San Marino Unified has two ranked public elementary schools, one middle school and one high school. Carver Elementary is at the 98th percentile, Valentine Elementary the 98th, Huntington Middle the 97th and San Marino High the 96th, each among the California schools we score at its level (spring 2026 tests; high schools, spring 2025).
Where does San Marino Unified’s money go, and what does it plan?
San Marino Unified spent $16,729 per student in the 2024–25 school year.
The typical California district spent $20,491. About 60 cents of every San Marino Unified dollar went to classroom instruction.
Spending by function
Day-to-day spending per student in average daily attendance, from the district’s annual financial report (SACS) to the California Department of Education. District-wide: it includes central administration and costs never assigned to one campus.
Share by function, 2024–25
Instruction60%
Instruction support10%
Student services8%
Administration10%
Buildings & maintenance10%
Other2%
Shares of the same spending total, by the report’s spending categories, rounded so they add up to 100. Names are simplified from the report’s own categories.
What the district plans
$33.2 million
planned in its 2026–27 plan for 39 funded actions in 3 goals. That’s 52% of its $63.5 million general fund budget. These are planned amounts; the district reports what it spent in a later plan.
The plan in short
Source: the district’s yearly spending plan (Local Control and Accountability Plan, or LCAP, 89 pages), as posted to the California School Dashboard.
Where the money goes
Three actions take 80% of the money. The plan itself puts 95% of it toward staff.
Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers $20.6 million
Instructional Assistants $3.5 million
AP/Honors Courses $2.5 million
36 other actions
Reading, math and catch-up help
7 of the plan’s 39 funded actions name reading, math, catch-up help or English learners in their titles.
Actions whose titles name catch-up help or English learners
Catch-up help $265,046
English learners $611,756
An action naming two of these appears under both.
Largest of these
EL Teacher on Special Assignment$288,358
English Learner Teachers and Paraprofessionals$284,006
Academic Tutoring$141,892
For high-need students (English learners, low-income students and foster youth) and what changed
For high-need students
It plans $1.6 million in extra services for English learners, low-income students and foster youth. For 2025–26, it planned $1.4 million and estimates it spent $1.4 million, $0.1 million (4%) more than planned (our arithmetic).
$1.4 million spent (estimated)$1.4 million planned
What changed
The total is $4.6 million (16%) higher than in the 2025–26 plan. The biggest change in dollars is Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers, which went from $17.8 million to $20.6 million.
Largest cuts
Intervention Teachers−$162,674
Curriculum Adoption−$101,826
Largest increases
Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers+$2.8 million
Instructional Assistants+$416,024
AP/Honors Courses+$414,810
Ask: What did Intervention Teachers pay for, and what changes now that the 2026–27 plan gives it $162,674 less?
The plan’s own titles and amounts
Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers · $20,611,174
Instructional Assistants · $3,469,180
AP/Honors Courses · $2,524,665
The full plan3 goals, 5 measures and where the money goes
We calculate each action’s share of the plan by dividing its planned amount by the total of the plan’s funded actions ($33.2 million).
Where does the money go?
67% to Goal 2. Each box is one action, sized by its planned dollars and coloured by its change since last year’s plan. Tap a box to open its goal.
