Modesto High School

Modesto · Stanislaus County · Modesto City High
Public Stanislaus County 🏛 Modesto City High → ~604 seniors CDS 5071175…
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Compare with peers

Most similar nearby schools

Peter Johansen High → Thomas Downey High School → James C Enochs High School → Central Valley High School → Grace M Davis High School → Compare all similar →

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment (9–12)
2,544 (2018)2,205 (2026)
-13.3%
Grade 12 (graduating class)
544 (2018)568 (2026)
+4.4%

If this trend holds (-1.8%/yr, Total enrollment)

At per-pupil funding of $ / student:

Horizon Projected Total enrollment Change Funding impact / yr
1 yr (2027) ~2,166 -39 $0
3 yr (2029) ~2,090 -115 $0
5 yr (2031) ~2,016 -189 $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.

Enrollment stability & demand — 2024-25

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

Mixed signal
Outperforming on demand; some mid-year churn to look at.

Modesto High School is recruiting families faster than Stanislaus County is shrinking (school +4.4% vs. county +2.3%), but 332 students didn't make it to year-end. The recruitment engine works; the mid-year exits are worth understanding. Chronic absenteeism is rising (28.7%, +11.6 pts since 2016-17) — a watch signal worth monitoring as a leading indicator.

+4.4%  school enrollment (2018–2026)
+2.3%  Stanislaus County baseline
+2.1pp  gap vs. county
86.3%  retention (county median 87.8%)
Enrollment — indexed to 100 at 2018
Stability rate by year (raw %)
Stability rate
86.3%
2,096 of 2,428 students

332 of 2,428 students who enrolled at Modesto High School this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (13.7% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.

Stanislaus County median
87.8% · school is in the 48th percentile of 31 HS
Statewide median
87.2% · in the 47th percentile of 1,688 HS

Stability by student group

Socio. disadvantaged (2,093) 85.7%
Hispanic / Latino (1,881) 86.0%
English learners (665) 78.2%
Students w/ disabilities (299) 81.9%
Asian (159) 93.7%
White (154) 87.7%

Nearest peer high schools

Peter Johansen High 85.2% Thomas Downey High School 86.1% James C Enochs High School 93.6% Central Valley High School 89.7% Grace M Davis High School 77.8%

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.

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
28.7%
674 of 2,346 students

Absenteeism is up 11.6 pp since 2016-17. A rising absenteeism trend often precedes formal departure — worth investigating which subgroups are driving it.

Stanislaus County median
22.2% · school is worse than 67% of 30 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).

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 = 543
45.3%
incl. 20.8% exceeded
-4.4 pts vs. Stanislaus County median (49.7%) · CA median 54.3% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 79.3%
Math — met or exceeded
n = 542
19.9%
incl. 7.4% exceeded
On the Stanislaus County median (19.9%) · 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

Hispanic / Latino 78% +1.9
Asian 7%
White 6% -1.2
Not reported 4%
Two or more 2%
Black / African Am. 2%

Program subgroups

Students w/ disabilities 86% +3.0
English learners 23% -1.2
Socioeconomically disadv. 10% -2.0

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.

University of California outcomes · Class of 2025
UC Reach
13%
79 admits / 604 seniors
+1.4 pp above peer median (11.7%) · Ranked #5 of 10 similar schools
5-year trend
2021 · 15.4% 2025 · 13.1%
Where this sits on the California curve
CA median
18.5%
Peer median
11.7%
Top 10%
53.3%
This school
13.1%
0%50%100%
CA median 18.5% Top 10% ≥ 53.3% This school 13.1%

Higher than 33% of California high schools (1105 ranked, ≥50 seniors)

📊 What this number means

Modesto High School's UC Reach of 13.1% is below the California median (18.5%). The top 10% of CA schools achieve 53.3% or higher.

Overall, Modesto High School's UC Reach is higher than 33% of California high schools (1105 ranked).

UC Application Reach
38.7%
234 applications
In context: CA median 78.3% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 245.8% · higher than 17% of CA HS.
UC Admit Rate
33.8%
79 / 234 applications
In context: CA median 26.0% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 40.5% · higher than 79% of CA HS.
UC Yield Rate
15.2%
12 enrolled of 79 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
2.0%
12 enrollees / 604 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
368:1
6.0 FTE counselors · 2,205 students
In context: CA median 338:1 · ASCA target 250:1.
A-G Completion
44%
236 of 530 graduates · 2024-25 cohort
In context: CA median 55.9% · -11.4 pp vs. median · Stanislaus Co. 41.3%.
UC 6-Yr Grad Rate
79%
64% finished in 4 yrs · N=42 entered 2019
In context: CA median 88.6% · -10.0 pp vs. median.
Selective UC Reach (UCSD, UCSB, UCI, UCD)
8.6
per 100 seniors · campus-level total
In context: CA median 15.7 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 42.4 · higher than 17% of CA HS.
Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA)
1.7
per 100 seniors · campus-level total
In context: CA median 3.5 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 11.1 · higher than 18% of CA HS.
Senior Class Size
604
CDE grade 12 (exact)
Total School Enrollment
2,292
All grades · CDE Census Day
Economic Connectedness
0.74
23rd percentile in CA · cross‑class friendships

Modesto High School — Enrollment & Outcomes Snapshot

Public · Modesto · vs. 10 most similar nearby schools

  • On UC Reach, Modesto High School sits in the middle of its similar-school group (ranked #5 of 10): 13% vs. a peer median of 12%.
  • Its UC Reach has risen 4 points since 2018.
  • Across the top-6 UC campuses, Modesto High School is admitting at roughly +12 percentage points above what its average applicant GPA (3.851) alone would predict (34% actual vs. 22% expected). That's a meaningful signal — it can reflect UC's track record with this school's graduates, students presenting strongly in UC's holistic review (essays, EC's, context), or institutional familiarity helping at the margin. The data can't distinguish which, but the pattern itself is real and worth understanding.
  • Senior-class enrollment is up 4% (544→568 from 2018 to 2026), trailing the peer-group median of +7%.
  • At its recent rate (-1.8%/yr), enrollment projects to ~2090 by 2029 — about 115 fewer students than today.

