Location: Forestville, CA
Are you a student or parent at El Molino High School? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?
We've written the best guide to El Molino High available. Here we'll cover:
- Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
- How safe El Molino High is to attend
- SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by El Molino High students
- Which AP/IB classes you can take at El Molino High
- Every sports team you can join at El Molino High
Let's get started!
Basic Information
El Molino High School is a public school, supporting grades 9 to 12 . It's located in Forestville, CA in Sonoma County.
Based on its location, El Molino High is classified as a school in a rural fringe area, near an urbanized area. Here's the location on a map:
Contact Information
Mailing address:
El Molino High School7050 Covey Rd. Forestville, CA 95436-9642
Phone number: 7078246550
El Molino High School homepage: http://www.elmolino.org/
Principal: Matthew DunkleEmail the principal: [email protected]
Student Demographics
Student Enrollment
The total enrollment at El Molino High School is 605 students, making it a somewhat large high school, in the top half of all California high schools by size.
As a mid-sized high school, El Molino High strikes the balance between size and comfort. There will be enough students to provide a diversity of experiences, like clubs and sports, for you to join. But it'll be small enough that you'll likely get to know most people in your class.
Growth in Student Body Size
Is El Molino High School growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.
From our calculations, the enrollment at El Molino High has decreased over the past few years. We calculate this by comparing enrollment in grades 9 to 12.
| Male Students | Female Students | All Students | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9th grade | 63 | 87 | 150 |
| 10th grade | 81 | 61 | 142 |
| 11th grade | 78 | 77 | 155 |
| 12th grade | 83 | 75 | 158 |
As you can see in the table above, the senior class is 8 students larger than the freshman class. This suggests that El Molino High is shrinking in size and taking on fewer students.
There are a few reasons this can happen. The population of Forestville could be decreasing, thus sending fewer students into El Molino High. Alternatively, other schools (like charter or private schools) might be appearing, drawing students away.
Gender Split
Are there more boys or girls at El Molino High School?
From our statistics, El Molino High has a 51:49 split between male and female students in the high school grades.
El Molino High has a balanced male-female ratio that's largely representative of the general population in Sonoma County. Since the student body is roughly half and half, it should feel like there are equal numbers of boys and girls in your classes.
This usually means that El Molino High doesn't strongly select for either males or females, unlike other schools that have a large majority of males or females.
Ethnicity Breakdown
What's the racial diversity at El Molino High School? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?
From our statistics, El Molino High has a homogenous student body, with the overwhelming majority of students identifying as one ethnicity. Only a third of California schools show as little diversity as El Molino High does. When attending class, most students will be of the same ethnicity, with some variation.
The majority of students at El Molino High are white. In California, white students make up 26.3% of all California students, and are the second most common ethnicity after Hispanic students. Thus El Molino High is one of hundreds of schools in the state that have a majority of white students.
| Percentage | Number | |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.6% | 4 |
| Asian | 1.3% | 8 |
| Hispanic | 21.8% | 132 |
| Black | 0.6% | 4 |
| White | 71.4% | 432 |
| Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander | 0.3% | 2 |
| Two or more races | 3.8% | 23 |
High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of Forestville. If you'd like to see how other nearby schools look in diversity, just google "[name of school] prepscholar" to find our guide to that specific school.
Income Level of El Molino High Families
What are the family incomes of students at El Molino High School? To determine this, we look at the number of students who qualify for free or reduced lunches, a classification by the US federal government.
To qualify for a reduced price meal, family income needs to be below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $45,000 or below.
To qualify for a free meal, family income needs to be below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $32,000 or below.
The lower the percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced price meals, the higher the income levels are likely to be.
At El Molino High, 7.4% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 27.9% qualify for free lunches.
This means El Molino High has a low poverty level. The overwhelming majority of students at El Molino High don't qualify for free or reduced price lunches. Forestville is thus likely to be an affluent community, with quite high family incomes.
| Number | Percent | |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced-price lunches | 45 | 7.4% |
| Free lunches | 169 | 27.9% |
| Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches | 391 | 64.6% |
As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in Forestville and doesn't speak much about the school itself.
