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La Canada High

Grades 7-122024–25 data
La Canada UnifiedLa Canada, Los Angeles County91011
📍 4463 Oak Grove Drive📞 (818) 952-4205🌐 Website
Strong
93/100
Strong — 99th percentile statewide
#10 of 1,739 CA high schools
↓ 2.5 pts since 2019
⭐ High Ceiling

A high-ceiling school — students here are pushed to exceed, not just meet, the standard. Strong outcomes backed by above-average district investment

School Climate
92% of students attend consistently
Chronic absenteeism: 7.5% (state avg: 32.1%)
"Attend consistently" means missing ≤10% of school days (the chronic absenteeism threshold).
Moderate suspension rate
2.3% suspension rate (state avg: 4.0%)
Share of students who received at least one suspension during the year.
Source: California Dept. of Education, 2024–25See breakdown by student group →

What the numbers actually mean

Most rating sites report "87% proficient" and stop there. We think that number deserves more context — here's what we found when we looked deeper:

64.4% of students exceeded standard? Level 4 on California's CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment — the state defines four levels: Not Met, Nearly Met, Met, and Exceeded. while 22.8% met it. That exceeded rate is 48.9 points above the state average of 15.5%. That's near the La Canada Unified district average of 62.6%. The gap between "met" and "exceeded" can reveal how much a school's curriculum challenges students beyond proficiency.

CDE CAASPP 2025
La Canada High
64%
23%
California average
15%
19%
ExceededMet onlyBelow

The graduation rate is 98.9% — above the state target. 91.8% of students complete A-G requirements ? A-G refers to 15 courses across 7 subject areas (History, English, Math, Science, Language, Visual/Performing Arts, and College Prep Electives) required for UC and CSU admission eligibility. for UC/CSU eligibility. 91.9% of graduates go on to college within a year.

Chronic absenteeism? Missing 10%+ of enrolled school days. This is an official California Dashboard accountability indicator. is 7.5%, better than the state average of 32.1%.

CDE Attendance 2025

Data you won't find on other sites: School-level per-pupil spending (not just district averages) · Current-year 2025 data direct from CDE · The exceeded vs. met split that most rating sites collapse into one number

Why the exceeded vs. met split matters → · Scope Score is SchoolScope's analysis of CDE data — not an official CDE rating. How we built this score (and what it misses) →

No single score captures a school. This is a starting point — visit, ask questions, trust your instincts.

▸ What this score doesn't capture
  • — Teaching quality, classroom culture, and how teachers connect with students
  • — Arts, athletics, extracurriculars, and enrichment programs
  • — How well the school serves students with IEPs or gifted learners
  • — Parent community engagement and satisfaction
  • — Whether the curriculum aligns with your family's values
  • — Growth data unavailable for this school — the score overweights proficiency, which tends to correlate with household income

Most of our data is updated once per year and may reflect the prior school year.

Before you visit
Questions worth asking and signals worth checking
Who this school is great for
✓Students already performing at or above grade level — 64% of students here push past the standard
✓Families where consistent attendance and school culture matter — absenteeism is well below state average
△Worth checking: Families wanting small-class-size environments — this is a larger school
These reflect data patterns, not guarantees. Your child's experience will depend on their teacher, grade, and classroom — things no score captures.
Score Factors
Academic Performance
✓Graduation rate: 98.9%
11.3pp above state avg (state avg 87.6%)
25% weight

Graduation rate is the most fundamental high school outcome measure.

Limitation: Adjusted cohort method may not capture students who transfer or complete via alternative paths.

CDE Graduation 2025
✓Exceeded standard: 64.4%
48.9pp above state avg (state avg 15.5%)
22% weight

Exceeded rate gets the highest weight because it separates schools that clear the bar from those that raise it.

Limitation: Reflects tested students only — opt-out rates are not published by CDE.

CDE CAASPP 2025
✓College readiness: 86.1%
AP exam pass rate above state avg (state avg 35.5%)
20% weight

College readiness shows how well a school prepares students for post-secondary success.

Limitation: Uses AP pass rate or A-G completion as proxy — doesn’t capture trade or vocational readiness.

CDE College/Career 2025
✓Met or exceeded: 87.2%
52.5pp above state avg (state avg 34.6%)
18% weight

Overall proficiency provides the broadest measure of academic achievement.

Limitation: Combines ‘met’ and ‘exceeded’ — the gap between them matters more than either alone.

CDE CAASPP 2025
School Climate
✓Chronic absenteeism: 7.5%
24.6pp below state avg (state avg 32.1%)
5% weight

Absenteeism reflects school culture and family engagement — an official CA Dashboard accountability indicator.

Limitation: 10% threshold is the same for all schools regardless of demographics or geography.