Enrollment projection

2205 students (2026)
~2090 projected (2029)
at -1.8%/yr

That's about 115 fewer students. At per-student funding of $ per student, that's roughly $0 in annual state funding at risk.

Default = California's LCFF base grant for grades 9–12 ($12,423 per ADA) — adjust to your district's actual per-pupil figure. Projection extrapolates the recent annual rate — not a forecast of intent.

Your school vs. its 10 most similar nearby schools

School Type Size UC Reach Enroll. trend
Modesto High School Public 2205 13.1% +4%
Peer-group median 11.7% +7%
Peter Johansen High Public 1938 +20%
Thomas Downey High School Public 2180 9.1% +28%
James C Enochs High School Public 2332 25.9% -2%
Central Valley High School Public 2335 11.1% +38%
Grace M Davis High School Public 1966 11.7% +7%
John H Pitman High School Public 1968 15.5% +2%
Fred C Beyer High School Public 1650 11.6% +2%
Ceres High School Public 1580 14.0% -5%
Joseph a Gregori High School Public 2392 20.5% +6%
Turlock High School Public 2497 10.2% +8%

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 →

Avg. Applicant GPA · top-6 UCs
3.85
Avg. Admitted GPA · top-6 UCs
4.13

UC funnel — which kids are getting in at what GPA

Combining the school's applicant pool GPA, admit pool GPA, actual admit rate, and statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, we can read which GPA tiers tend to get in — and which don't.

🎯 Who's actually getting into UC from Modesto High School
Campus 4.00+ GPA 3.70–3.99 GPA 3.30–3.69 GPA < 3.30 GPA
UC Berkeley Real shot Long odds Filtered out Filtered out
UCLA Real shot Long odds Filtered out Filtered out
UC San Diego Strong shot Moderate Long odds Filtered out
UC Santa Barbara Strong shot Real shot Long odds Filtered out
UC Irvine Strong shot Real shot Long odds Filtered out
UC Davis Strong shot Strong shot Real shot Filtered out
Strong shot = ≥30% statewide admit rate at this band · Real shot = 10–29% · Moderate = 5–9% · Long odds = 1–4% · Filtered out = under 1%. Tiers map this school's likely outcomes by GPA tier using statewide CA admit rates from UCOP 2025.

The numbers behind it

Campus Applicant GPA Admit GPA Lift Admit rate vs peer schools @ same GPA
UC Berkeley 3.90 4.26 +0.35 16.3% Peers +0.28 · steeper
UCLA (2022) 3.90 4.25 +0.34 22.9% Peers +0.32 · matches
UC San Diego 3.85 4.19 +0.34 39.5% Peers +0.34 · matches
UC Santa Barbara 3.78 4.14 +0.36 47.1% Peers +0.36 · matches
UC Irvine 3.91 4.11 +0.19 36.7% Peers +0.27 · wider
UC Davis 3.80 4.06 +0.26 48.2% Peers +0.31 · wider
📊 Statewide CA admit rates by individual GPA band, 2025 (for reference)
GPA band UCB UCLA UCSD UCSB UCI UCD
4.00+ 17.0% 15.1% 45.2% 62.3% 46.3% 65.9%
3.70–3.99 3.1% 1.6% 9.3% 17.6% 17.0% 31.1%
3.30–3.69 0.8% 0.5% 1.5% 2.8% 2.4% 10.3%
3.00–3.29 0.4% 0.3% 0.2% 0.4% 0.3% 1.9%
< 3.00 0.7% 0.4% 0.3% 0.2% 0.1% 0.7%
How we infer the tier labels: Each tier comes from the statewide CA admit rate at that GPA band at that UC. The "vs peers" column compares this school's lift (admit GPA − applicant GPA) to the average lift at ~100–300 other CA schools with similar applicant pool GPA. What this isn't: a guarantee. UC comprehensive review weighs essays, course rigor, demographics, and context-of-opportunity beyond GPA. A 3.9 with strong context can land an admit; a 4.0 with weak essays can be denied. Use as a baseline expectation, not a verdict. Per-campus year is shown when it differs from the headline year (UCOP doesn't always publish admit-GPA for every campus every year).

Where Modesto High School sits vs. all California schools

Overall, this school admits its UC applicants 12.0 points above what their GPAs predict (33.8% actual vs. 21.7% expected).

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 43 7 3 16.3% 1.2% 42.9% 3.90 4.26
UCLA → Elite 33 3 9.1% 0.5% 3.89
UC San Diego → Selective 38 15 39.5% 2.5% 3.85 4.19
UC Santa Barbara → Selective 34 16 47.1% 2.6% 3.78 4.14
UC Irvine → Selective 30 11 36.7% 1.8% 3.91 4.11
UC Davis → 56 27 9 48.2% 4.5% 33.3% 3.80 4.06
⚠ 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 →

What This Means

A large share of the class applies to UC, so the admit rate runs lower than the application volume alone might suggest — expected when many students apply broadly, including to reach campuses. UC Reach (which credits every admit relative to the class) is the truer read of how the class fares: a strong Reach alongside a moderate admit rate is healthy, not a contradiction.
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.
Students are earning UC admission but enrolling elsewhere at a notable rate. This may reflect competition from private colleges, out-of-state flagships, cost considerations, or UC campus fit. Student outcome surveys can clarify.
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 Stanislaus County rankings →

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