Sierra Academy Expedition Learning

Nevada City · Nevada County · Nevada Joint Union High · Public

Public Nevada County Nevada Joint Union High → ~41 seniors CDS 2966357…

Data Year

Compare with peers

Most similar nearby schools

William & Marian Ghidotti High → Forest Charter School → Bitney Prep High → Silver Springs High (continuation) → Foresthill High School → Compare all similar →

A parent's read

9 in 10 graduates leave eligible for UC and CSU. 87% finish the A-G courses California's universities require before a student can even apply — most California schools manage about 6 in 10.
One question for any counselor: who should still test? Plenty of strong students skip the SAT/ACT now — but merit scholarships at dozens of colleges still key off scores. Ask how the school decides who should still sit for one.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

Where grads go — and what it costs & pays

UC Reach Score

Below the CA median below the state median

Top-6 UC admits per 100 seniors in the Class of 2025 — counts each campus admit, so a student admitted to several UCs counts more than once (which is why a strong school can score over 100).

UC admits by campus · Class of 2025

UCSB

3 admitted

Net $16,109/yr avg

Grads earn $74,915 @10yr

UCD

3 admitted

Net $14,741/yr avg

Grads earn $80,838 @10yr

Getting in is step one. The cost above is the average aid-receiving family's net price — yours depends on whether you qualify for aid — and your child's odds depend on their GPA + scores. See your family's real numbers at these campuses:

Get my child's odds + our real costs →

Sources: UC Office of the President (admits); IPEDS net price + College Scorecard 10-yr earnings (cost & payoff). Full campus-by-campus breakdown below.

California College-Going Rate

39.4% 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

39.4%

of 33 graduates

Give the same class four more months and 45.5% had enrolled — CDE publishes a 16-month window alongside the 12-month one, 15 students.

Down 19.7 points from the 2021-22 class (59.1%).

Where the 2022-23 class enrolled

In California — 12 students (36.4%)

University of California 0.0% 0

California State University 3.0% 1

California Community College 33.3% 11

California private college 0.0% 0

Out of state — 1 students (3.0%)

Out-of-state 4-year 3.0% 1

Out-of-state 2-year 0.0% 0

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 Sierra Academy Expedition Learning compares for families

Mid-pack college outcomes within California.

▸ StatewideUC Reach Score of 15 — right around the California median of 19.
▸ vs Similar SchoolsBeats the peer median (UC Reach Score 15 vs a 6 median) across the 5 most similar nearby schools.

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Objective, government-grade data — no school pays us for placement.

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 4 in 10 students read and write at grade level — below the state norm — worth asking what extra support looks like.

About 1 in 10 students do math at grade level — about the state norm.

ELA — met or exceeded

n = 40

42.5%

incl. 20.0% exceeded

-8.8 pts vs. Nevada County median (51.3%) · CA median 54.5% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 79.4%

Math — met or exceeded

n = 42

11.9%

incl. 7.1% exceeded

-8.1 pts vs. Nevada County median (20.0%) · 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

White 67% -3.6

Hispanic / Latino 13% +1.4

Two or more 10%

Not reported 7% +2.3

American Indian 1%

Asian 1%

Pacific Islander 1%

Program subgroups

Socioeconomically disadv. 44% -10.5

Students w/ disabilities 6%

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.

22% of students are chronically absent — near the state norm of about 23%.

Chronic absent

22.0%

44 of 200 students

Absenteeism is down 4.6 pp since 2016-17. Engagement improving — a positive trajectory worth understanding and reinforcing.

Nevada County median

22.0% · school is worse than 43% of 7 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)

194 (2018) → 176 (2026)

-9.3%

Grade 12 (graduating class)

31 (2018) → 39 (2026)

+25.8%

If this trend holds (-0.4%/yr, Total enrollment)

At per-pupil funding of $ / student:

Horizon	Projected Total enrollment	Change	Funding impact / yr
1 yr (2027)	~175	-1	$0
3 yr (2029)	~174	-2	$0
5 yr (2031)	~173	-3	$0

Straight-line extrapolation of the recent annual rate — a what-if, not a forecast of intent. Default = California's LCFF base grant for grades 9–12 ($12,423/ADA). Edit the figure to match your school.

How does Sierra Academy Expedition Learning really compare on getting kids to college?

We've ranked it #1 of 3 most similar nearby schools on UC Reach. Unlock the full snapshot to see the head-to-head — who's ahead, by how much, and where it's heading.

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

William & Marian Ghidotti High · Forest Charter School · Bitney Prep High · Silver Springs High (continuation) · Foresthill High School · John Muir Charter · +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 Nevada County baseline — the demographic tide is moving every CA HS, so a school's gap vs. county is the actionable signal.

86% of students who start the year here finish it here.

Healthy

Best in class — winning on demand and retention.

Sierra Academy Expedition Learning outperformed Nevada County on enrollment (school +25.8% vs. county -40.8%) AND maintains 86.3% stability. Replicable model — worth documenting what's working.