CDE Attendance 2025
✓Suspension rate: 2.3%
1.7pp below state avg (state avg 4.0%)
5% weight

Low suspension rates correlate with positive school culture and restorative practices.

Limitation: Schools may differ in reporting practices — some underreport to improve metrics.

CDE Discipline 2025
✓EL proficiency (ELPAC): 41.7%
24.9pp above state avg (state avg 16.8%)
5% weight

ELPAC Level 4 measures how well a school develops English proficiency — a school-quality signal for its EL population.

Limitation: Only available for schools with English Learner students. Weight redistributes to other dimensions when not applicable.

CDE ELPAC 2025
We make judgment calls about what matters. We believe exceeded scores reveal more than proficiency alone, and that growth matters more than raw test results. Reasonable people could weight these differently — and that's fine. The factors above show exactly what we weighted and why, so you can decide where you agree and where you'd adjust. The high school Scope Score uses 7 dimensions. How we built this score (and what it misses) →

The Scope Score emphasizes academic performance. It weights test proficiency, the exceeded-vs-met gap, and growth trajectory most heavily. If your family prioritizes arts, athletics, school culture, or teaching philosophy, this score captures some of that indirectly (through absenteeism and suspension) but not all of it. Different families should weight these dimensions differently — the score factors above let you see exactly what drives this number.

How to use this
  • –Use for long-term academic patterns, not this week's classroom experience
  • –Verify with a recent visit — scores can't capture a school mid-transformation
  • –Combine with local context — talk to parents, attend a school board meeting, trust your gut
Community Profile
Context — not part of the Scope Score

Student demographics

Hispanic13.2%
White44.0%
Asian29.2%
Black0.5%
Other13.0%
GenderFemale 47.6%Male 52.3%Non-binary 0.1%
Resources & Access
Enrollment
2,026
576 above CA avg (~1,450)
Free/Reduced Lunch
6%
58pp below CA avg (64%)
Student-Teacher Ratio
24:1
3 more students per teacher than CA avg
Per-Pupil Spending
$17,326
District avg: $12,648 · CA avg: $14,815 · School-level · CDE ESSA
EL Proficiency (ELPAC)
41.7% Level 4
Share of English Learners reaching full proficiency
Teacher Salary Range
$62,598 – $126,899
District schedule · CA median ~$98K
At La Canada High in La Canada, 82.4% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 73.6% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. La Canada High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 8.8 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (65.4% Math proficient); White students (88.3% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 47.5 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 51 students tested.
Equity Gaps
Absenteeism · Disabilities+8.9pp
16.4% vs 7.5% overall · n=152
Suspension · English Learner+13.5pp
15.8% vs 2.3% overall · n=19
ELA · Disabilities−47.5pp
43.8% vs 91.3% overall · n=46
3 more gaps by subject
ELA Exceeded · Disabilities−44.7pp
15.3% vs 60.1% overall · n=46
Math · Disabilities−41.9pp
41.3% vs 83.2% overall · n=46
Math Exceeded · Disabilities−39.5pp
24.2% vs 63.8% overall · n=46

Subgroups with fewer than 15 students are excluded for privacy. Gaps of less than 3 percentage points are not shown.

Subgroup Proficiency
Low-Income52 tested
ELA 82.4%·Math 65.4%· +8.8pp vs district
White420 tested
ELA 88.3%·Math 79.3%· +2.4pp vs district
Asian302 tested
ELA 96.0%·Math 92.1%· +2.3pp vs district

Weighted average across tested grades. Subgroups with fewer than 15 students excluded. Data: CDE CAASPP 2024-25.

Funding Breakdown
Instruction 60%Support 38%Other 1%

Source: NCES F-33 (2019–2020) · Full district breakdown →

Neighborhood Context
Median Income
$211K
$126K above CA median
Median Home Value
$1.98M
$1.32M above CA median
Bachelor's+
74%
39pp above CA avg
Whole Child
Teacher experience, college/career readiness, and more. Context only — never part of the Scope Score.
Teacher Experience
15.6 years avg experience
95 teachers · 1% first-year · 3% second-year
Teacher Credentials
85% fully credentialed
0.6% on intern/emergency permit
AP Courses Offered
57 AP courses
285 students qualified via AP exam

Sources: CDE SARC · CDE College/Career Indicator, 2024-25

Community Profile provides context about who attends this school and the resources available. These factors are never part of the Scope Score. Learn why →

5-year trend

9593'19'22'23'24'25
↓ 2.5 points since 2019
Rank: #7 → #9 → #9 → #10 → #10Exceeded: 63% → 64% → 65% → 64% → 64%
2019 · 2022 · 2023 · 2024 · 2025 · No testing 2020–21 (COVID) · Scope Score based on CAASPP, absenteeism & suspension data

