Polaris High School

Anaheim · Orange County · Anaheim Union High · Public

Public Orange County Anaheim Union High → ~273 seniors CDS 3066431…

Data Year

Compare with peers

Most similar nearby schools

Samueli Academy → Magnolia Science Academy-Santa Ana → Middle College High School → Gretchen Whitney High School → Ocean View High School → Compare all similar →

13 AP courses Top 1% Attendance (lowest chronic absenteeism) in CA Top 2 Attendance (lowest chronic absenteeism) in Orange

At a glance

Programs & features

13 AP courses offered — Elite
Dual-enrollment program (college credit while in HS)
Gifted & talented program

Academic signals

AP rigor: 68th percentile nationally
SAT/ACT participation: Bottom 4% by test-taker volume
4-yr grad rate: 42% in 2019 (Bottom 8% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate)

Composed from federal CRDC offerings, EDFacts graduation data, and other public data. Full breakdowns below.

California College-Going Rate

37.9% of the 2022-23 graduating class enrolled in college within a year.

The share of 2022-23 graduates who enrolled at a college anywhere in the U.S. within 12 months, per the National Student Clearinghouse match the California Department of Education publishes.

Within 12 months

37.9%

of 272 graduates

Give the same class four more months and 42.6% had enrolled — CDE publishes a 16-month window alongside the 12-month one, 116 students.

Up 2.8 points from the 2021-22 class (35.1%).

Where the 2022-23 class enrolled

In California — 99 students (36.4%)

University of California 0.7% 2

California State University 2.6% 7

California Community College 29.4% 80

California private college 3.7% 10

Out of state — 4 students (1.5%)

Out-of-state 4-year 1.1% 3

Out-of-state 2-year 0.4% 1

CDE puts each graduate in one bucket only — whichever kind of college they were enrolled in longest — so these add up to the rate above. That is a different count from the UC Reach Score on this page, which counts a student at every UC campus that admitted them.

Source: California Department of Education, College-Going Rate (DataQuest) ↗, cohort 2022-23, posted 17-Sep-2025. Data file: cgr12mo23.txt ↗ (and the 16-month file ↗). CDE builds the rate by matching California high school completers to National Student Clearinghouse enrollment records; we publish CDE’s aggregates and hold no student-level data.

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How Polaris High School compares for families

Stronger-than-average college-prep profile.

▸ StatewideAP rigor at the 68th percentile nationally with 13 AP courses.
▸ Locally🎯 Top 1% in California on Attendance (lowest chronic absenteeism) — plus 1 more top-rank.
▸ vs Similar SchoolsThe closest comparables nearby: Samueli Academy, Magnolia Science Academy-Santa Ana, Middle College High and 2 more. See the sidebar to compare side-by-side.

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Academic rigor

AP + advanced-course offerings

Elite — exceptional AP + advanced course breadth

68th percentile nationally

Less rigorMore rigorMost rigor

AP courses offered

Subject breadth not reported

Advanced math classes

0 calculus · 3 advanced

Lab science classes

1 physics · 4 chemistry

Other rigor signals

Dual-enrollment program
Gifted/talented program

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). CRDC reports what's offered + enrolled — it doesn't collect AP exam pass rates (College Board owns that data and doesn't release it school-level).

SAT / ACT participation

CRDC federal data · 2020-21

Bottom 4% by test-taker volume

SAT/ACT test-takers

11th-12th graders who took 1+ college admissions test

Test-taking intensity

0.3

takers per 100 students in grades 9-12

Compared against

18,426

US high schools reporting SAT/ACT participation

Source: federal Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC 2020-21). Volume — not score — is what's reported here. A higher count means more students at this school are entering the college admissions pipeline. Note: 2020-21 was COVID-disrupted; some districts (especially those that stayed remote longer) report unusually low or zero takers.

4-year graduation rate · federal EDFacts

What % of students graduate on time?

Bottom 8% of US high schools by 4-yr grad rate

4-year graduation rate

42%

Range: 40–44%

4-year cohort size

Students in the 9th-grade entry class tracked over 4 years

Compared against

17,988

US high schools reporting 4-year ACGR

Source: federal EDFacts ACGR (Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate), 2019 vintage via Urban Institute. EDFacts publishes a range (low-high) to preserve privacy on small cohorts; we display the midpoint.

Federal Title I context

High-poverty school

Title I Schoolwide eligible

88.0%

FRPL rate — % of students who qualify for the federal Free or Reduced-Price Lunch program. This is the underlying federal income-eligibility signal Title I designations are computed from (ESEA Sec. 1113).

0% (no FRPL) 35% TA · 40% Schoolwide 100% (universal FRPL)

≥75% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. These schools qualify for the highest tier of federal Title I funding and typically receive extra wraparound services. Academic outcomes vary widely — check the state assessment + grad-rate tiles.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data, free/reduced-price lunch eligibility. The actual Title I designation is a district decision and may differ from eligibility — but the federal eligibility math is what we show here. We don't claim to assert whether the district formally chose to enroll this school in Title I.

