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Taft Union High

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At a glance

859^thof 968 California districts▲ 302

Better than 11% of California districts

High 2Grades 9-12

701 Wildcat Way
Taft, CA 93268-2319·(661) 763-2300·All California district rankings →

Statewide performance 2018–2026

2026: better than 11.4% of districts

Schools

1,149

Students

Top rankedTaft Union High1221^st of 2,137 California high schools

▲

Biggest riser

Taft Union High up 37 spots statewide this year

Compare California districts →See the top-ranked California schools →

Summary:

The Taft Union High area includes two high schools serving grades 9–12: Taft Union High (1,064 students) and Buena Vista High (Continuation) (85 students). Both report results in English, math and science for 2025–2026. The most important difference is the wide academic gap between them: Taft Union reported 51% proficiency in English, 13% in math and 29% in science, while Buena Vista reported 0% in all three.

Taft Union leads the two-school group in every tested subject, but its results are mixed against state results: it was about 1 point above the state in English, 26 points below in math and 7 points below in science. Buena Vista stands out for a different contrast: despite 0% reported proficiency in all three subjects, its graduation rate was 97% and dropout rate 3%, compared with 88% and 8% statewide. Its chronic absenteeism was 59%, however, 40 points above the state rate.

Recent score changes also differ: from 2024–2025 to 2025–2026, Taft Union gained 2 points in math and 8 in science, while English fell by 1 point; Buena Vista fell to 0% in all three subjects, declines of 29 points in English, 5 in math and 10 in science. SchoolDigger ranks Taft Union 1,221st of 2,137 (43rd percentile, 2 stars) and Buena Vista 2,130th (0th percentile, 0 stars) for 2025–2026. For context, their student-teacher ratios are 18.3 and 16.3, respectively; their reported free/reduced lunch eligible measures for 2024–2025 are 82% and 94%. These differences provide context, but do not establish why results vary.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				CAST Science (2026)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2026)		Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 11th Grade	CAST Science 12th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Buena Vista High (Continuation)	Public	9-12	900 North 10th St.	Taft	93268	Kern County	Taft Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 763-2383	85	5	16.3	94.1%	26 (30.6%)	1 (1.2%)	53 (62.4%)	1 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.7%)	6.2	2130^th of 2137 public high schools	0.3%		19.4	1706^th of 2162 public high schools	21.1%	424	0.0		0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	$34,654	$33,430	$1,224
Taft Union High	Public	9-12	701 Wildcat Way	Taft	93268	Kern County	Taft Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(661) 763-2300	1,064	58	18.3	81.9%	377 (35.4%)	3 (0.3%)	656 (61.7%)	10 (0.9%)	2 (0.2%)	3 (0.3%)	13 (1.2%)	41.8	1221^st of 2137 public high schools	42.9%		40	1258^th of 2162 public high schools	41.8%	37	29.5		28.9	50.6	50.6	12.6	12.6	$29,096	$27,028	$2,068

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Taft City	0.42 mi	6
Midway Elementary	4.74 mi	1
Heartland Charter District	7.46 mi	1
Blue Ridge Academy District	7.47 mi	1
Maricopa Unified	7.47 mi	6	670^th

See the top CA California districts

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.