College & career readiness

Graduation Rate
98.9%
AP Exam Prepared
86.1%
A-G Completion? A-G refers to 15 courses across 7 subject areas (History, English, Math, Science, Language, Visual/Performing Arts, and College Prep Electives) required for UC and CSU admission eligibility.
91.8%
A-G are the 15 courses (across 7 subjects) required for UC/CSU eligibility
College-Going Rate
91.9%

Data source: California Department of Education — ACGR, CCI, CGR reports

How La Canada High compares

La Canada High vs. California averages — 2025 CAASPP data
MetricThis schoolCA avg
Exceeded Standard64.4%15.5%
Met or Exceeded87.2%34.6%
Chronic Absenteeism7.5%32.1%
Suspension Rate2.3%4.0%

Source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025 · Analyzed by SchoolScope

ELA scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
7th30255.0%35.1%7.0%3.0%90.1%
8th33454.8%35.3%6.9%3.0%90.1%
11th32770.3%23.2%4.6%1.8%93.6%

Math scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
7th30366.7%18.8%10.9%3.6%85.5%
8th33566.3%17.0%10.4%6.3%83.3%
11th32758.4%22.3%11.6%7.7%80.7%

Science scores by grade

GradeTestedExceededMetNearly MetNot MetMet+Above
11th68445.8%30.0%23.3%1.0%75.7%

684 students tested · CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually like ELA/Math. Not included in the Scope Score. · Data source: CDE CAST 2025

K-12 Feeder Path
▼
High School
La Canada High
93/100
This school

Feeder patterns derived from NCES attendance boundary data. Boundaries are approximate and may have changed — verify with your school district for current assignments.

Schools nearby

Private alternatives nearby

Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.

Polytechnic School
E California Blvd · Nonsectarian · Grades Pre-K-12 · 871 students
7:1Private4.6 mi
Westridge School for Girls
Madeline Dr · Nonsectarian · Grades 4-12 · 539 students
8:1Private4.4 mi
Sequoyah School (high School Campus)
N Orange · Nonsectarian · Grades Pre-K-12 · 394 students
9:1Private2.7 mi
Sequoyah
S Pasadena Ave · Nonsectarian · Grades Pre-K-12 · 387 students
9:1Private3.8 mi
The Waverly School
W Bellevue Dr · Nonsectarian · Grades Pre-K-12 · 321 students
8:1Private3.7 mi

Frequently asked questions

Is La Canada High a good high school?
La Canada High has a Scope Score of 93 out of 100, placing it in the 99th percentile of California high schools and ranked #10 statewide. 64.4% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 48.9 percentage points above the California average of 15.5%. The Scope Score weights five dimensions: the exceeded-vs-met split (45%), proficiency (25%), grade-level growth (15%), chronic absenteeism (10%), and suspension rate (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.
What are La Canada High's CAASPP test scores?
On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 87.2% of students at La Canada High met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 64.4% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 22.8% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 64.4% pushed past it. Most rating sites report only the combined "proficient" number. SchoolScope surfaces the exceeded-vs-met split because it reveals whether a school's curriculum challenges students beyond minimum proficiency or paces toward it. 654 student-subject combinations were assessed.
How does La Canada High rank in California?
La Canada High ranks #10 among California high schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 99th percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), chronic absenteeism, and suspension rate. Unlike single-number ratings, the Scope Score shows what drives the ranking so parents can decide what matters most to their family. See full methodology.
What is the attendance and school culture like at La Canada High?
7.5% of students at La Canada High are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), which is better than the California average of 32.1%. The suspension rate is 2.3%. SchoolScope includes these culture metrics in the Scope Score because they reflect day-to-day school experience in ways test scores alone cannot.
How does La Canada High compare to other schools in La Canada?
La Canada High scores 93/100 (99th percentile) among California high schools. To compare with nearby schools, SchoolScope shows the same metrics side by side: exceeded rate, proficiency, growth trajectory, and school culture indicators. The school serves 2,026 students. Use the schools in La Canada page or the map view to compare all high schools nearby.
How does La Canada High serve low-income and underrepresented students?
At La Canada High in La Canada, 82.4% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 73.6% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. La Canada High outperforms its district average for low-income students by 8.8 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (65.4% Math proficient); White students (88.3% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 47.5 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 51 students tested. SchoolScope shows disaggregated test scores by demographic subgroup so you can see how a school performs for your child's specific group — not just the school-wide average. Subgroup data is context, not part of the Scope Score: we don't penalize schools for who they serve. See our equity approach.
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Data source: California Department of Education (2025 test year) · How we score · Explore all schools · Blog