Original Research by School Decision on Guadalupe Alternative Programs
Guadalupe Alternative Programs serves grades seven through twelve as an alternative school within Saint Paul Public Schools. The school is located in Saint Paul, Minnesota’s capital and second-largest city, a densely populated urban center with a diverse population, a mix of state government, commercial activity, and residential neighborhoods, and a park system that has ranked highly nationally. The school sits in the West Side neighborhood of Saint Paul, near the Mississippi River.
This is a small school. Most of its students are in the upper grades, with a very large share of the enrollment concentrated in twelfth grade. Students in the earlier high school grades are present but far fewer, and the school reports no enrollment in grades seven or eight. Because of this enrollment pattern, the school functions primarily as a place for students who are close to graduation.
The student body is economically diverse in the sense that a very large share qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. Racially and ethnically, the school is majority students of color, with families identifying as Hispanic, Black, and Asian each making up notable portions of the enrollment. White students are a smaller share. In its composition the school reflects the broader diversity of Saint Paul itself, a city with large Hmong, Black, and Hispanic communities.
State testing data is largely unavailable for this school. For the most recent year with reported data, the school’s mathematics proficiency rate was very low, and for earlier years in English language arts and science the number of students tested was too small for the state to report results publicly. That pattern is typical for a small alternative school where many students may be in non-traditional academic pathways or may not take the standard state assessments in the usual grade levels. The school does not have a publicly reported four-year graduation rate in the data we examined. A parent considering this school would want to discuss with the school directly how academic progress is measured and what alternative credentials or pathways are available for students.
The school is part of Saint Paul Public Schools, a large urban district that has recently opened new magnet options, including an environmental STEM middle school and the East African Elementary Magnet. The district has also renamed one of its middle schools. These changes indicate an active district magnet landscape, though Guadalupe Alternative Programs itself is not a magnet school.
Housing in the ZIP code area around the school shows home values that are lower than the statewide benchmark but higher than the national median. The mortgage-cost-versus-rent picture is such that renting is slightly less expensive than owning with a typical mortgage. This is relatively consistent with the broader affordability context in Ramsey County. The area’s unemployment rate and median household income both sit near national medians.
Guadalupe Alternative Programs is not a school that families would typically choose based on test-score comparisons or a traditional academic profile. It is an alternative program, and its small enrollment concentrated in twelfth grade suggests it serves students who may need a different setting to complete high school. A family or student considering this school should expect to have a direct conversation with the school about the specific program, the credits needed to graduate, and how the school supports students who have not followed a conventional path through earlier grades.
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