Because El Molino High is in the top quartile of schools by family income, it's likely to be well-funded relative to other high schools in California. This means you'll likely have access to advanced coursework like AP/IB classes and better-funded extracurriculars and sports.
It's still up to you, though, to take advantage of the resources El Molino High has to offer. If you work hard and spend your time effectively, you'll likely be well positioned to succeed in college and beyond.
Download our free guide on the top 5 strategies you must be using to improve your score. This guide was written by Harvard graduates and SAT perfect scorers. If you apply the strategies in this guide, you'll study smarter and make huge score improvements.
School Safety
How safe is El Molino High School to attend? Can you expect a lot of conflict as a student here?
To study this, we look at disciplinary data for two types of incidents at El Molino High: referrals to law enforcement (when incidents are reported to police), and arrests.
These are the most serious disciplinary actions available to school administration and are more severe than suspensions or expulsions. Suspensions are often discretionary and can be given just for being disruptive in class. In contrast, law enforcement referrals and arrests often indicate incidents that put the safety of other El Molino High students at risk.
In the school year of 2011-2012, there were 9 referrals to law enforcement (4 male, 5 female), and 0 school-related arrests. This is out of a total enrollment of 767 students.
To put this into perspective, most California schools (59% of them) reported 0 law enforcement referrals and arrests.
This means that 1.1 El Molino High has minor safety issues. For every 100 students, there were just 1.1 law-enforcement related actions, but this is still higher than 75% of California schools.
With this record, is El Molino High School significantly different from other schools in the area? It could be that El Molino High has an especially bad record, or it could be that the local area shows a pattern.
Compare this school with other high schools in the same school district, using the following table:
West Sonoma County Union High School District Safety
| School Name | Total Referred | Total Arrests | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Analy High | 47 | 0 | 1321 |
| Laguna High | 0 | 0 | 93 |
| Wscuhsd Community Day | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| West Sonoma County Consortium | 0 | 0 | 48 |
Academic Performance
Now we get to a major aspect of assessing a high school: academic performance. How good of an education will you get at El Molino High School? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?
We've compiled everything we could find about El Molino High's academics here.
Graduation Rate
To start off, an important benchmark of academic achievement is graduation rate. For all students who start high school at El Molino High, the state of California wants as many students to graduate as possible, since a high school diploma can mean a big difference in getting a job.
At El Molino High, 91% (of 224) El Molino High students graduated within four years of starting high school.
Here's how this stacks up to other schools. The California state government has defined 90% as a target rate. The state average is around 80-85%.
El Molino High is in the 73rd percentile of all public high schools in California for graduation rate. This is above average. Generally, a graduation rate of above 90% is considered good and well above average, and below 75% is well below average.
Note: This data comes from a few years back, but the trends are likely to stay the same, since schools don't get significantly better or worse within a short period of time.
Standardized Testing
Next, we'll look at another major piece of high school academics: standardized testing performance for El Molino High School students. These are tests that are administered to large populations of students for comparison purposes.
Let’s start by taking a look at the data for nationally administered standardized tests.
SAT Scores
As you probably know, the SAT is a critical test used for college admissions. The higher the score you get, the better your academic performance compared to students nationwide, and the easier it is to get into top colleges.
We did in-depth research and found the average El Molino High School SAT scores.
The average composite SAT score is a 1610 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 71 at El Molino High take the SAT.
This is an above-average SAT score, putting El Molino High School in the top 25% of all California high schools and well above the national average (66% of students score above the national average). This is a notable academic achievement that distinguishes El Molino High as a high-achieving school.
This is a good indication that you'll receive an above-average education at El Molino High. While your school isn't in the very top echelon of all California public schools, you're still in a great environment.
Here's a breakdown of SAT scores by section:
Average SAT Scores (2013-2014)
| Source | Critical Reading | Math | Writing | Composite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| El Molino High | 554 | 532 | 524 | 1610 |
| California | 498 | 510 | 496 | 1504 |
| United States | 495 | 511 | 484 | 1490 |
Note that the SAT has since changed to a 1600 scale, but the trends above for your high school are likely to continue. Just use this guide to convert between the old 2400 scale and the new 1600 scale.
To learn more about SAT percentile rankings, read our guide on what SAT percentiles really mean.