+25.8% senior class, grade 12 (2018–2026)

-40.8% Nevada County baseline

+66.6pp gap vs. county

86.3% retention (county median 81.9%)

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

Stability rate by year (raw %)

Stability rate

86.3%

176 of 204 students

28 of 204 students who enrolled at Sierra Academy Expedition Learning this year didn't maintain continuous enrollment (13.7% non-stability). Mid-year transfers, dropouts, and other exits are all counted.

Nevada County median

81.9% · school is in the 62nd percentile of 8 HS

Statewide median

87.3% · in the 46th percentile of 1,734 HS

Stability by student group

White (139) 83.5%

Socio. disadvantaged (102) 85.3%

Students w/ disabilities (36) 86.1%

Hispanic / Latino (26) 80.8%

Nearest peer high schools

William & Marian Ghidotti High 95.6% Forest Charter School 74.8% Bitney Prep High 77.5% Silver Springs High (continuation) 34.9% Foresthill High School 88.1%

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 — Nevada Joint 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

$51.0M

+5.0% since FY2017

Per-pupil revenue

$20,472

2,492 students enrolled

Revenue mix

State: 25.5%
Local: 67.7%
Federal: 6.8%

Instruction share

51.2%

of current spending · $9,129/pupil

Long-term debt

$51.4M

+101.0% 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 Nevada Joint 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).

Key takeaway · Class of 2025

Sierra Academy Expedition Learning sent 23 applications to the six most selective University of California campuses and 26.1% were admitted, producing a UC Reach Score of 15 (top-6 UC admits per 100 seniors, counting a student at each campus that admitted them) — 4 points below the California median of 19, higher than 38% of California high schools..

UC Reach Score 15 ⓘ 6 admits (counted at each UC) / 41 seniors +9 pts above peer median (6) · #1 of 3 similar schools methodology

Where this sits on the California curve

CA median
19

Peer median
6

Top 10%
53

This school
15

050100

CA median 19 Top 10% ≥ 53 This school 15

Higher than 38% of California high schools (1107 ranked, ≥50 seniors)

What this number means

Sierra Academy Expedition Learning's UC Reach Score of 15 is below the California median (19). The top 10% of CA schools achieve 53 or higher.

Overall, Sierra Academy Expedition Learning's UC Reach is higher than 38% of California high schools (1107 ranked).

UC Application Reach Score ⓘ

23 applications

In context: CA median 81 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 240 · higher than 33% of CA HS.

UC Admit Rate ⓘ

26.1%

6 / 23 applications

In context: CA median 26.0% · Top 10% statewide ≥ 40.4% · higher than 50% of CA HS.

UC Yield Rate ⓘ

N/A

— enrolled of 6 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 / 41 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.

A-G Completion ⓘ

Most graduates leave here ready to apply to UC and CSU — 9 in 10 finish the required courses, versus about 6 in 10 statewide.

87%

34 of 39 graduates · 2024-25 cohort

In context: CA median 55.9% · +31.3 pp above · Nevada Co. 29.5%.

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

7.3

per 100 seniors · campus-level total

In context: CA median 15.9 · Top 10% statewide ≥ 42.2 · higher than 11% of CA HS.

Elite UC Reach (UCB + UCLA) ⓘ

N/A

Senior Class Size ⓘ

CDE grade 12 (exact)

Total School Enrollment ⓘ

191

All grades · CDE Census Day

Avg. Applicant GPA · top-6 UCs ⓘ

4.12

UC Outcomes Trend — 2021–2025

UC Admit Rate %

UC Reach Score (where available)

UC Admits (count, right axis)

Class size from CDE grade 12 enrollment. Campus-level data: applicant and admit totals count a student once at EACH campus. A senior admitted to UCLA and UC San Diego adds 2 to the admit total, so the total can exceed the senior class — that is the metric working as defined, not an error. The admit RATE is unaffected: both its numerator and denominator are campus-level.

Campus Breakdown — 2025

Campus	Applicants	Admits	Enrollees	Admit Rate	UC Reach Score	Yield	Avg GPA (App)	Avg GPA (Adm)
UC Berkeley → Elite	8	—^†	—^†	—^†	—^†	—	4.12	—^†
UC Santa Barbara → Selective	8	3	—^†	37.5%	7	—	—	—^†
UC Davis →	7	3	—^†	42.9%	7	—	—	—^†

† = 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 large share of the senior class applies to UC, indicating strong college-going culture and UC pipeline development.

A large share of the class applies to UC, so the admit rate runs lower than the application volume alone might suggest — expected when many students apply broadly, including to reach campuses. UC Reach (which credits every admit relative to the class) is the truer read of how the class fares: a strong Reach alongside a moderate admit rate is healthy, not a contradiction.

Fewer than 15% of seniors are earning UC admission. This may reflect a high non-UC college-going rate, significant A-G completion gaps, or an early-stage UC pipeline. A deeper review of A-G readiness and counseling capacity is warranted.

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 Nevada County rankings →

For School Admins

The full Reach Report for Sierra Academy Expedition Learning

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.

✓Your UC Reach Score (15) ranked head-to-head against your closest competitor schools
✓Your 5-year enrollment forecast (currently -0.4%/yr) with the revenue at stake
✓Student-retention benchmarking vs your county median — and the LCAP evidence to back your goals

See a sample report →