Little known California public school district ranked in top 10 in America — and another comes 12th

Two California public school districts are among the best in country, ranking in the top-12 nationwide.

La Canada Unified School District ranked 7th and Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District ranked 12th on a Niche list of the “Best School Districts in America.”

The two are the only California-based districts in the top 15 and among five in the state in the top 25.

The top-ranked California district, La Canada Unified School District, is a few miles north of Pasadena in Southern California. It is a K-12 district instructing approximately 4,000 students at all levels.

They characterize themself as a “high achieving K-12 district characterized as forward-looking, involved and supportive,” which has 98% of their high school students enroll in post-secondary education.

California students enroll in college at a 65.7% rate, according to 2022-23 data.

LCUSD’s alumni include anti-human trafficking activist Timothy Ballard, musician Trace Cyrus, and comedian Chris D’Elia. Parents heaped praise onto the district.

“My kids both went through the La Canada school system and I think it’s the best public school system I’ve ever seen,” a 2022 Niche review says. “Great teachers, lots of parental involvement, and highly motivated students.”

The other district, Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District, is located near San Jose in the Bay Area.

The district prides itself on its Silicon Valley ties, saying it “reflects the diversity, ambitions and spirit of innovation of the Silicon Valley.”

It instructs 4,539 students, and the district notes it “consistently ranked in the top 1% of high schools nationally.” Like LCUSD, the school says that 98% of its graduates go to post-secondary schools.

One Niche review praised the school’s resources but slammed the pressure on students.

“Los Altos High School has extremely good resources, but it is a very high stress environment. There is a lot of emphasis placed on academic success, and despite efforts to create mental health resources for students, student mental health is a large concern,” it said.

Alumni of the district include Major League Baseball umpire Ted Barrett, former Solicitor General Theodore Olson, and former Major League Baseball pitcher Erik Johnson.

Three other districts, San Dieguito Union High School District, Palo Alto Unified School District, and Los Gatos-Saratoga Joint Union High School District, round out California’s presence in the top 25. The top-ranked district in the country is Glenbrook High School District 225 in Glenview, Illinois.

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