SBAC academic outcomes — grade 11, 2025

Share of grade-11 students meeting or exceeding the California standard on Smarter Balanced ELA and Math. This is the academic-readiness signal that pairs with UC Reach (post-grad outcomes), stability (retention), and absenteeism (engagement). Note: statewide median Math is only ~20% — a school at 20% isn't an outlier; one at 45%+ genuinely is.

About 1 in 5 students read and write at grade level — below the state norm — worth asking what extra support looks like.

Fewer than 1 in 10 students do math at grade level — below the state norm — worth asking what extra support looks like.

ELA — met or exceeded

n = 169

19.5%

incl. 5.9% exceeded

-44.6 pts vs. Orange County median (64.1%) · CA median 54.5% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 79.4%

Math — met or exceeded

n = 166

7.8%

incl. 4.2% exceeded

-29.2 pts vs. Orange County median (37.0%) · CA median 21.4% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 53.6%

Source: California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) Smarter Balanced research files. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥30 tested students.

Student composition — 2025-26

HS grades 9–12 racial/ethnic composition and program subgroups, from CDE Census Day Enrollment. Two-year shift shown when ≥1 pt — surfaces how the community served has changed since 2023-24.

Race / ethnicity

Hispanic / Latino 81% -1.2

White 8%

Asian 4%

Black / African Am. 2%

Two or more 2%

Filipino 2%

American Indian 1%

Program subgroups

Socioeconomically disadv. 85% +3.2

English learners 32% +12.6

Students w/ disabilities 6% +3.9

Homeless 5% +2.4

Source: California Department of Education, Census Day Enrollment 2025-26 (HS grades 9–12). Δ shown when shift is ≥1 pt since 2023-24. Categories below 0.5% omitted.

Chronic absenteeism — 2024-25

Share of students missing 10% or more of expected attendance — the leading indicator that often precedes the demand decline shown above. Families disengaging tend to raise absenteeism first, then formally leave. Basis: grades 9–12.

Kids show up: 0% are chronically absent versus about 23% statewide — engagement most schools would envy.

Chronic absent

0.0%

0 of 869 students

Low and stable absenteeism — students are engaged and showing up. The leading indicator is healthy.

Orange County median

17.8% · school is better than 100% of 95 HS

Statewide median

22.8%

Chronic absenteeism by year (raw %)

Source: California Department of Education, Chronic Absenteeism 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 eligible students. CDE didn't publish a usable 2019-20 file (COVID).

Enrollment trend & projection

Total enrollment (9–12)

132 (2018) → 727 (2026)

+450.8%

Grade 12 (graduating class)

55 (2018) → 433 (2026)

+687.3%

How does Polaris High School really compare on getting kids to college?

Unlock a head-to-head snapshot of Polaris High School against its 10 most similar nearby schools — matched on size, location, type. See exactly where it stands on the college pipeline.

The full head-to-head table — every peer school's UC Reach, side by side.

Enrollment trend + 3-year projection — is this school growing or quietly shrinking?

The plain-English read on what it all means for your family.

Your similar-school group includes

Samueli Academy · Magnolia Science Academy-Santa Ana · Middle College High · Gretchen Whitney High School · Ocean View High School · Gilbert High (continuation) · +4 more

Enrollment stability & demand — 2024-25

Two complementary signals: retention (do students stay once enrolled?) and demand (are families choosing the school?). Read against the Orange County baseline — the demographic tide is moving every CA HS, so a school's gap vs. county is the actionable signal.

54% of students who start the year finish it here — more churn than most CA schools. Ask what's behind the turnover.

Mixed signal

Demand outpacing county is masking internal churn.

Enrollment growth is beating Orange County (+687.3% vs. -6.0%), but 415 of 898 students didn't maintain continuous enrollment. Why are families leaving once enrolled?

+687.3% senior class, grade 12 (2018–2026)

-6.0% Orange County baseline

+693.3pp gap vs. county

53.8% retention (county median 91.8%)

Senior class (grade 12) — indexed to 100 at 2018

Stability rate by year (raw %)

Stability rate

53.8%

483 of 898 students

415 of 898 students who enrolled at Polaris High School this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (46.2% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.

Orange County median

91.8% · school is in the 18th percentile of 95 HS

Statewide median

87.3% · in the 19th percentile of 1,734 HS

Stability by student group

Socio. disadvantaged (836) 53.3%

Hispanic / Latino (757) 52.4%

English learners (275) 50.9%

White (80) 66.3%

Students w/ disabilities (71) 47.9%

Black / African Am. (23) 56.5%

Nearest peer high schools

Samueli Academy 94.9% Magnolia Science Academy-Santa Ana 97.9% Middle College High 98.0% Gretchen Whitney High School 99.6% Ocean View High School 90.8%

Source: California Department of Education, Stability Rate 2024-25. Benchmarks limited to non-virtual public & charter HS with ≥100 cumulative enrollees so by-design-high-churn continuation schools don't dominate the bottom of the distribution. Cumulative enrollment counts every student on the rolls during the year, so it can exceed peak-day enrollment.

