High Schools in Colusa Unified

The Colusa Unified school district operates two public high schools for grades 9-12: the comprehensive Colusa High and the smaller Colusa Alternative High (Continuation), which serves students needing a different educational setting.

Colusa High is the district's stronger academic performer, with a 94% graduation rate and English scores above the state average. However, it struggles in math and science. In contrast, Colusa Alternative High faces significant challenges, including very high chronic absenteeism and much lower academic proficiency, but it successfully graduates about 81% of its at-risk students.

Key takeaways for parents are that the main high school provides a solid path to graduation with particular strength in English, while the alternative school plays a critical, specialized role. Mathematics performance is a concern across both schools. The higher spending per student at the alternative school reflects the additional resources needed to support its students, who show meaningful improvement over time despite facing greater obstacles.