Location: San Juan Capistrano, CA
Are you a student or parent at California Preparatory Academy? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?
We've written the best guide to California Preparatory Academy available. Here we'll cover:
- Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
- How safe California Preparatory Academy is to attend
- SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by California Preparatory Academy students
- Which AP/IB classes you can take at California Preparatory Academy
- Every sports team you can join at California Preparatory Academy
Let's get started!
Basic Information
California Preparatory Academy is a public school, supporting grades 9 to 12 . It's located in San Juan Capistrano, CA in Orange County.
Based on its location, California Preparatory Academy is classified as a school in a large suburb. Here's the location on a map:
Contact Information
Mailing address:
California Preparatory Academy32972 Calle Perfecto San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675-4706
Phone number: 9492345317
California Preparatory Academy homepage: https://cpa-capousd-ca.schoolloop.com/about
Principal: Jolene DoughertyEmail the principal: [email protected]
Student Demographics
Student Enrollment
The total enrollment at California Preparatory Academy is 144 students, making it a somewhat small high school, in the bottom half of all California high schools by size.
As a smaller-sized high school, California Preparatory Academy will feel like a cozy learning environment. With fewer than 100 students in your class, you'll likely get to know most other students and your teachers well. This will give you the feeling of a small liberal arts college.
But with a smaller student body, you won't have as many activities and clubs to choose from. If you find California Preparatory Academy lacking for your interests, consider looking to your local community to supplement your interests.
Growth in Student Body Size
Is California Preparatory Academy growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.
From our calculations, the enrollment at California 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 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9th grade | 13 | 14 | 27 |
| 10th grade | 20 | 36 | 56 |
| 11th grade | 20 | 41 | 61 |
| 12th grade | 0 | 0 | 0 |
As you can see in the table above, the freshman class is 27 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 San Juan Capistrano could be growing in population, thus sending more students into California Preparatory Academy. Alternatively, California Preparatory Academy could be relaxing its student policies and taking in more students.
Gender Split
Are there more boys or girls at California Preparatory Academy?
From our statistics, California Preparatory Academy has a 37:63 split between male and female students in the high school grades.
There is a large female majority at California Preparatory Academy, and the imbalance is greater than you would expect from the general population in Orange 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 California Preparatory Academy. In other cases, the school might preferentially select for females (if it has its own admissions criteria), or parents with female kids might prefer to send them to California Preparatory Academy. In yet other cases, other neighboring schools might attract male students, drawing them away from California Preparatory Academy.
If this gender imbalance is a concern for you, we suggest contacting California Preparatory Academy administration and asking if they have any thoughts about why there's a female majority. Their phone number is 9492345317.
Ethnicity Breakdown
What's the racial diversity at California Preparatory Academy? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?
From our statistics, California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy does. When attending class, most students will be of the same ethnicity, with some variation.
The majority of students at California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy is one of hundreds of schools in the state that have a majority of white students.
| Percentage | Number | |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.6% | 1 |
| Asian | 4.1% | 6 |
| Hispanic | 11.1% | 16 |
| Black | 0.0% | 0 |
| White | 74.3% | 107 |
| Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander | 0.6% | 1 |
| Two or more races | 9.0% | 13 |
High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of San Juan Capistrano. 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 California Preparatory Academy Families
What are the family incomes of students at California 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 California Preparatory Academy, 0.6% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 4.8% qualify for free lunches.
This means California Preparatory Academy has a very low poverty level. Nearly no students at California Preparatory Academy qualify for free or reduced price lunches. San Juan Capistrano is thus likely to have a very affluent community, and California Preparatory Academy is in the top 10% of California schools in terms of family income.
| Number | Percent | |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced-price lunches | 1 | 0.6% |
| Free lunches | 7 | 4.8% |
| Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches | 136 | 94.4% |
As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in San Juan Capistrano and doesn't speak much about the school itself.
Because California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy has to offer. If you work hard and spend your time effectively, you'll likely be well positioned to succeed in college and beyond.
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School Safety
How safe is California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy: 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 California Preparatory Academy students at risk.
Compare this school with other high schools in the same school district, using the following table:
Capistrano Unified School District Safety
| School Name | Total Referred | Total Arrests | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capistrano Valley High | 8 | 2 | 2615 |
| Dana Hills High | 10 | 0 | 2766 |
| San Clemente High | 0 | 0 | 2878 |
| Junipero Serra High | 6 | 6 | 72 |
| Aliso Niguel High | 0 | 0 | 2869 |
| Tesoro High | 0 | 0 | 2419 |
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 California Preparatory Academy? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?
We've compiled everything we could find about California Preparatory Academy's academics here.
Standardized Testing
Next, we'll look at another major piece of high school academics: standardized testing performance for California 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.
Advanced Placement (AP)
Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give California 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 4 students in grades 9-12 at California 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 California Preparatory Academy is out of 5.
Compared to schools across California, this score puts California 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 California 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 California 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 California 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 California 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 California 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 California Preparatory Academy.
English/Language Arts
At California Preparatory Academy, 81% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.
This is considered very good and puts California Preparatory Academy in the top 10% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. Most California Preparatory Academy students pass or exceed state standards, and many of them are likely well above average.
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 California Preparatory Academy, 24% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts California Preparatory Academy in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of California 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.
Academic Offerings
In addition to the standard high school curriculum, many high schools like California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy. 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 California Preparatory Academy. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.
Furthermore, many colleges will accept your California Preparatory Academy 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 California Preparatory Academy offer?
AP Courses
California Preparatory Academy offers AP courses in 4 subjects.
This is a relatively low number of AP subjects, putting California Preparatory Academy in the bottom 50% of California schools offering AP courses. You'll likely be able to take the most popular courses like Calculus, English, and US History, but you won't have most other subjects available.
The total number of AP subjects is 38, so California Preparatory Academy is missing most. If you want to take any AP courses not being offered at California Preparatory Academy, ask your counselor for ideas on how to cover the gap. If you're a strong student, you might consider transferring schools to access a more advanced curriculum.
Of course, keep in mind that even though California Preparatory Academy doesn't offer many AP courses, it might teach the ones it does offer quite well. You can see student performance in the AP score analysis section above.
The following AP courses were offered at California Preparatory Academy during 2015-2016:
| Course Title |
|---|
| English Language and Composition |
| English Literature and Composition |
| Psychology |
| United States History |
Sports Teams
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