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Pierce High

Q: Is Pierce High a good school?

Pierce High ranks 634 th of 2162 California high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

634^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,162 California High Schools

Better than 71% of California high schools

Summary

Pierce High is a public high school serving 463 students in grades 9-12 in Arbuckle, CA, and it has recently transformed into a standout 4-star school with remarkable improvements across the board.

The school's most impressive achievement is its dramatic rise in statewide ranking, jumping from the 46th to the 71st percentile in just one year, which includes soaring proficiency in English and Science and a near-perfect 97.5% graduation rate. This success is particularly notable because the school effectively supports a student population where over three-quarters qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, outperforming many nearby schools like Colusa High and Williams Junior/Senior High. Students are also highly engaged, with chronic absenteeism at just 10.5%, far better than the state average and a sign of a positive school environment.

While Pierce High excels in many areas, mathematics remains a key challenge, with proficiency below the state average—a common issue among regional schools, though it still performs better than several neighbors. The school achieves these strong outcomes within the Pierce Joint Unified district with efficient per-student spending, comparable to Sutter Union High. Overall, Pierce High is a rapidly improving school that delivers exceptional results for its community.

463

Students ?

17.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,118

Per pupil spending ?

76%

Free/discounted lunch ?

960 Wildwood Rd.
Arbuckle, CA 95912-9714

(530) 476-2277

District: Pierce Joint Unified

Feeder schools for Pierce High:

Elementary:	Arbuckle Elementary
	Grand Island Elementary
Middle:	Lloyd G. Johnson Junior High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

82.3%

White:

14.0%

African American:

1.3%

See top rated California high schools

Compare Pierce High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 71st percentile in 2013 → 71st in 2025

Strengths

✓98% graduate in 4 years — above the California average (88%)

✓Above the California median (71st percentile)

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Mathematics scores 16 pts below the California average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school44%

District avg35%

California avg41%

634^th of 2,162

California public high schools ?

Top 29%▲ up 26 pts since 2015

From bottom 45% (2015) to top 29% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

706^th of 1,543Pierce Joint Unified among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	68.1	634 of 2162	70.7%	★★★★☆
2024	43.6	1159 of 2159	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.0	1342 of 2170	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.4	1297 of 2123	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	52.0	933 of 2133	56.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	54.3	925 of 2017	54.1%	★★★☆☆
2017	50.9	1005 of 2021	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2016	36.8	1242 of 2039	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2015	43.6	1100 of 1994	44.8%	★★☆☆☆
2013	53.4	701 of 2426	71.1%	★★★★☆
2012	56.7	632 of 2354	73.2%	★★★★☆
2011	59.6	529 of 2367	77.7%	★★★★☆
2010	63.0	442 of 2281	80.6%	★★★★☆
2009	60.8	451 of 2238	79.8%	★★★★☆
2008	45.9	770 of 2117	63.6%	★★★☆☆
2007	42.7	804 of 2063	61.0%	★★★☆☆
2006	47.3	685 of 1968	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2005	42.9	737 of 1901	61.2%	★★★☆☆
2004	33.0	861 of 1653	47.9%	★★☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2022	19.4	1096 of 1161	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	17.2	1096 of 1117	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	37.1	659 of 1085	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.1	607 of 1064	43.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	27.1	945 of 1044	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	75.2	441 of 1906	76.9%	★★★★☆
2024	38.2	1163 of 1915	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	46.0	978 of 1915	48.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	39.4	1069 of 1858	42.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	50.2	845 of 1833	53.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	58.0	756 of 1760	57.0%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	72.6	440 of 1900	76.8%	★★★★☆
2024	42.1	1104 of 1902	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.2	1345 of 1917	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.7	1274 of 1861	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2019	49.0	905 of 1814	50.1%	★★★☆☆
2018	57.0	755 of 1742	56.7%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	76.9	398 of 2013	80.2%	★★★★☆
2024	44.2	1094 of 2026	46.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.3	1381 of 2030	32.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.7	1232 of 1943	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2019	50.3	923 of 1937	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	56.8	797 of 1862	57.2%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	55.6	817 of 1942	57.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	44.3	1005 of 1948	48.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	23.9	1464 of 1963	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.3	1304 of 1916	31.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	46.1	954 of 1880	49.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	48.4	947 of 1834	48.4%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	45.6	552 of 1252	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2024	19.3	1101 of 1216	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.0	1120 of 1197	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	74.8	278 of 1155	75.9%	★★★★☆
2024	68.7	364 of 1173	69.0%	★★★☆☆
2023	52.2	573 of 1193	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	39.2	731 of 1204	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	59.1	499 of 1222	59.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	52.6	626 of 1173	46.6%	★★☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)80th percentile+10 vs school

Female (2025)77th percentile+6 vs school

Hispanic (2025)77th percentile+6 vs school

White (2025)76th percentile+5 vs school

Male (2025)58th percentile-13 vs school

Special Education (2025)56th percentile-15 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)39th percentile-7 vs school

