Location: Montebello, CA
Are you a student or parent at Montebello High School? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?
We've written the best guide to Montebello High available. Here we'll cover:
- Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
- How safe Montebello High is to attend
- SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by Montebello High students
- Which AP/IB classes you can take at Montebello High
- Every sports team you can join at Montebello High
Let's get started!
Basic Information
Montebello High School is a public school, supporting grades 9 to 12 . It's located in Montebello, CA in Los Angeles County.
Based on its location, Montebello High is classified as a school in a large suburb. Here's the location on a map:
Contact Information
Mailing address:
Montebello High School2100 W. Cleveland Ave. Montebello, CA 90640-4032
Phone number: 3237280121
Montebello High School homepage: https://mhs-montebellousd-ca.schoolloop.com/
Principal: Elena MeltzerEmail the principal: [email protected]
Student Demographics
Student Enrollment
The total enrollment at Montebello High School is 2988 students, making it a very large high school, in the top 10% of all California high schools by size.
Wow! Attending Montebello High might feel like attending a college. You'll be surrounded by a large group of students (over 500 per class) and have more options for activities and clubs to join, which can be exciting.
On the other hand, you may also find that resources like counseling are spread thin across so many students. Make sure that you can get enough teacher and counselor attention to succeed at Montebello High, which may require being proactive.
Growth in Student Body Size
Is Montebello High School growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.
From our calculations, the enrollment at Montebello High has steadily 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 | 358 | 337 | 695 |
| 10th grade | 345 | 353 | 698 |
| 11th grade | 373 | 369 | 742 |
| 12th grade | 414 | 439 | 853 |
As you can see in the table above, the senior class is 158 students larger than the freshman class. This suggests that Montebello High is shrinking in size and taking on fewer students.
There are a few reasons this can happen. The population of Montebello could be decreasing, thus sending fewer students into Montebello High. Alternatively, other schools (like charter or private schools) might be appearing, drawing students away.
Gender Split
Are there more boys or girls at Montebello High School?
From our statistics, Montebello High has a 50:50 split between male and female students in the high school grades.
Montebello High has a balanced male-female ratio that's largely representative of the general population in Los Angeles 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High School? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?
From our statistics, Montebello High has a very homogenous student body, with over 90% of students identifying as one ethnicity. This is especially extreme - fewer than 10% of California schools show as little racial diversity as Montebello High does. When attending class, you'll be surrounded by students of the same ethnicity.
The majority of students at Montebello High are Hispanic. In California, Hispanic students make up the majority of all students at 51.5%, and are thus the most common ethnicity. Predominantly Hispanic schools are the most common type of homogenous school, and Montebello High fits within this category.
| Percentage | Number | |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.1% | 3 |
| Asian | 1.1% | 33 |
| Hispanic | 95.8% | 2863 |
| Black | 0.4% | 13 |
| White | 2.3% | 71 |
| Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander | 0.0% | 2 |
| Two or more races | 0.1% | 3 |
High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of Montebello. 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 Montebello High Families
What are the family incomes of students at Montebello 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 Montebello High, 11.7% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 75.0% qualify for free lunches.
This means Montebello High has a high percentage of students at or near poverty. Almost a third of all schools in California show this level of poverty, and by National Center for Education Statistics standards, Montebello High can be classified as a high poverty school. The income level of families in Montebello is thus likely to be low.
| Number | Percent | |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced-price lunches | 352 | 11.7% |
| Free lunches | 2242 | 75.0% |
| Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches | 394 | 13.1% |
As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in Montebello and doesn't speak much about the school itself.
Unfortunately, schools in areas of lower income levels are likely to be more poorly funded. As a result, they might feature less advanced coursework like AP/IB classes, and you may not have a full range of sports and extracurriculars to draw from. Because Montebello High is an especially high poverty-level school, it might not have the resources you need to meet your full potential.
You definitely don't have control over the city, the school, or other families, but you can structure your own learning to be more productive. If you'd like to open yourself to more opportunities, you can look into whether it's possible to transfer to a nearby school with higher income levels.
If not, don't be alarmed - it's possible that Montebello High has all that you need for your ambition. And you can definitely be proactive about learning outside of your school, looking to your community or to the Internet to find more resources.
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 Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High students at risk.
In the school year of 2011-2012, there were 0 referrals to law enforcement, and 0 school-related arrests. This is out of a total enrollment of 3299 students.
To put this into perspective, most California schools (59% of them) reported 0 law enforcement referrals and arrests.
Compare this school with other high schools in the same school district, using the following table:
Montebello Unified School District Safety
| School Name | Total Referred | Total Arrests | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bell Gardens High | 0 | 0 | 3169 |
| Schurr High | 0 | 0 | 3299 |
| Vail High (continuation) | 0 | 0 | 364 |
| Laguna Nueva | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Montebello Community Day | 0 | 0 | 337 |
| Applied Technology Center | 0 | 0 | 0 |
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 Montebello High School? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?
We've compiled everything we could find about Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High, 84% (of 769) Montebello 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%.
Montebello High is in the 52nd 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High School SAT scores.
The average composite SAT score is a 1330 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 376 at Montebello High take the SAT.
This is a below-average SAT score, putting Montebello High School in the bottom 50% of all California schools. Only 21% of students here score the national average or higher. Because the SAT measures academic achievement, this suggests that Montebello High may offer a somewhat lacking high school education, compared to schools with higher SAT averages.
