Original Research by School Decision on Citrus High
Citrus High is a small alternative public high school in Porterville, serving roughly high-school-age students, nearly all of them juniors and seniors. The school sits in a mid-sized Tulare County city at the base of the southern Sierra Nevada, an economic hub for the region with a mix of agribusiness, light industry, and retail commerce. Porterville itself has a walkable historic downtown around Main Street anchored by local businesses, civic uses, and community events, while auto-oriented retail corridors line the highway corridors nearby. The city is growing through new residential subdivisions and commercial development, with a median home price in the local market reflecting modest affordability relative to the state.
The student body is economically disadvantaged. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The enrollment is predominantly Hispanic, with smaller numbers of white, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander students.
Academic performance at Citrus High is very low. In the 2024-25 school year, proficiency in English language arts was minimal. No students met the state standard in mathematics. Proficiency in science was negligible. These results are far below what a typical high school student would be expected to achieve. A parent may want to look into this further with the school to understand how it addresses learning gaps and what support it provides students who are significantly behind grade level.
The school is part of Porterville Unified, which operates one of California's most developed district-wide career-pathways models. The district has structured nearly all its high school students into Linked Learning pathways tied to local industries: energy, aviation, and agricultural technology. The district reports strong alignment to postsecondary pathways, with a high graduation rate and a majority of alumni enrolling in college or other postsecondary education. Citrus High, as an alternative school, sits outside the traditional high school structure but operates within this broader district context.
Citrus High does not report a four-year graduation rate, which is typical for alternative schools and reflects the nontraditional enrollment and completion patterns that define the model. State assessment data show only a single year of results, limiting visibility into long-term trends. Special education and English learner population data were not available. These gaps reflect both the alternative nature of the school and limits in publicly reported data for this setting.
For families considering this school, it functions as a pathway option for students who are not succeeding in a traditional high school environment. The very low proficiency results signal that students arrive with or develop significant academic gaps while attending. Understanding what Citrus High's instructional model is, whether it targets students behind grade level, what remediation and support it offers, and how it connects to Porterville Unified's broader career-pathway framework would be essential to making an informed choice.
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