Lowell High

Lowell High is a public high school in San Francisco, serving grades 9–12 with 2,571 students. Its 2025–2026 proficiency results were 93% in English language arts (ELA), 87% in math, and 83% in science. The school led all seven nearby high schools with current results in each subject, and its scores were far above state and district averages—its clearest distinction.

Math is Lowell’s strongest relative subject: its proficiency was 49 percentage points above the state, 42 points above San Francisco Unified, and 62 points above the nearby-school average of 25%. Lowell’s advantages were also substantial in ELA and science: 44 and 47 points above the state, respectively, and 40 and 39 points above the district. One notable weakness within the school is the difference between grade-level science results: 12th-grade proficiency was 41%, compared with 85% in 11th grade. Still, the 12th-grade result exceeded the state’s 33%, the district’s 18%, and the 19% average among nearby schools with reported results.

Results have rebounded from a dip in 2023–2024: by 2025–2026, ELA had risen from 85% to 93%, math from 66% to 87%, and science from 63% to 83%. Across 2022–2023 to 2025–2026, ELA and science were nearly unchanged overall, while math increased from 83% to 87%; the state gap narrowed in ELA and science but widened slightly in math. SchoolDigger ranked Lowell 18th of 2,137 California schools, at the 99th percentile with five stars. In 2024–2025, its student-teacher ratio was 20.9, above the nearby-school average of 16.1, and 43% of students were free/reduced lunch eligible, compared with about 50% across nearby schools. One subgroup result stands out: SchoolDigger’s statewide ranking measure for how well the school serves African American students fell to the 40th percentile in 2024–2025, versus the school’s overall 98th percentile that year; the subgroup ranking had been at the 92nd and 81st percentiles in the two prior years. These subgroup figures do not establish the group’s current standing.