Disabled (2022)6th percentile-33 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy64%+15 vs state

Science48%+15 vs state

Mathematics21%-16 vs state

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a student
Friday, August 24, 2012

This school is awesome the sports are cool. Close Quote

Schools Near Pierce High

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)				Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)				Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science 10th Grade	CAST Science 11th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 11th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	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
Pierce High	Public	9-12	960 Wildwood Rd.	Arbuckle	95912	Colusa County	Pierce Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 476-2277	463	27	17.3	76.0%	65 (14.0%)	6 (1.3%)	381 (82.3%)	5 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	5 (1.1%)	68.1	634^th of 2162 public high schools	70.7%		43.6	1159^th of 2159 public high schools	46.3%	525			47.5	47.5			63.9	63.9			21.0	21.0	$14,118	$1,896	$12,222
Arbuckle Alternative High (Continuation)	Public	9-12	966 Wildwood Rd.	Arbuckle	95912	Colusa County	Pierce Joint Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 476-2173	10	1	13.3	70.0%	1 (10.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (90.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)													$37,294	$1,612	$35,682
S. William Abel Academy	Public	7-12	499 Margurite St.	Williams	95987	Colusa County	Colusa County Office of Education	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 473-1350	43	2	19.1	81.4%	6 (14.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (69.8%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (9.3%)	1 (2.3%)	2 (4.7%)								(n/a)								23.1				0.0	$37,304	$00	$37,304
Mid Valley High (Continuation)	Public	10-12	1105 D St.	Williams	95987	Colusa County	Williams Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 473-5369	19	1	19.1	84.2%	3 (15.8%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (84.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)													$17,155	$702	$16,453
Williams Junior/Senior High	Public	7-12	260 11th St.	Williams	95987	Colusa County	Williams Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 473-5369	588	29	20.3	92.2%	15 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	564 (95.9%)	6 (1.0%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	20.9	1676^th of 2162 public high schools	22.5%		36.5	1329^th of 2159 public high schools	38.4%	347	10.6		6.3	8.7	34.2	41.2	36.1	37.2	14.5	14.1	4.6	10.9	$14,737	$1,074	$13,663
Colusa High	Public	9-12	901 Colus Ave.	Colusa	95932	Colusa County	Colusa Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 458-2156	431	22	20.0	66.1%	76 (17.6%)	3 (0.7%)	325 (75.4%)	5 (1.2%)	11 (2.6%)	3 (0.7%)	8 (1.9%)	38.9	1294^th of 2162 public high schools	40.1%		39.3	1258^th of 2159 public high schools	41.7%	36			14.2	14.0			55.1	55.1			14.0	14.0	$16,936	$4,399	$12,537
Colusa Alternative High (Continuation)	Public	9-12	901 Colus Ave.	Colusa	95932	Colusa County	Colusa Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 458-2156	27	1	27.0	77.8%	5 (18.5%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (77.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (3.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12.8	1885^th of 2162 public high schools	12.8%					(n/a)							0.0	0.0			9.1	9.1	$18,820	$8,502	$10,318
Butte View High	Public	9-12	2665 Acacia St.	Sutter	95982	Sutter County	Sutter Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 822-5161	26	2	15.9	53.8%	15 (57.7%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (34.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (7.7%)								(n/a)				0.0									$14,486	$455	$14,031
Sutter Union High	Public	9-12	2665 Acacia St.	Sutter	95982	Sutter County	Sutter Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 822-5161	734	35	21.1	25.3%	450 (61.3%)	2 (0.3%)	196 (26.7%)	29 (4.0%)	6 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	51 (6.9%)	53.9	951^st of 2162 public high schools	56.0%		51.8	962^nd of 2159 public high schools	55.4%	11			26.8	27.7			52.2	52.2			26.9	26.9	$14,486	$455	$14,031
Maxwell Senior High	Public	9-12	515 Oak St.	Maxwell	95955	Colusa County	Maxwell Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(530) 438-2291	117	11	11.0	71.8%	43 (36.8%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (61.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	47.1	1096^th of 2162 public high schools	49.3%		60.9	748^th of 2159 public high schools	65.4%	348		41.7		40.0			37.1	37.1			17.1	17.1	$21,250	$1,340	$19,910

Frequently Asked Questions about Pierce High

What schools feed into Pierce High?

Pierce High is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Arbuckle Elementary
Elementary : Grand Island Elementary
Middle : Lloyd G. Johnson Junior High

Is Pierce High a good school?

Pierce High ranks 634^th of 2162 California high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Pierce High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 463 students attended Pierce High.

What is the racial makeup of Pierce High?

Students at Pierce High are 82% Hispanic, 14% White, 1% African American, 1% Asian, 1% Two or more races.

What district is Pierce High in?

Pierce Joint Unified

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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.