Downtown High

Summary:

Downtown High is a public high school located in San Francisco, California, serving grades 9-12 with a total enrollment of 103 students. The school is part of the San Francisco Unified School District, which is ranked 651 out of 1,568 districts in California and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Downtown High has consistently ranked in the bottom 10-15% of California high schools over the past decade, with rankings ranging from 1,692 out of 2,238 schools in 2008-2009 to 2,164 out of 2,323 schools in 2023-2024. The school has maintained a 0 or 1-star rating from SchoolDigger during this time period. Downtown High's performance is particularly concerning for certain student subgroups, such as female and male students, as well as Hispanic students and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. The school has struggled with low graduation rates, ranging from 44.6% to 60.4% over the past five years, and correspondingly high dropout rates, ranging from 8.6% to 24.3% during the same period. Additionally, Downtown High has an alarmingly high chronic absenteeism rate, ranging from 81.5% to 95.4% over the past five years, which is significantly higher than the district and state averages.

Interestingly, Downtown High is located in close proximity to several other public high schools, including Marshall (Thurgood) High, Wells (Ida B.) High, O'Connell (John) High, and Mission High, which generally perform better than Downtown High across various metrics. Additionally, the analysis includes data on several charter high schools in the San Francisco area, such as KIPP San Francisco College Preparatory and Life Learning Academy Charter, which tend to outperform Downtown High in areas like graduation rates, test scores, and chronic absenteeism.


Detail:

Public 9-12

 693 Vermont St.
       San Francisco, CA  94107-2635


(415) 695-5860

District: San Francisco Unified

SchoolDigger Rank:
2164th of 2,323 California High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $6,103 Help


Student/teacher ratio:  15.7 Help
Number of students:  103

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:
48.5%
African American:
30.1%
Two or more races:
7.8%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  71.8% Help


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Performance Trends
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Compare Details Downtown High ranks worse than 93.2% of high schools in California. It also ranks last among 16 ranked high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 8.18. (See more...)
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The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at Downtown High who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.
Help
The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.
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Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.
Student Body
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Compare Details Downtown High has the smallest high school student body size in the San Francisco Unified School District. Racial makeup is: Hispanic (48.5%), African American (30.1%), two or more races (7.8%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 71.8% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Downtown High is 15.7, which is the 5th best among 16 high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District. (See more...)
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Compare Downtown High employs 6.5 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Downtown High is $6,103, which is the highest among 17 high schools in the San Francisco Unified School District!
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Downtown High:

SchoolDigger ranks Downtown High 2164th of 2323 California public high schools. (See Downtown High in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
Hispanic students:


San Francisco Unified:

SchoolDigger ranks San Francisco Unified 651st of 1568 California school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Downtown High

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Rank History for all students at Downtown High

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2004 17.83 1357th 1653 17.9%
2005 23.83 1244th 1901 34.6%
2006 19.46 1457th 1968 26.0%
2007 20.81 1474th 2063 28.6%
2008 17.35 1646th 2117 22.2%
2009 23.57 1692nd 2238 24.4%
2010 15.02 1828th 2281 19.9%
2011 15.38 1831st 2367 22.6%
2012 13.69 1862nd 2354 20.9%
2013 14.86 1888th 2426 22.2%
2015 8.53 1948th 1994 2.3%
2016 8.81 1972nd 2039 3.3%
2022 12.77 1881st 2123 11.4%
2023 8.56 2161st 2348 8.0%
2024 8.18 2164th 2323 6.8%
See the entire list of California High School Rankings!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Downtown High

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 10.34 1880th 1943 3.2%
2023 7.64 2132nd 2247 5.1%
2024 7.60 2130th 2235 4.7%
See the entire list of Best California High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Downtown High

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 10.44 1879th 2118 11.3%
2024 6.14 2075th 2098 1.1%
See the entire list of Best California High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Downtown High

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 9.71 1864th 1916 2.7%
2023 6.42 2162nd 2207 2.0%
2024 8.92 1958th 2172 9.9%
See the entire list of Best California High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Downtown High

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked High Schools CA State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 13.73 1627th 1861 12.6%
2023 6.01 2102nd 2142 1.9%
2024 9.21 1907th 2125 10.3%
See the entire list of Best California High Schools for Hispanic Students!

Data source: test scores: California Department of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Downtown High Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 




Data source: California Department of Education

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Enrollment information for Downtown High

