Beta You're viewing our redesigned school list. Prefer the classic layout?

Best Public Schools in Zip Code 95344

New rankings! SchoolDigger recently updated its California rankings with newly released test scores for the 2025-26 school year.

Be the first to know when we post new rankings!

At a glance

Schools

5,730

Students

Top rankedEl Capitan High1214^th of 2,135 California high schools

See the top-ranked California schools →

Summary:

ZIP code 95344 has four California high schools, all serving grades 9–12, in the Merced Union High district. Three schools have recent proficiency results; across those three, average math proficiency in 2025–2026 was 16%, compared with 38% statewide—a 23-point gap, making math the clearest area-wide concern.

El Capitan High led the schools with results in all three subjects: 48% in ELA, 19% in math and 26% in science. Its results were 1 point below the state in ELA, 20 points below in math and 10 points below in science. It led the next-highest school by 7 points in ELA, 3 in math and 4 in science. At the lower end, Merced High had the lowest ELA result (41.1%), while Golden Valley High had the lowest math (13%) and science (22.6%). Graduation rates were strong at all three—96% at Merced, 97% at Golden Valley and 99% at El Capitan, versus 88% statewide. Sequoia High stands out for chronic absenteeism: 88%, compared with 26%–28% at the other schools and 18% statewide.

Recent achievement changes were mixed: the three-school averages shifted from 45% to 44% in ELA, 15% to 16% in math and 23% to 24% in science between 2024–2025 and 2025–2026, while the average gaps to the state widened in each subject. SchoolDigger’s rankings also declined from 2023–2024 to 2025–2026: Merced from the 38th to the 35th percentile, Golden Valley from the 40th to the 33rd, and El Capitan from the 50th to the 43rd. The three similarly sized schools have student-teacher ratios of 21.1–22.5; their 2024–2025 free/reduced lunch eligible shares ranged from 76% at El Capitan to 85% at Golden Valley, observations that do not explain their score differences. Sequoia enrolls 77 students, far fewer than the other schools, and has no reported test results for comparison.

Load more schools when map is moved

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
Golden Valley High	Public	9-12	2121 East Childs Ave.	Merced	95344	Merced County	Merced Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 325-1800	1,917	90	21.3	85.1%	178 (9.3%)	96 (5.0%)	1,393 (72.7%)	182 (9.5%)	12 (0.6%)	4 (0.2%)	51 (2.7%)	33	1423^rd of 2135 public high schools	33.3%		36.4	1347^th of 2162 public high schools	37.7%	76	22.8		22.6	41.5	41.5	13.4	13.4	$25,089	$23,500	$1,589
Merced High	Public	9-12	205 West Olive Ave.	Merced	95344	Merced County	Merced Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 325-1000	1,943	86	22.5	79.4%	262 (13.5%)	107 (5.5%)	1,326 (68.2%)	142 (7.3%)	12 (0.6%)	7 (0.4%)	84 (4.3%)	34.4	1389^th of 2135 public high schools	34.9%		36	1358^th of 2162 public high schools	37.2%	31	23.1		22.8	41.1	41.1	15.6	15.6	$24,070	$22,352	$1,718
Sequoia High	Public	9-12	1900 G St.	Merced	95344	Merced County	Merced Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 325-1700	77	9	8.9	90.9%	10 (13.0%)	3 (3.9%)	63 (81.8%)	1 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
El Capitan High	Public	9-12	100 West Farmland	Merced	95344	Merced County	Merced Union High	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(209) 384-5500	1,793	85	21.1	76.2%	243 (13.6%)	89 (5.0%)	1,173 (65.4%)	226 (12.6%)	3 (0.2%)	7 (0.4%)	47 (2.6%)	42.2	1214^th of 2135 public high schools	43.1%		47.5	1085^th of 2162 public high schools	49.8%	129	26.6	18.2	26.3	48.3	48.3	18.5	18.5	$25,450	$23,858	$1,592

Cities Near Zip Code 95344

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Winton	0.38 mi	5	417^th
Atwater	0.88 mi	14	559^th
Livingston	4 mi	7	682^nd
Cressey	4.17 mi	1
Merced	5.33 mi	38	709^th

See the top CA California cities

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.