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Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet · Los Angeles

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet: No single number tells this school's story. Here's the honest picture.

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet posts 36% meeting the standard and 9.2% exceeding it, against 39% and 16.8% statewide. The gaps and the bright spots below are the real read.

2050 San Fernando Road, 90065 (opens in new tab)·Los Angeles Unified·Los Angeles·Grades 6-12·517 students·95% low-income·Magnet·2024–25 CAASPP·(323) 276-5402·Website
Magnet program — specialized public school with themed curriculum. Enrollment via district lottery, not neighborhood-based.
Alternative school — serves students who benefit from a non-traditional educational setting. Scores are not directly comparable to comprehensive schools.
2022–2025 trend · CDE CAASPP
This schoolCA avg
Scope3943
% Exceeded9%17%
% Met+36%39%
Growth-3.1+1.5
Absence23.8%18.5%
Suspension0.6%3.7%
Scope Score
39
🌱 Building Momentum · Developing
ranked #1,223 statewide · #132 of 226 in Los Angeles Unified

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet scores 39 of 100 on SchoolScope's Scope Score — the 45th percentile of 2,238 California middle schools (CDE CAASPP 2025).

Measures test performance, attendance, and climate — not arts, community, or your kid. How we score →

🌱 Building Momentum — This label means the data doesn't clearly sort the school one way or the other — ask what the school is proud of, and what it's working on.

Most rating sites would stop at “36% proficient” and call it done. Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet deserves a closer read. The school sits in Los Angeles, where nearly all students qualify for free or reduced lunch — and reading the numbers without that context misreads the school.

The headline number: 40.6% of English learners reached the top ELPAC level, versus 18.0% statewide.

The seven-year arc

Percentile among 2,238 middle schools statewide

Climbed from the 28th to the 45th percentile since 2022 — past roughly 300 middle schools.

CA Dashboard
ELABlue(Increased Significantly)MathBlue(Increased Significantly)
ELA — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 612%32%32%41%
Grade 745%27%52%40%
Grade 835%36%24%46%
Grade 1151%31%65%56%59%
Math — % met or exceeded, by grade
Grade20192022202320242025
Grade 619%24%21%33%
Grade 716%14%21%32%
Grade 813%8%7%22%
Grade 1111%3%20%17%29%

The story this school is actually telling

The school, grade by grade

ELA · CAASPP 2024–25

Different students, same year — each bar is one grade's proficiency mix.

14%
27%
59%
Grade 6 · 41% proficient
10%
29%
61%
Grade 7 · 39% proficient
40%
54%
Grade 8 · 46% proficient

The honest read: the share exceeding falls 7.6pp across grades; the floor rises 5.0pp. The state average falls 0.5pp over the same span. A school visit and conversation with teachers will tell you more than this number.

The 6 things our score weighs

Exceeded standard
9.2%
State 16.8%
7.6pp below state avg
Growth (G6→G8)
-3.1pp
State +1.5pp
Scores decline across grades
Met or exceeded
35.6%
State 39.3%
3.7pp below state avg
Chronic absenteeism
23.8%
State 18.5%
5.3pp above state avg
Suspension rate
0.6%
State 3.7%
3.0pp below state avg
EL proficiency (ELPAC)
40.6%
State 18.0%
22.7pp above state avg
Worth a school visit

Ask what the school is working on next. Strong numbers tell you where a school is, not where it's going.

  • Ask how the school follows up when a student starts missing days — chronic absence often starts outside the classroom, not inside it.
  • Ask what changes between grade 6 and grade 8 here, and who teaches the older kids.
  • Ask whether the tour can step into a working classroom — watch how the teacher handles a student who's stuck.
  • Ask to tour while school's in session, and notice how hallways and transitions feel — culture shows up between classes, not just in them.
  • Ask how the school communicates with families when a child starts to struggle.
  • Ask what a typical day looks like for a new student in the first few weeks.

How every group of students does here

At Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet in Los Angeles, 47.2% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 40.9% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet outperforms its district average for low-income students by 6.3 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (28.6% Math proficient); Hispanic students (46.8% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 20.0 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 254 students tested.

All students at this school: 38% met or exceeded
All StudentsAll Students: this school 38%, district —, state 39%38%
Socioeconomically DisadvantagedSocioeconomically Disadvantaged: this school 38%, district 36%, state 32%38% · −0 vs school
Hispanic/LatinoHispanic/Latino: this school 37%, district 36%, state 32%37% · −1 vs school
FemaleFemale: this school 39%, district 42%, state 44%39% · +1 vs school
MaleMale: this school 37%, district 41%, state 42%37% · −1 vs school
Students with DisabilitiesStudents with Disabilities: this school 14%, district 14%, state 15%14% · −24 vs school
English LearnersEnglish Learners: this school 5%, district 9%, state 11%5% · −34 vs school

7 of 14 student groups here are too small to report — a privacy protection, not a gap.

this school district, same group California, same group
Subgroup growth by grade

Change in proficiency from the lowest tested grade — which groups gain ground the longer they stay. Groups with fewer than 10 tested students per grade are not shown.

