High Schools in Selma Unified

The four high schools in Selma Unified enroll 1,907 students: Selma High serves grades 9–12, and Heartland High (Continuation), Selma Independent, and STRIVE Academy serve grades 7–12. The schools vary greatly in size, from 1,721 students at Selma High to 9 at STRIVE. The clearest overall finding is that reported achievement differs sharply by school: Selma High leads, while even its results are below state levels in some subjects.

Selma High is the strongest reported school in 2025–26, with 56% proficient in ELA, 33% in math, and 22% in science; its lead over the next-highest reported school was 46, 28, and 8 percentage points, respectively. Its scores were above state results in all-grades ELA (49%) but below them in math (38%) and science (36%). Heartland had the lowest ELA score at 8%, while Selma Independent had the lowest math and science scores, both 0%. Selma High also had the highest graduation rate (98%) and lowest dropout rate (2%). Attendance is a marked concern at Heartland and Independent, where chronic absenteeism was 66% and 77%, compared with 18% statewide.

Achievement trends are mixed: the three schools with scores in both years averaged a 6-point ELA decline, while math improved 2 points and science 3 points; their 2025–26 averages remained 24 to 26 points below state results. SchoolDigger’s 2025–26 statewide percentile rankings also varied: 54th for Selma High, 15th for Heartland, and 3rd for Independent. The schools’ 2024–25 free/reduced lunch eligible shares ranged from 67% at STRIVE to 95% at Heartland; student-teacher ratios ranged from 8.8 at STRIVE to 19.4 at Selma High. STRIVE has no numerical test scores reported, and its enrollment is just 9 students, so its 0% chronic absenteeism rate should be viewed in that context.