International School for Science and Culture: High scores, healthy climate, strong attendance. We looked for a catch — we didn't find one.
International School for Science and Culture posts 62.5% exceeding the standard — versus 21.3% statewide — with climate numbers better than most. That doesn't make it perfect. It makes it worth a visit to find what numbers can't measure.
International School for Science and Culture scores 86 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 99th percentile of 5,744 California elementary schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).
Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →
Most rating sites would stop at “80% proficient” and call it done. International School for Science and Culture deserves a closer read. The school sits in Costa Mesa, where two in five students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.
The headline number: 62.5% of students scored in the top band on the state test. The California average is 21.3%.
As a charter, International School for Science and Culture enrolls by application, not address — the score reads the same, the enrollment path doesn't.
The 4 things our score weighs
Ask what the school is working on next. Strong numbers tell you where a school is, not where it's going.
Where the path goes
The path below follows attendance boundaries — scores shown for each next step.
Estimated K-12 path based on district and proximity. Actual attendance zones may differ. Contact your school district for official feeder information.
Your other options
Private alternatives nearby
Private schools within ~10 miles. These schools do not participate in state testing and cannot be scored or ranked.
The community around it
Student demographics
Subgroup Growth by Grade
Subgroups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.
Funding Breakdown
Neighborhood Context
Whole Child
Source: CDE SARC, 2024-25
For the data nerdsEvery number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
Every number on this page
Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.
| ELA | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 | 15 | 73% | 20% | 7% | 0% | 93% | +50 |
| Grade 4 | 12 | 100% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 100% | +55 |
| Grade 5 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 6 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 7 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 8 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Math | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT | MET+ | +/CA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 3 | 15 | 60% | 27% | 13% | 0% | 87% | +41 |
| Grade 4 | 12 | 17% | 25% | 58% | 0% | 42% | +0 |
| Grade 5 | 9 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 6 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 7 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Grade 8 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Science (CAST) | Tested | EXC | MET | NEAR | NOT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grade 5/8/11 | 14 | 36% | 29% | 29% | 7% |
CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.
| School | Dist | Scope | EXC | MET+ | Growth | Susp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| International School for Science and Culture ← | — | 86 | 62.5% | 80.4% | — | 0.6% |
| Newport Heights Elementary | 1.8 mi | 73 | 47.4% | 73.7% | +7.8 | 0.7% |
| Maude B. Davis Elementary | 2.6 mi | 72 | 49.7% | 76.4% | −17.1 | 0.3% |
| Harbor View Elementary | 3 mi | 69 | 46.6% | 78.1% | +0.0 | 0.4% |
| California average | — | 43 | 21.3% | 42.7% | −2.9 | 1.6% |
- — Growth data isn't available — the state needs matched grades across years to compute it.
- — Subgroup results are suppressed for small student counts (fewer than 15 tested), following CDE privacy rules.
- — Scored here as an elementary school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.