Summary:
ZIP code 93263 has two public high schools serving grades 9–12: Shafter High, a comprehensive school with 1,599 students, and Central Valley High (Continuation), a continuation school with 86 students. The most important finding is that Shafter leads in every comparable proficiency subject, but both schools fall short of state proficiency rates.
Shafter High stands out relative to Central Valley High (Continuation): in 2025–2026, Shafter had 38% proficient in ELA versus 7% at Central Valley, an approximately 31-point lead; in math, 8% versus 0%, an 8-point gap; and in science, 13% versus 2%, a 12-point gap. Shafter’s 95% graduation rate was 16 points higher than Central Valley’s 79%, while its dropout rate was 3% versus 17%. Central Valley’s 52% chronic-absenteeism rate was also much higher than Shafter’s 21%. Shafter’s graduation and dropout results were better than state rates, but its proficiency remained below state levels in all three subjects, and its absenteeism was slightly higher than the state’s 18%.
Recent proficiency trends offer a caution: the schools’ average ELA result fell from 30% in 2024–2025 to 23% in 2025–2026, and average math fell from 5% to 4%; the corresponding state gaps widened by 8 and 2 points. Shafter’s ELA fell 11 points and math fell 2, while Central Valley’s ELA fell 4 points and its math stayed at 0%. SchoolDigger’s statewide percentile declined from 42 to 26 for Shafter and from 7 to 4 for Central Valley. In 2024–2025, Central Valley had a lower student–teacher ratio, 12.9 versus 21.6, and higher free/reduced lunch eligibility, 97% versus 88%. These are contextual differences, not explanations for the schools’ results.
Thank you for your feedback!