not compared: unconfirmed, or repeated across goals
Every goal, in the plan’s order
Goal 1San Marino Unified School District is committed to delivering a World-Class Education with Recognized…$9.5 million29% of action budgets
“San Marino Unified School District is committed to delivering a World-Class Education with Recognized Excellence in Academics, Arts, Athletics, and Activities through rigorous innovative inquiry based learning opportunities grounded in creativity, collaboration, critical thinking and civic responsibility to graduate students who are college and or career ready and responsible, resilient, and adaptive individuals” p. 13 ↗
18 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $8.1 million (+$1.4 million)
Largest funded actions
Instructional Assistants$3.5 millionaction 1.18 · p. 48 ↗
AP/Honors Courses$2.5 millionaction 1.3 · p. 47 ↗
School Counselors$0.8 millionaction 1.15 · p. 48 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services
Technology: 1:1 student to device ratio$0.5 millionaction 1.17 · p. 48 ↗
CTE / Academic Pathways$0.4 millionaction 1.4 · p. 47 ↗
13 more funded actions in this goal
Curriculum Adoption · action 1.13 · p. 48 ↗$0.4 million
EL Teacher on Special Assignment · action 1.16 · p. 48 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services$0.3 million
English Learner Teachers and Paraprofessionals · action 1.12 · p. 48 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services$0.3 million
Diagnostic Assessments · action 1.8 · p. 47 ↗$0.2 million
Extended School Year · action 1.1 · p. 47 ↗$0.2 million
Academic Tutoring · action 1.11 · p. 47 ↗$0.1 million
Intervention Teachers · action 1.14 · p. 48 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services$0.1 million
Dual Enrollment Courses · action 1.5 · p. 47 ↗$0.1 million
Higher Educational Institution Partnerships · action 1.6 · p. 47 ↗under $0.1 million
Substitutes · action 1.2 · p. 47 ↗under $0.1 million
Professional Development · action 1.10 · p. 47 ↗under $0.1 million
EL Summer School · action 1.9 · p. 47 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need servicesunder $0.1 million
English Learner Professional Learning · action 1.7 · p. 47 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need servicesunder $0.1 million
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
Instructional Assistants+$0.4 million$3.1 million → $3.5 million · p. 48 ↗
AP/Honors Courses+$0.4 million$2.1 million → $2.5 million · p. 47 ↗
School Counselors+$192,875$601,823 → $794,698 · p. 48 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Technology: 1:1 student to device ratio · $475,000 → $475,000 · p. 48 ↗unchanged
Professional Development · $25,000 · p. 47 ↗new or renamed
EL Summer School · $12,105 → $10,000 · p. 47 ↗−$2,105
English Learner Professional Learning · $817 → $2,553 · p. 47 ↗+$1,736
A reworded title counts as new.
How the plan measures it · 3 measures
None of these has an all-students line we can quote; the plan’s table lists them from p. 13 ↗.
Goal 2The San Marino Unified School District is committed to fostering and enhancing systems and conditions…$22.3 million67% of action budgets
“The San Marino Unified School District is committed to fostering and enhancing systems and conditions conducive to students' and staff's academic, behavioral and social-emotional well-being. This commitment is operationalized through the intentional development and implementation of systems, structures, and practices focused on promoting personalized growth. expanding expertise, and the development of environments conducive to teaching and learning” p. 26 ↗
9 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $19.3 million (+$3.0 million)
Largest funded actions
Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers$20.6 millionaction 2.5 · p. 48 ↗
Health Aide / District Nurse$0.4 millionaction 2.4 · p. 48 ↗
Professional Learning Days$0.3 millionaction 2.8 · p. 48 ↗
Campus Supervision$0.3 millionaction 2.3 · p. 48 ↗
Standards-Aligned Instructional Materials$0.3 millionaction 2.2 · p. 48 ↗
4 more funded actions in this goal
Teacher on Special Assignment · action 2.7 · p. 48 ↗$0.2 million
Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) Induction Program · action 2.1 · p. 48 ↗$0.1 million
CalSCHLS Climate Survey · action 2.6 · p. 48 ↗$0.1 million
Instructional Technology Professional Development · action 2.9 · p. 48 ↗under $0.1 million
Changes from last year’s plan, same title
Highly Qualified and Appropriately Assigned Teachers+$2.8 million$17.8 million → $20.6 million · p. 48 ↗
Professional Learning Days+$41,770$267,043 → $308,813 · p. 48 ↗
Standards-Aligned Instructional Materials+$38,765$260,134 → $298,899 · p. 48 ↗
Every other line in this goal, against last year’s plan
Health Aide / District Nurse · $402,114 → $440,720 · p. 48 ↗+$38,606
Campus Supervision · $291,896 → $303,195 · p. 48 ↗+$11,299
Teacher on Special Assignment · $165,127 → $184,618 · p. 48 ↗+$19,491
Beginning Teacher Support and Assessment (BTSA) Induction Program · $83,718 → $93,479 · p. 48 ↗+$9,761
Instructional Technology Professional Development · $10,000 → $10,000 · p. 48 ↗unchanged
How the plan measures it · 1 measure
None of these has an all-students line we can quote; the plan’s table lists them from p. 26 ↗.
