About SchoolScope

Who makes SchoolScope, and where its numbers come from

Bri Stanback, a data scientist and parent, builds SchoolScope from 34 public datasets.

Read our methodology Explore schools

34

public datasets27 cover California only. 7 are national.

What you can check on every profile

Where each number comes fromEach figure names its public source and its year.
How the score is builtEvery weight is on the methodology page.
What sits beside the scoreWho attends, spending and gaps between student groups are shown, and never counted in the Scope Score.

Our principles

What rules does SchoolScope hold to?

  1. Can a school pay for a better score?No. No one can pay to change a school’s score, its rank or its place on a list. There are no sponsored profiles or premium listings.
  2. Which schools get no score?Students are placed at court, community, special-education and home-and-hospital schools, so these schools get no score, band, pattern or rank; we publish their records. Continuation and alternative schools are compared only with schools like them.
  3. What about schools where few students tested?Before scoring, their results are pulled toward the average California school at their level. One small class then changes a score less.
  4. Where are the results behind a score?On each profile. Test results, attendance and suspensions are shown next to the percentile, so you can see which one changed it.
  5. Can I see earlier years?Yes, where several years are on file. A profile shows them next to the 2025–26 result. Each year is a different group of students.
  6. Who chose the weights?We did. The methodology page gives the reasoning for each weight, and any of them is open to question.

Data and quality

What the records show, and what a visit adds

What the records show

  • State test results in English (reading and writing) and math, by grade and student group
  • Chronic absence (students who missed 10% or more of school days) and suspension rates
  • Graduation, college readiness and college-going for high schools
  • Who attends, and the neighborhood around the school
  • Each measure across the years on file

What a visit adds

A visit shows what records can’t show. You see how your child will feel in a classroom. You meet the teachers and see the programs.

Records also can’t say why a result changed. Each year’s results come from partly different students.

Read our approach to quality

How we approach equity

Each profile shows who attends a school, family income and the neighborhood. None of these is counted in the Scope Score. Test results can still reflect who enrolls and what resources students have. Leaving these facts out of the formula does not remove that link.

We show results for student groups and resource differences where public data is available. Read why we show diversity but don’t score it

Sources

Which public datasets the numbers come from

27

datasets cover California only

7

datasets are national
Public records

The California Department of Education’s 2025–26 files, NCES and the Census Bureau.

Published calculations

Each percentile and Scope Score follows the method on the methodology page.

School profiles

Each school’s results beside California’s, and the questions a visit should answer.

California datasets

  • CAASPP assessmentsReported academic resultsView source
  • California Department of EducationAttendance, suspensions and graduationView source
  • California School DashboardThe state’s ratings, and whether each one went up or downView source
  • Local Control and Accountability Plans (LCAP)What each district plans to spend: budget, goals and largest actionsView source
  • LAUSD School Experience SurveyWhat students, families and staff say (Los Angeles Unified only)View source
  • Charter School Database (CDE)Who authorized each charter school and when its charter term endsView source

National datasets

  • NCES Common Core of DataSchool directory and enrollmentView source
  • Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC)Advanced coursework and participationView source
  • Census American Community Survey (ACS)The neighborhood around each schoolView source

Availability and reporting periods differ by dataset.

One source is our own. Some California profiles show what staff at that school said about working there. Each staff member confirmed a work email at the school’s district. Staff answers appear only once at least 5 have answered. They are never part of the Scope Score, and they never name or rate a teacher. How staff answers work

