Water Canyon High

Water Canyon High is a small public school in Hildale, Utah, serving 311 students in grades 7–12 within the rural Washington County area. The school has a 3-star rating and ranks 68th out of 139 Utah schools, placing it near the middle statewide. There are no other schools within 20 miles, so the most useful comparisons are with Washington District and Utah overall.

Recent completion results are encouraging but still below comparison benchmarks. The graduation rate rose sharply to 85.0% in 2024–25, compared with 93.1% in the district and 89.8% statewide. The dropout rate also improved to 15.0%, but it remains much higher than the district’s 4.1% and Utah’s 8.5%. Chronic absenteeism was 22.8%—slightly better than the statewide 23.8%, but higher than the district’s 15.4%. These results suggest that helping students attend regularly, stay engaged, and complete credits remains an important priority. Because the school is relatively small, individual graduating classes may also cause noticeable year-to-year changes.

Academically, mathematics is the clearest weakness. Grade 9 math proficiency was 27.1%, below both the district’s 47.7% and the state’s 39.4%; grade 10 math was reported as 20–39% proficient. English language arts is generally stronger, with grade 9 at 47% versus 45.4% statewide, while grade 10 was reported at 50–68%. Grade 9 science is a relative bright spot at 56.3%, above Utah’s 49.7% though below the district’s 63.5%. The student-teacher ratio has improved to 16:1, and 60.45% of students received free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–25, indicating substantial economic need. Overall, the school shows meaningful recent progress, but sustaining graduation gains while reducing dropouts and strengthening high school math will be key.