Gladstone High School: Full Guide

Location: Covina, CA

Are you a student or parent at Gladstone High School? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?

We've written the best guide to Gladstone High available. Here we'll cover:

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

Let's get started!

Basic Information

Gladstone High School is a public school, supporting grades 9 to 12 . It's located in Covina, CA in Los Angeles County.

Based on its location, Gladstone High is classified as a school in a large suburb. Here's the location on a map:

Contact Information

Mailing address:

Gladstone High School
Po Box 500
Azusa, CA 91702-0500

Phone number: 6268153600

Gladstone High School homepage: https://ghs-ausd-ca.schoolloop.com/

Principal: Scott Magnusson
Email the principal: [email protected]

Student Demographics

Student Enrollment

The total enrollment at Gladstone High School is 1296 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, Gladstone 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 Gladstone High School growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.

From our calculations, the enrollment at Gladstone High 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	181	153	334
10^th grade	157	165	322
11^th grade	123	134	257
12^th grade	155	164	319

As you can see in the table above, the freshman class is 15 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 Covina could be growing in population, thus sending more students into Gladstone High. Alternatively, Gladstone High could be relaxing its student policies and taking in more students.

Gender Split

Are there more boys or girls at Gladstone High School?

From our statistics, Gladstone High has a 50:50 split between male and female students in the high school grades.

Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High School? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?

From our statistics, Gladstone 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 Gladstone High does. When attending class, you'll be surrounded by students of the same ethnicity.

The majority of students at Gladstone 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 Gladstone High fits within this category.

	Percentage	Number
American Indian/Alaska Native	0.2%	3
Asian	2.7%	36
Hispanic	92.6%	1201
Black	0.5%	7
White	3.4%	45
Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander	0.0%	1
Two or more races	0.2%	3

High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of Covina. 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 Gladstone High Families

What are the family incomes of students at Gladstone 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 Gladstone High, 15.5% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 58.5% qualify for free lunches.

This means Gladstone High has a moderate percentage of students at or near poverty. About half of all schools in California show this level of poverty or greater. The income level of families in Covina is likely to be relatively low.

	Number	Percent
Reduced-price lunches	201	15.5%
Free lunches	759	58.5%
Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches	336	25.9%

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

Gladstone High 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. Gladstone High 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 Gladstone High doesn't cover, look to your local community for activities, or to the Internet for self-study AP classes.

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School Safety

How safe is Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High students at risk.

In the school year of 2011-2012, there were 6 referrals to law enforcement (4 male, 2 female), and 6 school-related arrests (4 males, 2 females). This is out of a total enrollment of 1426 students.

To put this into perspective, most California schools (59% of them) reported 0 law enforcement referrals and arrests.

This means that 0.8 Gladstone High is somewhat safe. For every 100 students, there was fewer than 1 law-enforcement related action. It seems like there are regularly incidents that involve law enforcement, but it's not widespread.

With this record, is Gladstone High School significantly different from other schools in the area? It could be that Gladstone 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:

Azusa Unified School District Safety

School Name	Total Referred	Total Arrests	Enrollment
Azusa High	36	36	1367
Sierra High	32	32	300

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 Gladstone High School? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?

We've compiled everything we could find about Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High, 90% (of 344) Gladstone 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%.

Gladstone High is in the 69th 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High School SAT scores.

The average composite SAT score is a 1340 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 201 at Gladstone High take the SAT.

This is a below-average SAT score, putting Gladstone High School in the bottom 50% of all California schools. Only 20% of students here score the national average or higher. Because the SAT measures academic achievement, this suggests that Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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
Gladstone High	447	455	446	1340
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 1340 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1340 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1340 or any other SAT score!

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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 Gladstone High School ACT scores with the rest of the country.

At Gladstone High, the average ACT composite score was 19, compared to the nationwide average of 20. Each year, roughly 49 out of 1232 total students take the ACT.

This is below average performance, putting Gladstone 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 Gladstone High.

Here are the average English, Math, Reading, and Science scores for Gladstone High compared to California and the US:

Average ACT Scores

Source	English	Math	Reading	Science
Gladstone High	18	20	20	20
California	21.8	22.8	22.3	21.7
UnitedStates	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!

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Advanced Placement (AP)

Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give Gladstone 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 224 students in grades 9-12 at Gladstone High take 379 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 Gladstone High is 2.4 out of 5.

Unfortunately, this score puts Gladstone 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 Gladstone High don't pass. This performance places Gladstone High School in the bottom 50% of schools for AP tests in California.

This isn't all bad news. It's already good that Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High.

English/Language Arts

At Gladstone High School, 46% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.

This is considered below average and puts Gladstone High in the bottom 50% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. The majority of Gladstone 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 Gladstone High will likely rise over time. But it still reflects Gladstone 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 Gladstone High School, 13% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts Gladstone High in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 Gladstone High. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.

Furthermore, many colleges will accept your Gladstone 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 Gladstone High School offer?

AP Courses

Gladstone High School offers AP courses in 1 subject.

This is a low number of AP subjects, putting Gladstone High School in the bottom 25% of California schools offering AP courses. You'll be very limited in your ability to explore your interests in math, science, humanities, or social sciences at Gladstone High.

Take a look at every AP subject offered. If you want to take any AP courses not being offered at Gladstone High, ask your counselor for ideas on how to cover the gap. If you're a strong student and not feeling adequately challenged, you might consider transferring to another high school to access a more advanced curriculum.

Of course, keep in mind that even though Gladstone High doesn't offer many AP courses, it might teach the few it does offer quite well. You can see student performance in the AP score analysis section above.

The following AP courses were offered at Gladstone High during 2015-2016:

Course Title
English Language and Composition

Sports Teams

Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at Gladstone 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 Gladstone High.

By the way, the Gladstone High mascot is the Gladiators. Go Gladiators!

Gladstone High School fields 16 teams for girls' sports. This is a sizable number that puts Gladstone 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 Gladstone High doesn't offer, consider looking for a local non-school team that you can join.

And now for the boys: Gladstone High School fields 19 teams for boys' sports. This puts Gladstone 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 Gladstone 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 JV Fr
Tennis Var JV Fr	Tennis Var JV Fr
Football Var JV Fr
Wrestling Var JV Fr
Volleyball Var JV Fr	Volleyball Var JV Fr
Baseball Var JV Fr
	Softball Var JV Fr
Trackfield Var JV Fr	Trackfield Var JV Fr
Crosscountry Var JV Fr	Crosscountry Var JV Fr
Soccer Var JV Fr	Soccer Var JV Fr
	Fieldhockey Var JV Fr
Swimming Var JV Fr	Swimming 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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