Pittsburg High School

Pittsburg · Contra Costa County · Pittsburg Unified
Public Contra Costa County 🏛 Pittsburg Unified → ~803 seniors CDS 0761788…
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Most similar nearby schools

Clayton Valley Charter High → Heritage High School → Liberty High → Freedom High School → Antioch High School → Compare all similar →

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment (9–12)
3,529 (2018)3,485 (2026)
-1.2%
Grade 12 (graduating class)
709 (2018)851 (2026)
+20.0%

If this trend holds (-0.2%/yr, Total enrollment)

At per-pupil funding of $ / student:

Horizon Projected Total enrollment Change Funding impact / yr
1 yr (2027) ~3,480 -5 $0
3 yr (2029) ~3,469 -16 $0
5 yr (2031) ~3,458 -27 $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 Contra Costa County baseline — the demographic tide is moving every CA HS, so a school's gap vs. county is the actionable signal.

Mixed signal
Demand outpacing county is masking internal churn.

Enrollment growth is beating Contra Costa County (+20.0% vs. -3.2%), but 538 of 3643 students didn't maintain continuous enrollment. Why are families leaving once enrolled? Chronic absenteeism is also at 35.2% (up +18.5 pts from 2016-17) — engagement and demand are both signaling decline.

+20.0%  school enrollment (2018–2026)
-3.2%  Contra Costa County baseline
+23.2pp  gap vs. county
85.2%  retention (county median 89.5%)
Enrollment — indexed to 100 at 2018
Stability rate by year (raw %)
Stability rate
85.2%
3,105 of 3,643 students

538 of 3,643 students who enrolled at Pittsburg High School this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (14.8% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.

Contra Costa County median
89.5% · school is in the 42nd percentile of 45 HS
Statewide median
87.2% · in the 42nd percentile of 1,688 HS

Stability by student group

Socio. disadvantaged (3,005) 85.6%
Hispanic / Latino (2,355) 86.3%
English learners (690) 79.9%
Black / African Am. (620) 80.3%
Students w/ disabilities (433) 83.4%
Two or more races (172) 79.1%

Nearest peer high schools

Clayton Valley Charter High 94.8% Heritage High School 93.6% Liberty High 92.3% Freedom High School 90.3% Antioch High School 74.5%

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
35.2%
1,247 of 3,545 students

Absenteeism is up 18.5 pp since 2016-17. A rising absenteeism trend often precedes formal departure — worth investigating which subgroups are driving it.

Contra Costa County median
22.1% · school is worse than 69% of 45 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 = 756
42.9%
incl. 14.0% exceeded
-8.9 pts vs. Contra Costa County median (51.8%) · CA median 54.3% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 79.3%
Math — met or exceeded
n = 754
17.6%
incl. 4.6% exceeded
-5.4 pts vs. Contra Costa County median (23.0%) · 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

Hispanic / Latino 65%
Black / African Am. 16% -1.1
Filipino 5%
Two or more 5%
White 4%
Asian 3%
Pacific Islander 1%

Program subgroups

Students w/ disabilities 78% -2.6
English learners 16% -3.3
Socioeconomically disadv. 12% +1.2
Homeless 4% +1.4

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.

District financial profile — Pittsburg 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
$199.3M
+15.2% since FY2017
Per-pupil revenue
$18,096
11,015 students enrolled
Revenue mix
State: 63.9%
Local: 23.9%
Federal: 12.2%
Instruction share
59.7%
of current spending · $8,661/pupil
Long-term debt
$313.0M
+12.0% since FY2017
Total revenue by year ($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 Pittsburg 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).

University of California outcomes · Class of 2025
UC Reach
15%
123 admits / 803 seniors
-4.6 pp vs. peer median (19.9%) · Ranked #6 of 11 similar schools
5-year trend
2021 · 10.3% 2025 · 15.3%
Where this sits on the California curve
CA median
18.5%
Top 10%
53.3%
This school
15.3%
0%50%100%
CA median 18.5% Top 10% ≥ 53.3% This school 15.3%

Higher than 42% of California high schools (1105 ranked, ≥50 seniors)

📊 What this number means

Pittsburg High School's UC Reach of 15.3% is below the California median (18.5%). The top 10% of CA schools achieve 53.3% or higher.

But in Contra Costa County, where the local median is 25.6% and the top-10% bar is 58.5%, this score is mid-pack rather than exceptional — typical of its market rather than a standout.

Overall, Pittsburg High School's UC Reach is higher than 42% of California high schools (1105 ranked).

