High Schools in Azusa Unified

Azusa Unified has two high schools serving grades 9–12: Azusa High enrolls 1,609 students, and Sierra High enrolls 119. In 2025–2026, both schools were below state proficiency rates in English language arts (ELA), mathematics, and science. The most important finding is that Azusa leads Sierra substantially in all three subjects, but neither school reaches the state rate in any of them.

Azusa High stands out academically within the area: its proficiency was 45% in ELA, 18% in mathematics, and 26% in science, compared with 17%, 0%, and 1% at Sierra High. The schools’ gaps were 28 percentage points in ELA, 18 in mathematics, and 25 in science. Still, Azusa was below state rates by 5 points in ELA, 20 in mathematics, and 10 in science; Sierra was below by 33, 38, and 35 points. Graduation rates were comparatively strong at both schools: 93.2% at Azusa and 92.5% at Sierra, versus 87.9% statewide. Attendance is a concern, especially at Sierra, where chronic absenteeism was 74%, compared with 31% at Azusa and 18% statewide.

Recent proficiency trends offer a mixed picture, but the schools’ relative positions remain clear. From 2024–2025 to 2025–2026, Azusa’s ELA and science results fell by about 3 and 1 percentage points, while mathematics rose by about 1; Sierra’s ELA and science fell by about 4 and 2 points, while mathematics was unchanged. SchoolDigger rankings also declined over the three years reported: Azusa moved from the 66th to the 40th percentile, and Sierra from the 21st to the 6th. Context differs between the schools, too: Azusa’s student–teacher ratio is 20.5, compared with Sierra’s 7.7. For 2024–2025, free/reduced lunch eligible was reported for 89% of Azusa students and 94% of Sierra students. These figures describe differences, but do not explain them.