District financial profile — Anaheim Union High (FY2020)

From 4 years of NCES F-33 filings (the federally-mandated district finance survey). Public schools don't have their own books — the district does. These figures show the financial scale, revenue dependence, instruction-vs-overhead mix, and long-term debt that shape what a school can sustain.

Total revenue

$532.8M

+23.4% since FY2017

Per-pupil revenue

$18,257

29,183 students enrolled

Revenue mix

State: 57.8%
Local: 29.4%
Federal: 12.8%

Instruction share

62.2%

of current spending · $9,494/pupil

Long-term debt

$308.1M

+28.8% since FY2017

Total revenue by year ($M)

Total expenditure by year ($M)

Source: NCES F-33 Annual Survey of School System Finances (Urban Institute Education Data API). Latest year currently published: FY2020. F-33 is a district-level federal filing — it reflects the Anaheim Union High as a whole, not this individual school's books. Revenue mix shows where the district's dollars come from (state aid dominates in CA via LCFF). Instruction share is current expenditure on instruction ÷ total current expenditure (national benchmark ~60%). Long-term debt is end-of-year outstanding (mostly facilities bonds).

UC Reach Score ⓘ methodology

UC Application Reach Score ⓘ

25 applications

In context: CA median 76 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 223 · Orange Co. Top 10% ≥ 261 · higher than 1% of CA HS.

UC Admit Rate ⓘ

N/A

— / 25 applications

UC Yield Rate ⓘ

N/A

— enrolled of — admitted

Yield vs. Enrollment Reach: Yield answers "of UC admits, what % chose UC?" — denominator is just the admits. A small admitted cohort can post a low yield even when the school sends a healthy share of its class to UC.

UC Enrollment Reach Score ⓘ

N/A

— enrollees / 273 seniors

Enrollment Reach vs. Yield: Reach answers "of the whole senior class, what share ended up at UC?" — denominator is everyone. High Yield with low Enrollment Reach is common at elite privates: most admits matriculate, but the school sends most of its class to non-UC selective colleges.

Student-Counselor Ratio ⓘ

Each counselor juggles about 364 students — above the level experts recommend. Ask how junior-year college advising is handled.

364:1

2.0 FTE counselors · 727 students

In context: CA median 337:1 · ASCA target 250:1.

A-G Completion ⓘ

Only 1 in 4 graduates finish the courses UC and CSU require — below the state norm. Worth asking how course access and planning work here.

23%

92 of 402 graduates · 2024-25 cohort

In context: CA median 55.9% · -33.0 pp vs. median · Orange Co. 60.5%.

Selective UC Reach (UCB, UCLA, UCSD, UCSB, UCI — incl. the Elite two) ⓘ

N/A

Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA) ⓘ

N/A

Senior Class Size ⓘ

273

CDE grade 12 (exact)

Total School Enrollment ⓘ

609

All grades · CDE Census Day

Avg. Applicant GPA · top-6 UCs ⓘ

3.75

Campus Breakdown — 2022

Campus	Applicants	Admits	Enrollees	Admit Rate	UC Reach Score	Yield	Avg GPA (App)	Avg GPA (Adm)
UCLA → Elite	6	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	3.75	—^†
UC San Diego → Selective	7	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	3.72	—^†
UC Irvine → Selective	7	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	3.79	—^†
UC Davis →	5	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	3.74	—^†

† = UCOP-suppressed (count below 3 students, hidden for privacy — actual value is 0, 1, or 2, not necessarily zero). Campus-level totals may count one student admitted to multiple UC campuses more than once; Admit Volume metrics are not the same as UC Reach, which is measured against the whole senior class. See methodology →

What This Means

A relatively small share of the senior class is entering the UC application pipeline. This may signal limited A-G completion, UC awareness gaps, or counseling capacity constraints. Broadening access is the highest-leverage opportunity for this school.

Note: the UC Reach Score sums campus-level admits across the top-six UC campuses, so a student admitted to both UCLA and UCSD is counted at each. It reflects competitive admit volume relative to class size — admit-events, not distinct students — which is why a Score can exceed 100.

Compare with other schools → See Orange County rankings →

For School Admins

The full Reach Report for Polaris High School

A board- and LCAP-ready intelligence brief: your enrollment retention and college outcomes, benchmarked against your closest competitors, with a 5-year forecast, concrete steps to act on, and the rigor + outcomes story you can share with your families. Built from primary public data — prepared for you, not auto-generated.

✓Student-retention benchmarking vs your county median — and the LCAP evidence to back your goals

See a sample report →