UC Application Reach
56.8%
456 applications
In context: CA median 78.3% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 245.8% · Contra Costa Co. Top 10% ≥ 323.6% · higher than 34% of CA HS.
UC Admit Rate
27.0%
123 / 456 applications
In context: CA median 26.0% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 40.5% · higher than 55% of CA HS.
UC Yield Rate
30.9%
38 enrolled of 123 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
4.7%
38 enrollees / 803 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
387:1
9.0 FTE counselors · 3,485 students
In context: CA median 338:1 · 49 more students per counselor · ASCA target 250:1.
A-G Completion
39%
289 of 737 graduates · 2024-25 cohort
In context: CA median 55.9% · -16.7 pp vs. median.
UC 6-Yr Grad Rate
97%
83% finished in 4 yrs · N=36 entered 2019
In context: CA median 88.6% · +8.6 pp above.
Selective UC Reach (UCSD, UCSB, UCI, UCD)
11.0
per 100 seniors · campus-level total
In context: CA median 15.7 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 42.4 · higher than 30% of CA HS.
Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA)
2.5
per 100 seniors · campus-level total
In context: CA median 3.5 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 11.1 · higher than 34% of CA HS.
Senior Class Size
803
CDE grade 12 (exact)
Total School Enrollment
3,403
All grades · CDE Census Day
Economic Connectedness
0.83
31st percentile in CA · cross‑class friendships

Pittsburg High School — Enrollment & Outcomes Snapshot

Public · Pittsburg · vs. 10 most similar nearby schools

  • On UC Reach, Pittsburg High School sits in the middle of its similar-school group (ranked #6 of 11): 15% vs. a peer median of 20%.
  • Its UC Reach has risen 6 points since 2018.
  • Across the top-6 UC campuses, Pittsburg High School is admitting at roughly +6 percentage points above what its average applicant GPA (3.857) alone would predict (27% actual vs. 20% 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 20% (709→851 from 2018 to 2026), outpacing the peer-group median of -2%.
  • At its recent rate (-0.2%/yr), enrollment projects to ~3469 by 2029 — about 16 fewer students than today.

Enrollment projection

3485 students (2026)
~3469 projected (2029)
at -0.2%/yr

That's about 16 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
Pittsburg High School Public 3485 15.3% +20%
Peer-group median 19.9% -2%
Clayton Valley Charter High Public 2368 25.6% +24%
Heritage High School Public 2629 14.2% +3%
Liberty High Public 2799 9.8% +6%
Freedom High School Public 2439 11.1% -6%
Antioch High School Public 1581 4.8% +0%
Deer Valley High School Public 1777 5.3% -23%
Dougherty Valley High School Public 2872 63.1% -8%
College Park High School Public 1953 29.8% -4%
California High School Public 2796 46.5% +14%
Monte Vista High School Public 1999 47.1% -7%

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
3.86
Avg. Admitted GPA · top-6 UCs
4.19

Admit rate vs. CA peer average, by campus

How does this school's admit rate at each UC compare to other CA schools whose applicant pool averages the same GPA?

Campus Applicant GPA (avg) Actual admit rate CA peer avg Δ Verdict
UC Berkeley 3.88 14.0% 11.6% +2.3pp On target
UCLA 3.88 8.2% 9.0% -0.7pp On target
UC San Diego 3.84 39.4% 23.8% +15.7pp Over
UC Santa Barbara 3.89 49.0% 28.3% +20.7pp Over
UC Irvine 3.85 27.6% 21.3% +6.3pp Over
UC Davis 3.82 35.0% 32.0% +3.0pp On target
"Applicant GPA" is the average GPA of this school's UC applicant pool — not an individual student GPA. "CA peer avg" is the application-weighted statewide admit rate at this school-pool GPA, fit separately per campus. At any given pool GPA, real admit rates span widely (UCSD ranges 8% → 65% across CA schools) because UCs use comprehensive review — context-of-opportunity, geography, demographics, and applicant essays all weigh in beyond GPA. A large negative residual flags this school is admitted at a meaningfully lower rate than other CA schools at the same pool GPA — not that students here were "rejected at expected rate X." "Over" / "Under" use a ±5-point band. Campuses with fewer than 5 applicants are omitted.

Where Pittsburg High School sits vs. all California schools

Overall, this school admits its UC applicants 6.5 points above what their GPAs predict (27.0% actual vs. 20.5% 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 93 13 10 14.0% 1.6% 76.9% 3.88 4.22
UCLA → Elite 85 7 3 8.2% 0.9% 42.9% 3.88 4.30
UC San Diego → Selective 71 28 4 39.4% 3.5% 14.3% 3.84 4.17
UC Santa Barbara → Selective 49 24 4 49.0% 3.0% 16.7% 3.89 4.19
UC Irvine → Selective 58 16 27.6% 2.0% 3.85 4.16
UC Davis → 100 35 17 35.0% 4.4% 48.6% 3.82 4.18
⚠ 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 senior class applies to UC, indicating strong college-going culture and UC pipeline development.
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.
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 Contra Costa County rankings →

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