View the full source directory

Nationwide sources

  • NCES Common Core of Data (CCD)U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education StatisticsSchool directory, enrollment counts, teacher counts, student demographics for every public school in the U.S.View source
  • NCES Private School Survey (PSS)U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education StatisticsPrivate school profiles including enrollment, student-teacher ratio, religious affiliation, and grades offered. Published biennially.View source
  • NCES School Attendance Boundary Survey (SABS)U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education StatisticsSchool attendance zone boundaries used to compute feeder school relationships (which elementary feeds into which middle and high school). Where a district publishes its own current boundaries, those replace it.View source
  • NCES F-33 Local Education Agency Finance SurveyU.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education StatisticsDistrict-level per-pupil expenditure, revenue sources, and financial data.View source
  • American Community Survey (ACS) 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census BureauCommunity context data including median household income, home values, and educational attainment for the areas surrounding schools.View source
  • Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC)U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil RightsStructural advanced-coursework depth: AP course counts, AP/IB/dual-enrollment participation with demographic breakdowns. 2023-24 collection (with earlier collections retained) — shown as dated context, never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap contributorsThe buildings, fields and courts in each school’s campus drawing, and the school’s mapped boundary where volunteers have drawn one. Also the roads and the coastline on the city and district maps. A picture of the campus, not an attendance boundary or a rating.View source

