Valdez High School

Valdez High School is a small public high school in Valdez, Alaska, serving about 175 students in grades 9 through 12 within the Valdez City School District. With no nearby schools within 20 miles for comparison, the most useful benchmarks are Alaska statewide averages and the district itself. The Valdez City School District ranks 3rd of 23 Alaska districts with a 5-star rating, while Valdez High School currently holds a 3-star rating and sits in the 66th percentile of Alaska high schools.

Science is the school's standout subject. Proficiency on the Alaska Science Assessment reached 61% in 2025-2026, compared with about 38% statewide. The school also serves specific groups of students well: female students ranked 3rd of 46 Alaska high schools, a striking jump from the 36th percentile just two years earlier, and low-income students, who make up roughly one-third of enrollment, consistently land around the 76th–77th percentile relative to similar students across the state. Graduation rates have generally been healthy, averaging about 87% over five years and typically exceeding the district average. Small class sizes of roughly 12 students per teacher and per-pupil spending near $22,000 point to favorable learning conditions.

The clearest concern is English language arts: 9th-grade ELA proficiency fell to about 21% in 2025-2026 versus 31% statewide, although the school posted a strong 45% ELA rate the prior year, suggesting an especially challenging individual cohort may be driving the drop rather than a persistent problem. Math is mixed — 9th-grade math beat the state rate (28% vs. 18%) but lagged the district's 48% all-grades figure, indicating that younger grades in the district are especially strong. Valdez High School has also been volatile over time, swinging from the 82nd percentile to the 27th and back over the past decade — a common pattern in small schools where a handful of students can shift results dramatically. Male student performance has slipped from the 77th to 50th percentile relative to statewide peers in recent years, another trend worth monitoring. Overall, Valdez High is a solid mid-to-upper-tier school capable of outstanding results, particularly in science and for female and low-income students.