By Haddon Libby
US News and World Report ranks schools across the United States. Like a school test, the best score is 100. Most of the scoring relates to factors necessary to prepare the student for higher education. The score considers things like the graduation rate of freshmen and standardized testing results. Numbers are skewed to boost scores for schools with high minority or economically disadvantaged families.
The best high school in Riverside County is also the best for the state and 10th best in the country. With 250 students, it is the Riverside Stem Academy with an overall score of 99.94/100 and a 100% graduation rate. 96% of its students are proficient at math, 97% at science and 100% at reading. 75% of its students are from minority families with nearly half being economically disadvantaged.
The Coachella Valley has three school districts: Palm Springs Unified School Districts (USD), Desert Sands USD and Coachella Valley USD
Looking at the Palm Springs USD, the highest rated school is Palm Springs High School (HS) with a 95% graduation rate and an overall score of 86/100. It is ranked as the 16th best high school in the County. All of this is impressive given that all but 3% of their students come from economically disadvantaged families. While these numbers look good, a deeper look shows that just 24% are proficient at math, 26% at science and 62% at reading.
Of the 1,652 high schools that US News rates in California, Palm Springs HS ranks in the 30th percentile for college preparedness amongst schools in the state and 20% nationally. This means that 7 in 10 high schools in the state do a better job at preparing their students for higher education. It also means that the best high school in the district performs worse than 4 in 5 schools nationally. Stated differently, most of the school’s graduates are not prepared to go to a college or university.
The second rated school in the district is Cathedral City H.S. with 92% graduating. Like Palm Springs, all but 2% of students are economically disadvantaged with 94% from minority families. 22% of students are proficient at math, 25% at science and 58% for reading. This results in a 78/100 overall score for the school
Rancho Mirage H.S. gets 67/100 with 97% of students coming from economically disadvantaged families. Just 14% are proficient at math, 13% science and 53% at reading.
Desert Hot Springs HS gets a 34/100 score with 10% of its students proficient at math and science.
Looking at the Desert Sands USD, Palm Desert HS receives the top overall score at 88/100 and is the 15th highest rated school in the County. When it comes to college preparedness, the school is in the 24th percentile in California and 12th percentile nationally. 63% of students are of minority families with 57% of students economically disadvantaged. 37% are proficient at math, 39% at science and 73% at reading.
La Quinta HS has the highest graduation rate in the Valley at 97% yet lags with its overall score at 66/100. The core issue is poor proficiency levels with 22% for math, 23% for science and 48% for reading. 84% of students come from minority families with 74% economically disadvantaged.
Shadow Hills HS gets an overall score of 62/100 with just 11% proficient at math, 19% at science and 43% at reading. 77% are economically disadvantaged.
Indio receives a 38/100 with just 7% proficient at math and 11% at science.
The Coachella Valley Unified School District has high schools in Thermal and the Salton Sea. Desert Mirage HS has an overall score of 44/100 with just 8% of its students proficient at math or science and 31% at reading. Coachella Valley HS receives 35/100 while West Shores gets less than 25/100. Of West Shore students, just 2% are proficient at math and 5% at science.
The core issue of poor scores comes from the unique challenges of economically disadvantaged families. At the same time, those looking for a college preparatory experience are underserved due to the challenges presented with so many students who are not proficient at the basics.
Our approach to education must change if we are to prepare our young people for the best futures possible.
Haddon Libby is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Winslow Drake Investment Management, a RIA firm. For more information on our services, please visit www.WinslowDrake.com