How good is 1610 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1610 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1610 or any other SAT score!
Download our free guide on the top 5 strategies you must be using to improve your score. This guide was written by Harvard graduates and SAT perfect scorers. If you apply the strategies in this guide, you'll study smarter and make huge score improvements.
Advanced Placement (AP)
Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give El Molino High School students credit for college.
Here's what we're looking for: high average AP test scores as well as high AP passing rates.
AP Scores
Every year, roughly 72 students in grades 9-12 at El Molino High take 155 AP exams. It's important to understand how students score on the AP - earning a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP test means passing the test and often earning college credit.
The average score of all AP exams taken at El Molino High is 3.2 out of 5.
This is a solid achievement showing above average performance. The majority of students get a passing grade of 3 or above, placing them above the national average. This performance places El Molino High School in the top 25% of schools for AP tests.
El Molino High therefore has a robust AP program with classes that will help you pass the AP exam. Furthermore, a sizable number of students still earn a 4 or a 5 on their AP tests, so if you're motivated to do well, you can still get a great AP score.
We have specific data on how many students got a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 (out of 5) on AP exams in the chart below:
AP Test-Taking Statistics
Another way to gauge the quality of a school's AP program is to see how many AP students actually took AP exams at El Molino High School. If a lot of students enroll in AP courses but don't actually take the AP tests, it can be a sign that students don't feel adequately prepared to take the test, or the school isn't encouraging students to take the exams enough.
At El Molino High, there is a total enrollment of 124 in AP courses (a student taking more than one AP course counts more than once).
Of AP-taking students, 119 took AP tests for ALL AP courses. 2 students took AP tests for SOME AP Courses, and 0 took AP courses but took NO tests.
This is stellar test participation. First, every single El Molino High School student who took AP courses took at least some AP exams - there were zero students who took no exams. Furthermore, the students who took AP tests for ALL their AP courses outnumber the students who took just some AP exams.
These are great signs because it suggests students feel prepared to take the tests at the end of the year, and El Molino High does a good job of helping students sign up for AP tests. You'll likely have a good AP course experience here.
Note: The most recent data we have available is from 2012, so the statistics may have changed since then. Most likely, however, the trends are likely to continue - above average schools are likely to stay above average, and below average schools are likely to stay below average.
AP Passing Rates
For AP students at El Molino High School who take the exam, it's important to know how they do. Here we have specific data on how many students got a passing grade (a 3 or above) on all, some, or none of the AP exams that they took.
Of all AP test takers, 33 students passed every AP test they took, which is a fantastic job. 14 students passed some but not all AP exams, and 4 students didn't pass ANY AP exam they took.
This is very strong performance. The majority of El Molino High School students pass ALL the AP tests they take - an impressive feat, especially if students take multiple AP exams each year!
Overall, this points to a strong AP program at El Molino High: across all AP course offerings, teachers are able to prepare students well for the exam. There are still some students who fail some or all of their exams, but this is a good starting point to improve from. You'll have a strong foundation to learn from throughout high school.
To find out the passing rates for specific AP courses at El Molino High School, you'll have to talk to your guidance counselor (who can then help you find that information). For instance, one AP Calculus teacher may have an above-90% passing rate, while another might only have a 50% passing rate. If you can, you'll want to take the class with the teacher who has more students get a 3 or above on the AP exam.
Find out more about the average score for each AP subject here.
State Tests
As of 2014, eleventh graders attending El Molino High School must take standardized tests in English/Language Arts and Math as part of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP). These align with the new Common Core standards and are called the "Smarter Balanced" tests.
If El Molino High students meet or exceed state standards, they're academically prepared to graduate high school and go to college. Specifically, we care about the percentage of students who meet or exceed state standards. The larger this number, the higher the preparation of students at El Molino High.
English/Language Arts
At El Molino High School, 67% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.
This is considered good and puts El Molino High in the top 25% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. Most El Molino High students pass or exceed state standards, though there is also a sizable portion of students who fail to meet state standards.
English/Language Arts Test Results (2015)
Read more about what’s measured in each ELA area score here.