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Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
1988 67 49 33 101 1 n/a n/a 0 251
1989 55 66 50 94 4 n/a n/a 0 269
1990 28 75 46 95 5 n/a n/a 0 249
1991 27 83 62 111 5 n/a n/a 0 288
1992 29 72 70 120 6 n/a n/a 0 297
1993 30 97 60 117 4 n/a n/a 0 308
1994 65 152 116 162 5 n/a n/a 0 500
1995 28 166 105 164 8 n/a n/a 0 471
1996 28 166 105 164 8 n/a n/a 0 471
1997 30 127 62 141 5 n/a n/a 0 365
1998 23 112 70 112 3 n/a n/a 0 320
1999 18 96 60 81 2 n/a n/a 0 257
2000 22 84 65 87 2 n/a n/a 0 260
2001 21 104 66 74 5 n/a n/a 0 270
2002 15 83 73 98 3 n/a n/a 0 272
2003 15 83 73 98 3 n/a n/a 0 272
2004 22 92 62 93 3 n/a n/a 1 273
2005 11 88 58 100 4 n/a n/a 1 262
2006 12 66 49 94 5 n/a n/a 4 230
2007 5 43 25 55 3 n/a n/a 157 288
2008 12 87 62 89 3 n/a n/a 0 253
2009 10 90 43 105 3 15 5 0 271
2010 6 67 33 114 3 12 4 0 239
2011 4 65 35 118 2 14 1 0 239
2012 7 76 22 124 3 19 2 0 253
2013 6 53 24 141 2 19 7 0 252
2014 3 45 14 83 3 13 4 0 165
2015 8 45 11 98 5 6 5 0 178
2016 9 37 16 92 2 7 4 0 167
2017 2 45 7 74 1 9 5 0 143
2018 6 45 10 89 2 10 7 0 169
2019 5 46 10 85 0 10 15 0 171
2020 1 50 4 74 2 11 10 0 152
2021 4 32 4 82 2 6 14 0 144
2022 4 33 3 79 0 4 11 0 134
2023 4 31 4 50 3 3 8 0 103

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Downtown High

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 251 8.0 31.3 n/a
1989 269 11.5 23.3 n/a
1990 249 14.5 17.1 n/a
1991 288 11.4 25.2 n/a
1992 297 11.6 25.6 n/a
1993 308 14.5 21.2 0
1994 500 15.4 32.5 0
1995 471 13.5 34.9 31.8
1996 471 13.5 34.9 31.8
1997 365 15.2 24.0 17.3
1998 320 13.9 23.0 33.1
1999 257 10.0 25.7 26.5
2000 260 9.0 28.9 34.2
2001 270 12.0 22.5 44.8
2002 272 13.5 20.1 58.8
2003 272 13.5 20.1 58.8
2004 273 12.0 22.8 37.5
2005 262 13.3 19.7 46.7
2006 230 14.8 15.5 0
2007 288 16.2 17.8 125.2
2008 253 16.0 15.8 47.8
2009 271 14.6 15.8 50.9
2010 239 13.0 18.3 54
2011 239 n/a n/a 72.4
2012 253 14.2 17.7 51.8
2013 252 12.4 20.3 67.9
2014 165 12.5 13.2 72.1
2015 178 12.0 14.8 80.3
2016 167 12.0 13.9 74.9
2017 143 10.6 13.4 77.6
2018 169 8.5 19.8 77.5
2019 171 6.5 26.3 71.9
2020 152 n/a n/a 72.4
2021 144 5.7 25.2 75.7
2022 134 6.7 19.8 75.4
2023 103 6.5 15.7 71.8

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Downtown High

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
1988 251 8.0 31.3 n/a
1989 269 11.5 23.3 n/a
1990 249 14.5 17.1 n/a
1991 288 11.4 25.2 n/a
1992 297 11.6 25.6 n/a
1993 308 14.5 21.2 0
1994 500 15.4 32.5 0
1995 471 13.5 34.9 31.8
1996 471 13.5 34.9 31.8
1997 365 15.2 24.0 17.3
1998 320 13.9 23.0 33.1
1999 257 10.0 25.7 26.5
2000 260 9.0 28.9 34.2
2001 270 12.0 22.5 44.8
2002 272 13.5 20.1 58.8
2003 272 13.5 20.1 58.8
2004 273 12.0 22.8 37.5
2005 262 13.3 19.7 46.7
2006 230 14.8 15.5 0
2007 288 16.2 17.8 125.2
2008 253 16.0 15.8 47.8
2009 271 14.6 15.8 50.9
2010 239 13.0 18.3 54
2011 239 n/a n/a 72.4
2012 253 14.2 17.7 51.8
2013 252 12.4 20.3 67.9
2014 165 12.5 13.2 72.1
2015 178 12.0 14.8 80.3
2016 167 12.0 13.9 74.9
2017 143 10.6 13.4 77.6
2018 169 8.5 19.8 77.5
2019 171 6.5 26.3 71.9
2020 152 n/a n/a 72.4
2021 144 5.7 25.2 75.7
2022 134 6.7 19.8 75.4
2023 103 6.5 15.7 71.8

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Downtown High

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YearTotal Expenditures Per Pupil
2018 $6,103

Data source: California Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Downtown High

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
11th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (Downtown High)00
   11th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (San Francisco Unified)63.164.5
 1.4%
   11th Grade English Language Arts/Literacy (California)57.355.4
 1.9%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students171103
 39.8%
African American4631
 32.6%
American Indian03
Asian104
 60%
Hispanic8550
 41.2%
Pacific Islander103
 70%
White54
 20%
Two or More Races158
 46.7%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients71.9%71.8%
 0.1%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Downtown High

Downtown High ranks in the bottom 6.8% of California high schools.

Students at Downtown High are 49% Hispanic, 30% African American, 8% Two or more races, 4% White, 4% Asian, 3% American Indian, 3% Pacific Islander.

In the 2022-23 school year, 103 students attended Downtown High.


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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.





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