Low-income student ELA proficiency rises by 5.9pp from grade 6 to grade 8 at this school. District average: -0.3pp.

Showing up, and staying in class

Chronic absenteeismChronic absenteeism: this school 23.8%, district 24.5%, state 18.5%23.8% · +5.3pp vs state
Suspension rateSuspension rate: this school 0.6%, district —, state 3.7%0.6% · −3.0pp vs state

Grades 4–6 students miss school at roughly one and a half times the rate of Grades 7–8 students (28.8% vs 18.8%). Chronic absence here concentrates in the upper grades.

Chronic absenteeism by grade band
Grades 4–628.8%
Grades 7–818.8%
Grades 9–1225.7%

Where the path goes

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet serves grades 6-12 — students can complete middle and high school here, without a separate middle-to-high transition.

The people teaching here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Student : teacherStudent to teacher ratio: this school 16:1, district 20:116:1
Teaching staff32 teachers
Avg. experience9.9 years
Fully credentialed67%
First-year teachers6%
Intern / emergency permit6.1%
Salary Schedule
Teacher salary schedule$60,420 – $122,706
Principal salary$154,576 – $170,030
Superintendent salary$440,000

Pay is set by the district, not the school.

What gets spent here

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Per-pupil spendingPer-pupil spending: $28,570, CA average $14,491$28,570 · spent at this school
Federal share$3,146 per student

$3,146 per student arrives as federal Title funding — a measure of concentrated need, not school quality.

District current expense · FY 2024–25$29,292 per student

The district's current expense of education per student, from CDE's annual SACS filing — the freshest district spending figure the state publishes.

Where the district's dollars go · FY 2024–25 · CDE SACS
Instruction52%
Instruction support16%
Student services12%
Administration7%
Buildings & maintenance10%
Other2%

District-level, from the district's own SACS general-ledger filing — school-by-school breakdowns aren't published by the state.

district detail, 2016–2020 — the newest published
2020$18,180 per pupil
2019$16,355 per pupil
2018$15,793 per pupil
2017$13,247 per pupil
2016$13,549 per pupil

Source: NCES F-33 · Full district breakdown →

The neighborhood it serves

Context — never part of the Scope Score
Hispanic91.9%
District 73.2% · CA 56.1%
White2.7%
District 9.9% · CA 19.9%
Other2.3%
District 6.3% · CA 9.0%
Asian1.7%
District 3.4% · CA 10.2%
Black1.4%
District 7.2% · CA 4.8%
Low IncomeFree/reduced lunch eligible 95.4% (32pp above CA avg)
Neighborhood — American Community Survey
Median income$95K · CA $85K
Median home value$1.09M · CA $659K
Bachelor's degree+42% · CA 35%
ZIP population44,658
Median age40 years

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024) · ZIP-level

Worth Knowing

On the state's science test (CAST), 22% met or exceeded the standard — science is tested in grades 5 and 8 but never enters the Scope Score.

Frequently asked questions

Is Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet a good middle school?

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet has a Scope Score of 39 out of 100, placing it in the 45th percentile of California middle schools and ranked #1,223 statewide. 9.2% of students exceeded the state standard on the 2025 CAASPP assessment, which is 7.6 percentage points below the California average of 16.8%. The Scope Score weights 6 dimensions for middle schools: exceeded standard (38%), grade 6-to-8 growth (27%), met or exceeded (proficient) (20%), chronic absenteeism (5%), suspension rate (5%), and ELPAC English Learner proficiency (5%). Data source: California Department of Education CAASPP 2025, analyzed by SchoolScope.

What are Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet's CAASPP test scores?

On the 2025 CAASPP Smarter Balanced Assessment, 35.6% of students at Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet met or exceeded the state standard in ELA and Math combined, and 9.2% exceeded it. The gap between those numbers matters: 26.4% of students are at the proficiency floor, while 9.2% 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. 369 student-subject combinations were assessed.

How does Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet rank in California?

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet ranks #1,223 among California middle schools by Scope Score, placing it in the 45th percentile. This ranking is based on a weighted composite of 2025 CAASPP test performance (exceeded and met rates), grade-level growth (Grade 6 to grade 8 growth), 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.

Is Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet getting better or worse?

Based on 2025 CAASPP data, proficiency at Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet decreases by 3.1 percentage points from Grade 6 to grade 8 growth. This downward pattern doesn't necessarily mean the school is failing — it can reflect cohort differences, demographic shifts, or curriculum changes. A campus visit and conversation with teachers can reveal what the numbers can't. Growth trajectory is weighted at 15% in the middle Scope Score because it measures what the school does, not just who walks in the door.

