San Rafael High principal highlights gains, flags persistent gaps in ELA and math
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Summary
Principal Joe Dominguez told trustees San Rafael High's graduation and college-readiness indicators have improved, with rising AP participation, but English learner and math outcomes remain area for focused intervention; he proposed schoolwide writing emphasis and stronger vertical standards alignment.
San Rafael High School Principal Joe Dominguez presented school performance data on Jan. 27, telling trustees that several indicators have moved in a positive direction but that gaps remain in English learner outcomes, math and ELA performance.
Dominguez said the school has just under 1,300 students: "74% are Latino, 21% white, 2% Asian, 1% black, and 2% identify as multi-ethnic," and that 77% of students are designated economically disadvantaged. He noted improvements on California Dashboard indicators — higher graduation rates, lower suspension rates and gains on the CAST science exam — and increasing Advanced Placement participation and results. "One of our goals ... is to increase our performance on the state assessments for math, ELA and to increase the number of students who are officially designated as bilingual," he said.
Dominguez also identified three barriers to advancing college-going indicators: (1) exam fidelity and student buy-in, particularly in high school; (2) limited Tier 2 immediate intervention opportunities and the need for more in-school time for interventions; and (3) limited vertical articulation between elementary, middle and high school standards. He proposed a schoolwide focus on reading and writing across the curriculum and increased teacher collaboration around four essential questions to align teaching and intervention practice.
Trustees and staff asked about anomalous year-to-year spikes (notably 2020-21) on some assessments; Dominguez attributed the spike to lower participation and different test conditions during the pandemic year. Board members praised the rise in AP results and discussed next steps, including comparing cohort trajectories by grade-level cohorts rather than single-year snapshots.
Dominguez closed by urging continued collaboration with district services and parental outreach to raise assessment participation and student motivation for state tests. Trustees thanked him for the presentation and noted the value of comparing cohort trajectories and strengthening vertical alignment.