Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy: Full Guide

Location: Empire, CA

Are you a student or parent at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?

We've written the best guide to Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy available. Here we'll cover:

Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
How safe Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is to attend
SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy students
Which AP/IB classes you can take at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy
Every sports team you can join at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy

Let's get started!

Basic Information

Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is a public school, supporting grades 6 to 12 . It's located in Empire, CA in Stanislaus County.

Based on its location, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is classified as a school in a large suburb. Here's the location on a map:

Contact Information

Mailing address:

Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy
1001 22nd Ave., Ste. 100
Oakland, CA 94606

Phone number: 2095213010

Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy homepage: http://aspirepublicschools.org/schools/regions/california-schools/aspire-vanguard-college-preparatory-academy

Principal: Salvador Padilla
Email the principal: [email protected]

Student Demographics

Student Enrollment

The total enrollment at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is 330 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, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.

From our calculations, the enrollment at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy has increased over the past few years. We calculate this by comparing enrollment in grades 9 to 12.

	Male Students	Female Students	All Students
9^th grade	20	8	28
10^th grade	16	19	35
11^th grade	9	6	15
12^th grade	9	2	11

As you can see in the table above, the freshman class is 17 students larger than the senior class. This suggests that the school is growing in size and taking on more students.

There are a few reasons this could be happening. The city of Empire could be growing in population, thus sending more students into Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy. Alternatively, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy could be relaxing its student policies and taking in more students.

Gender Split

Are there more boys or girls at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy?

From our statistics, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy has a 61:39 split between male and female students in the high school grades.

There is a large male majority at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy, and much more than you would expect from the general population in Stanislaus County. As a result, it'll feel like there are a lot more girls than boys in your classes.

Sometimes this imbalance can result from random chance and may not suggest anything about Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy. In other cases, the school might preferentially select for males. For example, in our data we find that continuation high schools unfortunately seem to be male-dominated. In yet other cases, other neighboring schools might attract female students, drawing them away from Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy.

If the male majority is concerning to you, we suggest contacting Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy administration and asking if they have any thoughts about why there's a gender imbalance. Their phone number is 2095213010.

Ethnicity Breakdown

What's the racial diversity at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?

From our statistics, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy has a diverse student body. No single ethnicity composes more than 50% of all students, which means you'll be surrounded by a diverse set of students in class. Only a third of California schools show this much diversity.

The most common ethnicity at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is Hispanic. In California, 51.5% of all students are Hispanic, making it the most common ethnicity. Even though Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is relatively diverse, students of Hispanic descent are the most common ethnicity here.

	Percentage	Number
American Indian/Alaska Native	1.5%	5
Asian	7.2%	24
Hispanic	40.9%	135
Black	8.1%	27
White	36.6%	121
Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander	0.3%	1
Two or more races	5.1%	17

High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of Empire. 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy Families

What are the family incomes of students at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy? 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy, 13.0% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 37.8% qualify for free lunches.

This means Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy has a below average level of poverty. With most students not qualifying for free or reduced price lunches, Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is below average among California schools in poverty level. The income level of families in Empire is thus likely to be relatively high.

	Number	Percent
Reduced-price lunches	43	13.0%
Free lunches	125	37.8%
Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches	162	49.0%

As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in Empire and doesn't speak much about the school itself.

Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is in the middle 50% of schools by income level. Generally, higher income level schools are better-funded and have a higher quality range of classes and activities. Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is likely in the middle of the pack in this regard and will give you a good set of options to try.

If you have any interests that Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy doesn't cover, look to your local community for activities, or to the Internet for self-study AP classes.

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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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?

We've compiled everything we could find about Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy's academics here.

Standardized Testing

Next, we'll look at another major piece of high school academics: standardized testing performance for Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy SAT scores.

The average composite SAT score is a 1250 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 12 at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy take the SAT.

This is a very low SAT score, putting Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy in the bottom 25% of all California schools, and well below the national average. Only 17% of SAT takers here score above the national average. Unfortunately, this suggests that most students attending Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy are not high-achieving, and may find it difficult to be admitted to a good college.

Note, however, that an average is just an average - you still have the potential to rise above expectations. If you work hard and earn an SAT score well above Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy'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
Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy	436	409	413	1250
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 1250 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1250 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1250 or any other SAT score!

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Advanced Placement (AP)

Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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 1 students in grades 9-12 at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy take 0 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy is out of 5.

Compared to schools across California, this score puts Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy at below average performance. On AP tests, the passing score is considered a 3, and unfortunately the number of students who don't pass is greater than the number of do. This performance places Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy in the bottom 25 % of schools for AP tests.

This isn't all bad news for you, though. It's still good that Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy offers AP classes so you have the opportunity to take courses at a college level. Your school might be new to offering AP courses, and typically teachers get better at preparing students for AP tests over time. Finally, as you'll see below, there are still students who earn a passing grade of 3 or above - and with hard work, you can be one of them.

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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy, 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy.

English/Language Arts

At Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy, 55% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.

This is considered above average and puts Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy in the top 50% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. Around half of Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy students pass state standards, and around half do not.

This specific percentage isn't much cause for concern - because the standards have gotten harder with the Common Core, the pass rate at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy will likely rise over time. But it still reflects Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy's roughly average ranking 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy, 41% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy 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.

Sports Teams

Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy. 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 Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy.

By the way, the Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy mascot is the Lions. Go Lions!

Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy fields 1 teams for girls' sports. This is a low number that puts Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy in the bottom 25% of California schools that offer girls' sports. This is understandable - sports teams are expensive to support, and many schools would rather support other programs with their limited resources. If you play a sport that Aspire Vanguard College Preparatory Academy doesn't field a team for, consider joining a local non-school team to get practice and compete.

Boys Teams	Girls Teams
	Volleyball Var JV Fr

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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