What is the attendance and school culture like at Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet?

23.8% of students at Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet are chronically absent (missing 10% or more of school days), compared to the California average of 18.5%. The suspension rate is 0.6%, indicating a low-discipline-incident environment. 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 Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet compare to other schools in Los Angeles?

Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet scores 39/100 (45th percentile) among California middle 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 517 students. Use the schools in Los Angeles page or the map view to compare all middle schools nearby.

How does Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet serve low-income and underrepresented students?

At Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet in Los Angeles, 47.2% of low-income students met or exceeded the ELA standard in 2025, compared to 40.9% district-wide and 38.2% statewide. Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet outperforms its district average for low-income students by 6.3 percentage points in ELA. Other subgroups: Low-Income students (28.6% Math proficient); Hispanic students (46.8% ELA proficient). The largest proficiency gap is 20.0 percentage points for disabilities students. Data source: California Department of Education, CAASPP 2024-25. 254 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.

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.


For the data nerds

Every number on this page

Score factors, grade-level breakdowns, subgroup proficiency, and peer comparisons.

01Score factorsWeighted composite · 2024–25
Exceeded standard · 38%
9.2%
↓ vs CA 16.8% · 42th pctile
Growth (G6→G8) · 27%
-3.1pp
↓ vs CA +1.5pp · 48th pctile
Met or exceeded · 20%
35.6%
↓ vs CA 39.3% · 47th pctile
Chronic absenteeism · 5%
23.8%
↓ vs CA 18.5% · 43th pctile
▲ 0.6pp higher vs 2024
Suspension rate · 5%
0.6%
↑ vs CA 3.7% · 62th pctile
▼ 0.9pp lower vs 2024
EL proficiency (ELPAC) · 5%
40.6%
↑ vs CA 18.0% · 75th pctile
02By grade & subgroupCAASPP 2024–25 · % of tested students
ELATestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 65114%27%29%29%41%−5
Grade 76810%29%24%37%40%−8
Grade 8656%40%34%20%46%+0
Grade 118527%32%29%12%59%+12
MathTestedEXCMETNEARNOTMET++/CA
Grade 65212%21%15%52%33%−2
Grade 7687%25%24%44%32%−2
Grade 8656%15%26%52%22%−11
Grade 11857%22%21%49%29%+6
Science (CAST)TestedEXCMETNEARNOT
Grade 5/8/111504%18%69%9%

CAST is tested in grades 5, 8, and once in high school — not annually. Not part of the Scope Score.

Subgroup · ELATestedMET+vs districtvs CA
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged25447.2%+6+9
Hispanic/Latino24846.8%+6+8
Students with Disabilities4020.0%+4+3
03Peer comparison · nearest middle schoolssorted by Scope Score
SchoolDistScopeEXCMET+GrowthSusp
Sotomayor Arts and Sciences Magnet ←399.2%35.6%−3.10.6%
George K. Porter Middle2.5 mi5931.1%54.8%−3.00.7%
Olive Vista Middle1.5 mi4315.0%34.2%+3.50.4%
PUC Nueva Esperanza Charter Academy0.7 mi328.2%32.5%−5.40.4%
California average4316.8%39.3%+1.53.7%
04More measurescontext · not all part of the Scope Score
YearScopePctileRankExcMet+AbsentSuspGrowth
20222928#15524.1%23.3%42.8%0.3%+8.3pp
20233020#17365.5%23.5%30.5%0.1%-5.8pp
20242724#16788.3%26.2%23.2%1.5%-10.9pp
20253945#12239.2%35.6%23.8%0.6%-3.1pp
What we can't show
  • — Scored here as a middle school — other grade spans appear in the data appendix.
05Climate by student groupchronic absenteeism · 2019 vs 2025 — the two years CDE publishes at subgroup level
Group20192025Δ
Female31.1%26.5%-4.6pp
Male32.9%21.4%-11.5pp
Asian0.0%
White28.6%
Hispanic/Latino32.3%25.1%-7.2pp
Students with Disabilities37.8%26.4%-11.4pp
English Learners38.4%17.9%-20.5pp
Socioeconomically Disadvantaged32.4%24.7%-7.7pp
All Students32.0%24.2%-7.8pp
Homeless52.6%
EXC = exceeded standard · MET+ = met or exceeded ("proficient") · Source: CA Dept. of Education · CAASPP 2024–25 · n=2,238 middle schools · Vintages: climate subgroups 2019+2025 · district finance per its label · ACS 2022 · Data updated 2026-07-03methodology · data updates · CSV · report issue

SchoolScope scores and verdicts are our interpretation of public California Department of Education data — independent analysis, not an official rating. How we analyze · Request a correction