Academies of the Antelope Valley, Quartz Hill CA

Original Research by School Decision on Academies of the Antelope Valley

Academies of the Antelope Valley is a charter middle and high school serving grades six through twelve in Quartz Hill, a residential unincorporated community in the Antelope Valley of northern Los Angeles County. The school enrolls a student body that is mostly Hispanic, with substantial shares of Black and white students, and more than half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The enrollment is small overall, with the largest cohort in grade eight and notably smaller numbers in the high school grades.

On California state assessments administered in the most recent year, the school's proficiency results are markedly low across tested subjects. In English language arts across grades six through eight, proficiency ranges from around thirty percent in sixth grade to around forty-seven percent in eighth grade. Mathematics proficiency is weaker, hovering around fifteen percent in sixth grade and climbing to about twenty-six percent by eighth grade. Science proficiency in eighth grade sits around one-third. These results place the school in the bottom quartile for overall proficiency when compared against other schools in Los Angeles County. A parent may want to look into the school's instructional approach, recent changes, and support structures if academic proficiency gains are a priority for their child.

The school is operated as a charter within the Antelope Valley Union High School District. The district recently secured voter approval for a general obligation bond in November 2024, funding facility upgrades including modernization of classrooms and vocational labs, repairs to aging infrastructure, safe drinking water systems, and security improvements across district schools. This bond will carry long-term implications for property tax bills in the district, though it signals investment in the school environment.

Quartz Hill itself is a largely residential, semi-rural community with a family-oriented feel, characterized by single-family homes on tree-lined streets, many owner-occupied, alongside newer custom and higher-end construction. The area has limited walkability; residents rely on cars for most errands, and some neighborhoods lack sidewalks entirely. The regional economy centers on aerospace and defense employers in nearby Palmdale and Lancaster, including Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman, rather than on-site employers. Housing is affordable relative to coastal Los Angeles, and the community is anchored by George Lane Park, the recently reopened Quartz Hill Library, and local transit through the Antelope Valley Transit Authority's electric bus service.

The school offers Advanced Placement courses for high school students. Beyond that, specific information about program breadth, career pathways, staffing levels, attendance metrics, or civil rights outcome data was not available in the school's public record. A prospective family would benefit from contacting the school directly to understand course offerings, support services, any recent academic initiatives, and how the school approaches students working below grade level.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=80%Cohort of 23 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

2,394 schools plotted. 142 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 615%

School 15% · District 15%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 720%

School 20% · District 20%

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 826%

School 26% · District 26%

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 630%

School 30% · District 30%

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 43%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 47%

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Science

Grade 833%

School 33% · District 33%

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 852%

School 52% · District 52%

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

This schoolAntelope Valley Union High, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income27%Higher-income36%9 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income38%Higher-income47%8 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income38%Higher-income56%19 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income13%Higher-income20%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income19%Higher-income22%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income16%Higher-income37%20 pp gap