California sources

  • SACS Current Expense of EducationCalifornia Department of Education, School Fiscal ServicesDistrict-level current expense of education per student, published annually from districts’ SACS unaudited actuals filings. Shown as context — never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessments (English and math)California Department of Education / Educational Testing ServiceCore Scope Score input. Four achievement levels for grades 3–8 and 11, from spring 2026 named Advanced, Proficient, the Developing level (formerly Nearly met) and Minimal.View source
  • CAASPP CAST Science TestCalifornia Department of Education / Educational Testing ServiceSupplemental science performance data for grades 5, 8, and high school.View source
  • Chronic Absenteeism RatesCalifornia Department of EducationSchool climate signal and Scope Score component. Percentage of students missing 10%+ of school days.View source
  • Suspension RatesCalifornia Department of EducationSchool climate signal and Scope Score component. In-school and out-of-school suspension rates.View source
  • CDE Student Growth ModelCalifornia Department of EducationMatched-student growth: how much each grade 4-8 student’s score landed above or below the score the state expected from their own prior-year scores, averaged to the school level. Shown on profiles as a second opinion — never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • CDE Public Schools DirectoryCalifornia Department of EducationSchool contact information, principal names, website URLs, phone numbers, and physical addresses.View source
  • CDE Form J-90 Salary/Benefits ScheduleCalifornia Department of EducationDistrict-level teacher and principal salary ranges.View source
  • ACGR Graduation RatesCalifornia Department of EducationFour-year adjusted cohort graduation rates for high schools.View source
  • CCI College/Career IndicatorCalifornia Department of EducationCollege and career readiness metrics used in high school Scope Scores.View source
  • CGR College-Going RatesCalifornia Department of EducationPercentage of graduates enrolling in post-secondary education within 12 months.View source
  • Dashboard Change Indicators (English and math)California Department of EducationYear-over-year performance trend data from the California School Dashboard.View source
  • ELPAC English Learner ProficiencyCalifornia Department of Education / Educational Testing ServiceEnglish Language Proficiency assessment results for English Learner students.View source
  • Census Day EnrollmentCalifornia Department of EducationAnnual enrollment counts and demographic breakdown by race/ethnicity and grade.View source
  • CCLD Licensed Child Care FacilitiesCalifornia Community Care Licensing Division (CHHS)Preschool and child care center licensing data including capacity, type, and location.View source
  • CDSS Child Care Licensing Enforcement RecordsCalifornia Department of Social Services, Community Care LicensingState inspection visits, citations, and complaint records for licensed preschools and child care centers — the state’s own enforcement record, shown with a link to the full report.View source
  • CDE ESSA School-Level Per-Pupil ExpenditureCalifornia Department of EducationIndividual school spending data as reported under federal ESSA requirements.View source
  • UC Admissions by Source SchoolUniversity of California, Office of the President (UC Infocenter)Freshman applicants, admits, and enrollees per UC campus per California high school, back to 1994. Shown as where-graduates-go context — never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • CSU High School SuccessCalifornia State University, Office of the ChancellorFirst-time freshman applicants, admits, and enrollees per California high school, by year and by CSU campus. Shown beside UC as where-graduates-go context — never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • AP Course LedgerCollege Board (AP Course Audit)Which AP subjects each school is currently authorized to teach, updated each November. Authorization, not enrollment — shown as course-catalog context.View source
  • IB World Schools DirectoryInternational Baccalaureate OrganizationWhich schools offer IB programmes (PYP, MYP, DP, CP), matched to our school records by name. Shown as program context.View source
  • CDE Private School Affidavit dataCalifornia Department of EducationPrivate schools that file the state’s annual affidavit with six or more students, and their K–12 enrollment, for private schools the NCES survey doesn’t list. Only schools with at least 25 students get a profile. Private schools are never scored.View source
  • California School Campus DatabaseGreenInfo NetworkA school’s campus outline for its drawing when OpenStreetMap has no mapped boundary for it.View source
  • Los Angeles County Assessor parcelsLos Angeles County Office of the AssessorA school’s campus outline for its drawing when neither OpenStreetMap nor the California School Campus Database has a usable one: the parcel at the school’s directory address, used only when no other school is on it.View source
  • LAUSD School Experience SurveyLos Angeles Unified School DistrictWhat students, families and staff at each Los Angeles Unified school said about safety, belonging, caring adults and more, beside the same questions across LAUSD schools at that level. Matched to our school records by LAUSD’s own school codes. Shown on LAUSD profiles only, never part of the Scope Score.View source
  • School district attendance boundariesAlvord Unified, Anaheim Elementary, Anaheim Union High, Antelope Valley Union High, Cajon Valley Union, Capistrano Unified, Central Unified, Chula Vista Elementary, Clovis Unified, Coachella Valley Unified, Colton Joint Unified, Compton Unified, Corona-Norco Unified, Cupertino Union, Elk Grove Unified, Escondido Union, Escondido Union High, Fontana Unified, Fremont Union High, Fresno Unified, Fullerton Elementary, Fullerton Joint Union High, Garden Grove Unified, Hayward Unified, Hemet Unified, Irvine Unified, Jurupa Unified, Kern High, Kings Canyon Joint Unified, Lake Elsinore Unified, Lancaster Elementary, Long Beach Unified, Los Angeles Unified, Madera Unified, Manteca Unified, Marysville Joint Unified, Montebello Unified, Moreno Valley Unified, Mt. Diablo Unified, Napa Valley Unified, National Elementary, Norwalk-La Mirada Unified, Oakland Unified, Oceanside Unified, Orange Unified, Pajaro Valley Unified, Pomona Unified, Redlands Unified, Rialto Unified, Rowland Unified, Sacramento City Unified, Saddleback Valley Unified, San Bernardino City Unified, San Diego Unified, San Francisco Unified, San Juan Unified, San Mateo Union High, San Mateo-Foster City, San Ramon Valley Unified, Santa Ana Unified, Santa Barbara Unified, Santa Clara Unified, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified, Sweetwater Union High, Temecula Valley Unified, Torrance Unified, Tustin Unified, Twin Rivers Unified, Ventura Unified, Vista Unified and West Contra Costa Unified school districtsEach district’s own published attendance boundaries, or its feeder list where it has no boundaries, used for the school path on its profiles: which middle and high schools each zone is assigned to, where families instead choose by application, and which middle schools an elementary school gives a lottery preference for. Each district’s source is linked on our methodology page.View source
  • 2020 Census Redistricting Data (P.L. 94-171), census blocksU.S. Census BureauChildren under 18 by census block, used to weight each district-published school-path share by where children live rather than by land area. Block counts carry the Census Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance noise, so they are only summed over whole zones.View source

Who’s behind it

Bri Stanback builds SchoolScope

Bri Stanback, founder of SchoolScope
I built SchoolScope because I needed it.

I started in spring 2026, as my daughter neared kindergarten and we began looking at schools. I wanted to understand what drove a score, and what it missed.

Bri StanbackData scientist, parent and founder of SchoolScope

Contact Bri See Bri on LinkedIn (opens in a new tab)

Coverage

SchoolScope covers California schools

California

Public, charter and private schools across the state

California’s state tests (CAASPP) results are from 2025–26. Other sources are updated on their own schedules.

Did you find a mistake?

Tell us about a number that looks wrong, a missing school or a question the site doesn’t answer.

Contact SchoolScope

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