Best Public Schools in Zip Code 96104

The 96104 zip code is home to two schools: Surprise Valley High and Surprise Valley Elementary, both part of the Surprise Valley Joint Unified school district. While Surprise Valley Elementary has consistently performed well, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger, Surprise Valley High has struggled, ranking in the bottom half of California high schools and earning only 2 stars in recent years.

Surprise Valley Elementary outperforms Surprise Valley High across multiple metrics, including test scores, graduation rates, and chronic absenteeism. The elementary school outperformed the district in English Language Arts proficiency, though it still lags behind the state average. In contrast, Surprise Valley High underperformed the district and the state in both English Language Arts and Mathematics proficiency on the Smarter Balanced Assessments. The high school also had an 86.4% four-year graduation rate and an 8.9% dropout rate in the 2023-2024 school year.

Despite the higher per-student spending and lower student-teacher ratio at Surprise Valley High, the resources do not appear to be translating into better academic outcomes. Both schools serve a high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the community faces significant socioeconomic challenges that may be impacting student performance. The declining performance at Surprise Valley High over the past few years is a concerning trend that warrants further investigation to understand the underlying causes and implement targeted interventions to support student success.