
72
CDE grade 12 (exact)
Total School Enrollment
320
All grades · CDE Census Day
Economic Connectedness
1.23
65th percentile in CA · cross‑class friendships
Avg. Applicant GPA · top-6 UCs
4.03

UC Outcomes Trend — 2018–2025

UC Admit Rate %
UC Reach % (where available)
UC Admits (count, right axis)

Class size from CDE grade 12 enrollment. Campus-level data — applicant/admit totals may count a student at multiple campuses more than once.

Campus Breakdown — 2025

Campus Applicants Admits Enrollees Admit Rate UC Reach Yield Avg GPA (App) Avg GPA (Adm)
UC Berkeley → Elite 5 4.09
UC San Diego → Selective 5 4.02
UC Davis → 7 4 57.1% 5.6% 3.99
= UCOP-suppressed (count below 3 students, hidden for privacy — actual value is 0, 1, or 2, not necessarily zero). Campus-level totals may count one student admitted to multiple UC campuses more than once; Admit Volume metrics are not the same as UC Reach, which requires unique-student counts. See methodology →

SBAC academic outcomes — grade 11, 2025

Share of grade-11 students meeting or exceeding the California standard on Smarter Balanced ELA and Math. This is the academic-readiness signal that pairs with UC Reach (post-grad outcomes), stability (retention), and absenteeism (engagement). Note: statewide median Math is only ~20% — a school at 20% isn't an outlier; one at 45%+ genuinely is.

ELA — met or exceeded
n = 80
50.0%
incl. 13.8% exceeded
On the Butte County median (50.0%) · CA median 54.3% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 79.3%
Math — met or exceeded
n = 78
28.2%
incl. 15.4% exceeded
On the Butte County median (28.0%) · CA median 21.1% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 53.6%

Source: California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) Smarter Balanced research files. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥30 tested students.

Student composition — 2025-26

HS grades 9–12 racial/ethnic composition and program subgroups, from CDE Census Day Enrollment. Two-year shift shown when ≥1 pt — surfaces how the community served has changed since 2023-24.

Race / ethnicity

White 69% +5.4
Hispanic / Latino 24% -1.1
Two or more 4% -3.1
Asian 1%
Black / African Am. 1%
Not reported 1% -2.0

Program subgroups

Students w/ disabilities 40% -2.6
Socioeconomically disadv. 4%

Source: California Department of Education, Census Day Enrollment 2025-26 (HS grades 9–12). Δ shown when shift is ≥1 pt since 2023-24. Categories below 0.5% omitted.

Chronic absenteeism — 2024-25

Share of students missing 10% or more of expected attendance — the leading indicator that often precedes the demand decline shown above. Families disengaging tend to raise absenteeism first, then formally leave. Basis: grades 9–12.

Chronic absent
17.3%
56 of 324 students

Absenteeism is up 8.2 pp since 2016-17. A rising absenteeism trend often precedes formal departure — worth investigating which subgroups are driving it.

Butte County median
25.9% · school is better than 85% of 13 HS
Statewide median
22.9%
Chronic absenteeism by year (raw %)

Source: California Department of Education, Chronic Absenteeism 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 eligible students. CDE didn't publish a usable 2019-20 file (COVID).

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment (9–12)
286 (2018)326 (2026)
+14.0%
Grade 12 (graduating class)
61 (2018)81 (2026)
+32.8%

If this trend holds (+1.6%/yr, Total enrollment)

At per-pupil funding of $ / student:

Horizon Projected Total enrollment Change Funding impact / yr
1 yr (2027) ~331 +5 $0
3 yr (2029) ~342 +16 $0
5 yr (2031) ~354 +28 $0

Straight-line extrapolation of the recent annual rate — a what-if, not a forecast of intent. Default = California's LCFF base grant for grades 9–12 ($12,423/ADA). Edit the figure to match your school.

Durham High School — Enrollment & Outcomes Snapshot

Public · Durham · vs. 10 most similar nearby schools

  • On UC Reach, Durham High School sits near the top of its similar-school group (ranked #2 of 6): 6% vs. a peer median of 5%.
  • Its UC Reach has held roughly steady since 2018.
  • Senior-class enrollment is up 33% (61→81 from 2018 to 2026), outpacing the peer-group median of -9%.
  • Enrollment has been growing (+1.6%/yr); projects to ~342 by 2029.

