Lake Forest · Orange County

Schools in Lake Forest

Lake Forest’s 7 public elementary schools run from the 12th to the 94th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). They sit in three of the four bands: Strong, Solid and Needs Support.

Elementary · 7 schools

from 12th to 94th · among 5,726 California elementary schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Oxford Preparatory Academy - Saddleback Valley: 94th percentile, Strong
  • La Madera Elementary: 90th percentile, Strong
  • Rancho Cañada Elementary: 75th percentile, Strong
  • Ralph A. Gates DLI Magnet Elementary: 73rd percentile, Solid
  • Santiago STEAM Magnet Elementary: 73rd percentile, Solid
  • Lake Forest Elementary: 70th percentile, Solid
  • Olivewood Elementary: 12th percentile, Needs Support
1Needs Support
0Developing
3Solid
3Strong

One dot per school.

Middle and high school pictures

Middle · 1 school

at 79th · among 2,529 California middle schools we score · spring 2026 tests

  • Serrano Intermediate: 79th percentile, Strong
0Needs Support
0Developing
0Solid
1Strong

High · 1 school

at 69th · among 1,498 California high schools we score · spring 2025 tests

  • El Toro High: 69th percentile, Solid
0Needs Support
0Developing
1Solid
0Strong

One dot per school. Each stage is placed only among California schools at its own level.

Schools around Lake Forest

9 listed public schools with mapped locations.

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Percentile among California schools at the same level

  • Strong75th+
  • Solid50–74th
  • Developing25–49th
  • Needs Supportbelow 25th
  • Not scored

The school lists on this page are also available without the map.

Elementary schools

Which elementary schools in Lake Forest score highest?

Oxford Preparatory Academy - Saddleback Valley is highest, at the 94th percentile.

That’s higher than 94 in 100 of the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests).

Highest in Lake Forest

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level. What patterns mean

Show the other 4 elementary schools
Context

The average Lake Forest elementary school had 10 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once.

Middle schools

Where does the middle school we score in Lake Forest stand?

Serrano Intermediate is at the 79th percentile.

That’s higher than 79 in 100 of the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). It’s the only public middle school we score in Lake Forest.

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

High schools

Where does the high school we score in Lake Forest stand?

El Toro High is at the 69th percentile.

That’s higher than 69 in 100 of the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). It’s the only public high school we score in Lake Forest.

Each percentile compares a school with California schools at its own level.

  • El Toro HighSaddleback Valley Unified
    69thSolidScope Score 63

8 private schools have a Lake Forest address. They don’t take California’s state tests, so we don’t score them. See them in the private-school directory →

Which places nearby can you look at next?

School districts

More places (3)

ZIP codes

Before kindergarten

Common questions

Which public schools in Lake Forest rank highest?

Elementary: Oxford Preparatory Academy - Saddleback Valley, 94th percentile (Strong). Middle: Serrano Intermediate, 79th percentile (Strong). High: El Toro High, 69th percentile (Solid). Each percentile is among the California schools at the same level we score. A rank doesn’t decide fit or whether a child can enroll.

Does living in Lake Forest decide which school my child attends?

No. A city can hold schools from more than one district, and attendance boundaries decide which school serves an address. Confirm the school for your address with the district.
More questions (3)

Are the public schools in Lake Forest good?

Lake Forest’s 7 public elementary schools run from the 12th to the 94th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 3 Strong, 3 Solid and 1 Needs Support. Lake Forest has one public middle school we score, Serrano Intermediate, at the 79th percentile among the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 1 Strong. Lake Forest has one public high school we score, El Toro High, at the 69th percentile among the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). By band: 1 Solid. A percentile compares a school with California public schools at the same level that we score. How we score schools.

How does chronic absence in Lake Forest compare with California?

The average Lake Forest elementary school had 10 in 100 students chronically absent (missed 10% or more of school days) in 2025–26; the average California elementary school we score had 17 in 100. Both are averages of school rates, each school counted once. These are averages of school rates: each school counts once, whatever its size.

Where do these results come from?

California’s state tests (CAASPP): spring 2026 for elementary and middle schools, spring 2025 for high schools, and chronic-absence rates for 2025–26, published by the California Department of Education. Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s calculations. How we score schools.

Sources and methodology

This page lists the public schools with a Lake Forest address, which can belong to more than one school district.

Data source: California Department of Education · CAASPP 2025–26 elementary and middle school; 2024–25 high school

Percentiles, bands and Scope Scores are SchoolScope’s own calculations from these state files.

View CDE data ↗ (opens in a new tab)How Scope Scores work →

Download these schools (CSV)Free to use under CC BY 4.0 with attribution.