Math
The other major test taken for state assessments is Math. Across the state, Math performance is generally lower than English/Language Arts performance, so it's natural for this number to be lower.
At El Molino High School, 41% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts El Molino High in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of El Molino High students don't meet state standards, and only a small percentage pass.
Math Test Results (2015)
Read more about what’s measured in each Math area score, go here.
Academic Offerings
In addition to the standard high school curriculum, many high schools like El Molino High School offer advanced coursework as part of the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) programs.
Brief Intro to AP/IB
AP and IB courses are designed at the difficulty level of college introductory classes. There are several important benefits to taking advanced coursework at El Molino High. First, taking more advanced classes shows colleges that you're committed to challenging yourself academically, and that you're one of the more advanced students at El Molino High. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.
Furthermore, many colleges will accept your El Molino High AP/IB coursework as college coursework. In some cases, you'll be able to skip introductory-level classes and move to more advanced classes. In other cases, you'll be able to avoid having to take required courses and might even be able to graduate earlier than the standard 4 years. Often this will require you to pass the AP test, getting a score of 3 or above.
So what advanced courses does El Molino High School offer?
AP Courses
El Molino High School offers AP courses in 13 subjects.
This is a reasonable number of AP subjects, putting El Molino High School in the top 50% of California schools that offer AP courses. You'll likely have access to some of the most popular math and humanities AP subjects, as well as a few others.
The total number of AP subjects is 38, so El Molino High is missing a large number of subjects, including some popular ones. If there are any AP courses you want to take that aren't being offered at El Molino High, ask your counselor for ideas on how to cover the gap.
Of course, keep in mind that quality matters even more than quantity - even if El Molino High doesn't offer every AP course under the sun, the classes might still be taught very well. You can see student performance in the AP score analysis section above.
The following AP courses were offered at El Molino High during 2015-2016:
| Course Title |
|---|
| Biology |
| Calculus AB |
| Calculus BC |
| Chemistry |
| English Language and Composition |
| English Literature and Composition |
| Environmental Science |
| Human Geography |
| Spanish Language and Culture |
| Studio Art: 2-D Design |
| Studio Art: Drawing |
| United States Government and Politics |
| United States History |
Sports Teams
Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at El Molino High School. Sports are an integral part of many students' high school experiences. The more sports that are available, and the more levels supported (Frosh, JV, Varsity), the more likely you'll be able to participate in a sport at El Molino High.
By the way, the El Molino High mascot is the Lions. Go Lions!
El Molino High School fields 14 teams for girls' sports. This is a sizable number that puts El Molino High in the top 50% of California schools that offer girls' sports. You won't get the full range of sports and levels, but you'll be able to try out for a few options. If you participate in a sport that El Molino High doesn't offer, consider looking for a local non-school team that you can join.
And now for the boys: El Molino High School fields 16 teams for boys' sports. This puts El Molino High in the top 50% of California schools that offer boys' sports. You won't get every sport and level possible here, but you'll have a decent number of options. If you participate in a sport that El Molino High doesn't offer, consider looking for a local non-school team that you can join.
| Boys Teams | Girls Teams |
|---|---|
| Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Golf
Var
|
|
| Tennis
Var
|
Tennis
Var
|
| Football
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Wrestling
Var
|
|
| Volleyball
Var
|
Volleyball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Baseball
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Softball
Var
JV
|
|
| Waterpolo
Var
|
Waterpolo
Var
|
| Soccer
Var
JV
|
Soccer
Var
JV
|
What’s Next?
Want to get more useful information about high school classes and preparing for colleges? Our blog has a ton of articles and advice on topics ranging from coursework and GPA to letters of recommendation, extracurriculars, and much more!
Ready to bulk up your schedule and maximize your college preparedness? Read all about the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.
Not quite in high school yet, but eager to get started? We've also got information for younger students interested in advanced learning opportunities, both in and out of school.
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Sources
The data on this page is drawn from a variety of sources, including (but not limited to):
- National Center for Educational Statistics CCD 2013-2014
- "Free or reduced price lunch: A proxy for poverty?", NCES Blog
- CRDC 2011-2012 school year data
- California Department of Education SAT, ACT, and AP Test Results
- California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) System Results
- AP Course Ledger
- IBO.org