Note, however, that an average is just an average - top performers will still be able to impress. If you work hard and get an SAT score well above Montebello High's average, you'll have a great shot at entering a good college.
Here's a breakdown of SAT scores by section:
Average SAT Scores (2013-2014)
| Source | Critical Reading | Math | Writing | Composite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montebello High | 426 | 462 | 442 | 1330 |
| 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 1330 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1330 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1330 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.
ACT Scores
In California, the ACT is less popular than the SAT. Fewer students take the ACT, and typically these students are more motivated and academically prepared for college. Therefore, it's harder to compare Montebello High School ACT scores with the rest of the country.
At Montebello High, the average ACT composite score was 18, compared to the nationwide average of 20. Each year, roughly 127 out of 2988 total students take the ACT.
This is below average performance, putting Montebello High in the bottom 50% of California high schools. Most students who take the ACT are below the national average.
Since the ACT tests what you learn in school, this is a pretty strong indicator that you'll get an average or below average education at Montebello High.
Here are the average English, Math, Reading, and Science scores for Montebello High compared to California and the US:
Average ACT Scores
| Source | English | Math | Reading | Science |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montebello High | 17 | 20 | 18 | 18 |
| California | 21.8 | 22.8 | 22.3 | 21.7 |
| United States | 20.3 | 20.9 | 21.3 | 20.8 |
Scores provided are for the 2013-14 school year.
Find out more about percentile rankings and the ACT in this article.
Every individual is different. What counts as a good ACT score for you? Learn more with this article!
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 ACT 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 Montebello 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 300 students in grades 9-12 at Montebello High take 535 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 Montebello High is 2.2 out of 5.
Unfortunately, this score puts Montebello High at below average performance. For AP tests, the passing score is considered a 3, and the majority of students who take AP tests at Montebello High don't pass. This performance places Montebello High School in the bottom 50% of schools for AP tests in California.
This isn't all bad news. It's already good that Montebello High offers an AP program, so you can start dipping your toes into college-level courses. Some schools are new to offering AP courses, and teachers often get better at preparing students for AP tests. Furthermore, a good number of students still earn a passing grade of 3 or above. With hard work throughout the year, you'll still be able to beat your school's average.
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:
To find out the passing rates for specific AP courses at Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High.
English/Language Arts
At Montebello High School, 46% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.
This is considered below average and puts Montebello High in the bottom 50% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. The majority of Montebello High students do not pass state standards, and only a small percentage pass.
This specific percentage isn't much cause for concern - because the Common Core is new, the pass rate at Montebello High will likely rise over time. But it still reflects Montebello High's below average standing among California high schools.
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 Montebello High School, 18% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts Montebello High in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello 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 Montebello High. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.
Furthermore, many colleges will accept your Montebello 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 Montebello High School offer?
AP Courses
Montebello High School offers AP courses in 18 subjects.
This is an impressive number of AP subjects, putting Montebello High School in the top 25% of California schools in AP offerings. You'll likely have all of the most popular AP courses available to you, as well as some broader interests.
The total number of AP subjects is 38, so Montebello High is missing a good number of subjects, but these are likely the least popular subjects, like less popular foreign languages. If there are any AP courses you want to take that aren't being offered at Montebello High, ask your counselor for other options.
Of course, keep in mind that quality matters even more than quantity - it's important that your AP courses are taught well by engaging teachers. But the strong AP program at Montebello High likely means you'll be in good hands.
The following AP courses were offered at Montebello High during 2015-2016:
| Course Title |
|---|
| Biology |
| Calculus AB |
| Calculus BC |
| Chemistry |
| English Language and Composition |
| English Literature and Composition |
| Environmental Science |
| Physics 1: Algebra-Based |
| Psychology |
| Spanish Language and Culture |
| Spanish Literature and Culture |
| Statistics |
| Studio Art: 2-D Design |
| Studio Art: 3-D Design |
| Studio Art: Drawing |
| United States Government and Politics |
| United States History |
| World History |
Sports Teams
Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at Montebello 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 Montebello High.
By the way, the Montebello High mascot is the Oilers. Go Oilers!
Montebello High School fields 19 teams for girls' sports. This is a high number that puts Montebello High in the top 25% of California schools that offer girls' sports. If you're a female, you'll have lots of options of sports and levels to try out for.
And now for the boys: Montebello High School fields 25 teams for boys' sports. Clearly Montebello High has a strong sports culture - Montebello High is in the top 10% of California schools that offer boys' sports. Boys will find plenty of options of sports at different levels to try out for. Because more teams usually also means more resources devoted to sports, you can also expect Montebello High sports teams to be competitive.
| Boys Teams | Girls Teams |
|---|---|
| Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Golf
Var
|
|
| Tennis
Var
JV
|
Tennis
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Football
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Wrestling
Var
JV
|
|
| Volleyball
Var
JV
Fr
|
Volleyball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Baseball
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Softball
Var
JV
|
|
| Waterpolo
Var
JV
|
Waterpolo
Var
JV
|
| Trackfield
Var
|
Trackfield
Var
|
| Crosscountry
Var
JV
Fr
|
Crosscountry
Var
JV
|
| Soccer
Var
JV
|
Soccer
Var
JV
|
| Fieldhockey
Var
|
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