Enrollment projection

326 students (2026)
~342 projected (2029)
at +1.6%/yr

Your school vs. its 10 most similar nearby schools

School Type Size UC Reach Enroll. trend
Durham High School Public 326 5.6% +33%
Peer-group median 5.0% -9%
Inspire School Of Arts And Sciences Public 299 12.5% -18%
Core Butte Charter School Public 405 -11%
Hamilton High Public 320 +42%
Paradise High School Public 502 3.0% -46%
Willows High School Public 419 5.5% +0%
Hometech Charter Public 145 +41%
Biggs High School Public 177 -25%
Fair View High (continuation) Public 100 -20%
Gridley High School Public 685 2.8% +36%
Oroville High School Public 830 5.0% -6%

UC Reach = top-6 UC admits ÷ senior class (can exceed 100% when students are admitted to multiple campuses). Enrollment trend = first-to-latest grade-12 change on file. Similar schools matched on proximity, size, type. Methodology →

Enrollment stability & demand — 2024-25

Two complementary signals: retention (do students stay once enrolled?) and demand (are families choosing the school?). Read against the Butte County baseline — the demographic tide is moving every CA HS, so a school's gap vs. county is the actionable signal.

Healthy
Best in class — winning on demand and retention.

Durham High School outperformed Butte County on enrollment (school +32.8% vs. county +19.8%) AND maintains 95.1% stability. Replicable model — worth documenting what's working.

+32.8%  school enrollment (2018–2026)
+19.8%  Butte County baseline
+13.0pp  gap vs. county
95.1%  retention (county median 81.8%)
Enrollment — indexed to 100 at 2018
Stability rate by year (raw %)
Stability rate
95.1%
311 of 327 students

16 of 327 students who enrolled at Durham High School this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (4.9% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.

Butte County median
81.8% · school is in the 100th percentile of 13 HS
Statewide median
87.2% · in the 90th percentile of 1,688 HS

Stability by student group

White (216) 96.8%
Socio. disadvantaged (140) 92.9%
Hispanic / Latino (80) 92.5%
Students w/ disabilities (36) 94.4%
Two or more races (20) 100.0%

Nearest peer high schools

Inspire School Of Arts And Sciences 86.4% Core Butte Charter School 81.8% Hamilton High 96.2% Paradise High School 80.2% Willows High School 90.1%

Source: California Department of Education, Stability Rate 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 cumulative enrollees so by-design-high-churn continuation schools don't dominate the bottom of the distribution. Cumulative enrollment counts every student on the rolls during the year, so it can exceed peak-day enrollment.

District financial profile — Durham Unified (FY2020)

From 4 years of NCES F-33 filings (the federally-mandated district finance survey). Public schools don't have their own books — the district does. These figures show the financial scale, revenue dependence, instruction-vs-overhead mix, and long-term debt that shape what a school can sustain.

Total revenue
$13.9M
+14.5% since FY2017
Per-pupil revenue
$14,039
991 students enrolled
Revenue mix
State: 54.6%
Local: 36.7%
Federal: 8.7%
Instruction share
58.7%
of current spending · $7,397/pupil
Long-term debt
$16.4M
Total revenue by year ($M)
Total expenditure by year ($M)

Source: NCES F-33 Annual Survey of School System Finances (Urban Institute Education Data API). Latest year currently published: FY2020. F-33 is a district-level federal filing — it reflects the Durham Unified as a whole, not this individual school's books. Revenue mix shows where the district's dollars come from (state aid dominates in CA via LCFF). Instruction share is current expenditure on instruction ÷ total current expenditure (national benchmark ~60%). Long-term debt is end-of-year outstanding (mostly facilities bonds).

What This Means

Fewer than 15% of seniors are earning UC admission. This may reflect a high non-UC college-going rate, significant A-G completion gaps, or an early-stage UC pipeline. A deeper review of A-G readiness and counseling capacity is warranted.
Note: admit counts used here are campus-level totals. A student admitted to both UCLA and UCSD is counted twice. When UCOP unique-student data becomes available it will be loaded automatically and the labels will update.
Compare with other schools → See Butte County rankings →

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