Is it possible to live in one place in the LA area AND have great elementary, middle and high schools? (Los Angeles: buying a home, neighborhoods)

[MovintoJax]

Yes, I know a "great" school is subjective, but if we are talking about a school's overall reputation, I'm wondering if it's possible to move into a district where the public school options in LA or Southern Ventura County are good all the way from K-12?

We lived on the Westside previously and are somewhat familiar with the different areas but did not have school-aged children at the time. We love the idea of buying a home and staying in it for the next 15-20 years.

We have kicked around the idea of Calabasas, Westlake Village or possibly Thousand Oaks, but I'm not sure if the elementary, middle AND high schools are all good? What about the Conejo School District? I've seen some houses in our budget there but wasn't sure about the schools.

Or, if we can't find an area that has great offerings all the way through, I guess we'd be most concerned with finding a good elementary school.

Let's just pretend housing costs and commute times don't matter (obviously they will down the road) so I can build my "dream" list and then whittle it down to what is realistic for us when the time comes.

[laysayfair]

Originally Posted by MovintoJax

Yes, I know a "great" school is subjective, but if we are talking about a school's overall reputation, I'm wondering if it's possible to move into a district where the public school options in LA or Southern Ventura County are good all the way from K-12?

We lived on the Westside previously and are somewhat familiar with the different areas but did not have school-aged children at the time. We love the idea of buying a home and staying in it for the next 15-20 years.

We have kicked around the idea of Calabasas, Westlake Village or possibly Thousand Oaks, but I'm not sure if the elementary, middle AND high schools are all good? What about the Conejo School District? I've seen some houses in our budget there but wasn't sure about the schools.

Or, if we can't find an area that has great offerings all the way through, I guess we'd be most concerned with finding a good elementary school.

Let's just pretend housing costs and commute times don't matter (obviously they will down the road) so I can build my "dream" list and then whittle it down to what is realistic for us when the time comes.

Conejo Valley School District has a deserved reputation for excellence from elementary through high school.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by MovintoJax

Yes, I know a "great" school is subjective, but if we are talking about a school's overall reputation, I'm wondering if it's possible to move into a district where the public school options in LA or Southern Ventura County are good all the way from K-12?

We lived on the Westside previously and are somewhat familiar with the different areas but did not have school-aged children at the time. We love the idea of buying a home and staying in it for the next 15-20 years.

We have kicked around the idea of Calabasas, Westlake Village or possibly Thousand Oaks, but I'm not sure if the elementary, middle AND high schools are all good? What about the Conejo School District? I've seen some houses in our budget there but wasn't sure about the schools.

Or, if we can't find an area that has great offerings all the way through, I guess we'd be most concerned with finding a good elementary school.

Let's just pretend housing costs and commute times don't matter (obviously they will down the road) so I can build my "dream" list and then whittle it down to what is realistic for us when the time comes.

You can start here:

California School Performance Maps


Yes TO schools are very good. So are many schools in Orange County. There are many places with good schools (often those neighborhoods aren't cheap). So yes, you will really have to factor in the work location.

You have to do your homework.

[timelesschild]

San Marino?

[CESpeed]

Work backwards. I understand that Pasadena has good schools. If you have an idea of what college(s) you would like your kids to go to, call the admissions office and ask what high school(s) they accepted students from, then found out which jr high those kids came from, etc.

[bhcompy]

you can find that in OC and southeast LA county, if those are options

[CA4Now]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

I understand that Pasadena has good schools.

You might want to rethink that. Pasadena's public schools have consistently ranked near the bottom for as long as I can remember.

[flagspeed]

Hello, I am a student in The Santa Barbara School district. I look up good schools on the internet because I don't want to go to some really bad school. I am attending a Public High School in Santa Barbara county. It is not that far away from thousand oaks.

[Charles]

Originally Posted by flagspeed

Hello, I am a student in The Santa Barbara School district. I look up good schools on the internet because I don't want to go to some really bad school. I am attending a Public High School in Santa Barbara county. It is not that far away from thousand oaks.

It is about 60 miles from Thousand Oaks to Santa Barbara. I can't think of one reason in the world the original poster should consider sending his kids to Santa Barbara schools unless he lived in the Santa Barbara area. First, why would someone who lives in Thousand Oaks do that? Second, the implication from the original post is that he will be working somewhere in the Los Angeles metro and might consider living in the Conejo Valley (or Calabasas) for schools.

[prim2007]

Originally Posted by CESpeed

Work backwards. I understand that Pasadena has good schools. If you have an idea of what college(s) you would like your kids to go to, call the admissions office and ask what high school(s) they accepted students from, then found out which jr high those kids came from, etc.

South Pasadena has highly rated schools but Pasadena has pretty low ratings.