Goal 3SMUSD will prioritize and strengthen meaningful and authentic engagement to increase students' academic…$1.4 million4% of action budgets
“SMUSD will prioritize and strengthen meaningful and authentic engagement to increase students' academic achievement, school connectedness, well-being and home school connections” p. 33 ↗
12 funded actions · 2025–26 plan: $1.2 million (+$178,854)
Wellness Counselors / Interns$275,696action 3.4 · p. 48 ↗
Community Liaison$149,721action 3.10 · p. 49 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services · of which $104,805 is state funding counted toward those services
Additional Support for English Learner Parents/Guardians Through District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC) · action 3.7 · p. 49 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services$26,839
CWA Designee · action 3.13 · p. 49 ↗ · marked as contributing to high-need services$16,133
Additional Support for English Learner Parents/Guardians Through District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC) · $40,367 → $26,839 · p. 49 ↗−$13,528
All amounts are planned. We read them from the PDF and added up each goal’s actions ourselves. Page links open the plan at that page.
Who goes to the district’s schools
Who attends
Student mix
2024–25 · October enrollment count, 3,087 students
1Asian61%
2White17%
3Two or more races12%
4Hispanic or Latino7%
5Filipino2%
6Black or African American<1%
7Pacific Islander<1%
8American Indian or Alaska Native<1%
9Not reported<1%
Shares use the district's own October enrollment counts from the CDE, including its charter schools.
Free or reduced-price meals
12%
Across California, 63% of students qualify.
2024–25 · 368 of 3,083 students qualify, summed from the CDE’s meal counts for every school it lists under the district, charters included. It comes from a different CDE file than the student mix, so the two totals differ.
The district’s state records
Is the state giving the district extra help?
San Marino Unified isn’t getting extra state help in 2026, only the standard support every district gets.
How English learners moved up on the state’s English test
From spring 2025 to spring 2026, 68% of the district’s English learners moved up at least one level on the state’s English test (ELPAC), or stayed at the top (125 of 184 students). California: 47%. It counts students moving up the test’s levels, so a student can count here before becoming fluent.
Which public schools in San Marino Unified rank highest?
Elementary: 2 schools at the 98th percentile (Strong): Carver Elementary and Valentine Elementary. Middle: Huntington Middle, 97th percentile (Strong). High: San Marino High, 96th percentile (Strong). 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 the San Marino Unified district decide which school my child attends?
Not by itself. Attendance boundaries, programs, transfers and space all matter. Confirm the school for your address, grade and program with the district.
More questions (4)
Are the public schools in San Marino Unified good?
San Marino Unified’s 2 public elementary schools are all at the 98th percentile among the 5,726 California elementary schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 2 Strong. San Marino Unified has one public middle school we score, Huntington Middle, at the 97th percentile among the 2,529 California middle schools we score (spring 2026 tests). By band: 1 Strong. San Marino Unified has one public high school we score, San Marino High, at the 96th percentile among the 1,498 California high schools we score (spring 2025 tests). By band: 1 Strong. A percentile compares a school with California public schools at the same level that we score. How we score schools.
How much does San Marino Unified spend per student?
San Marino Unified spent $16,729 per student in the 2024–25 school year. The typical California district spent $20,491. About 60 cents of every San Marino Unified dollar went to classroom instruction. Day-to-day spending per student in average daily attendance, from its annual financial report to the California Department of Education. The district’s spending, by function.
What is in San Marino Unified’s 2026–27 spending plan?
The district’s 2026–27 spending plan puts $33.2 million into 39 funded actions in 3 goals, 52% of its $63.5 million general fund budget. Its largest goal holds $22.3 million, 67% of the action budgets. The 2026–27 plan, goal by goal.
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 governed and funded by San Marino Unified, with the district’s spending and state accountability records.
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.