Canoga Park Middle, Canoga Park CA

Original Research by School Decision on Canoga Park Middle

Canoga Park Middle is a regular public middle school serving grades six through eight in the western San Fernando Valley, within Los Angeles Unified. The school sits in a dense, mixed-income residential neighborhood undergoing significant growth and redevelopment toward a more urban, walkable pattern. Families here are predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Enrollment is small to moderate for a middle school, relatively balanced across the three grade levels.

On state assessments, Canoga Park Middle's proficiency rates are well below the median among Los Angeles County districts. In English language arts across all grades, the school's proficiency rate sits in the bottom quartile of the county. In mathematics, proficiency is even lower. Eighth-grade performance shows some relative strength in ELA compared to sixth and seventh grades, while eighth-grade science proficiency is similarly low across the county's comparison group. The school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile of county districts.

The district-wide cellphone ban, implemented in February 2025, affects daily school operations and parent-student communication throughout the day, including lunch and breaks. The district's recent passage of a major school facilities bond will raise property taxes for families over a long horizon, a consideration for those weighing relocation into the Los Angeles Unified footprint. The Black Student Achievement Plan, redesigned in 2024 and expanded in 2025, continues to shape curriculum and support staffing at eligible schools across the district.

Canoga Park's local context is residential and increasingly mixed-use. The neighborhood has a recognizable downtown along Sherman Way, anchored by the Canoga Park branch library, the Madrid Theatre, and transit access via the Metro G Line. Walkability is mixed; the Sherman Way corridor itself scores high, but much of the area remains auto-oriented. The major economic anchors include L3Harris-Aerojet Rocketdyne's aerospace facility and the Westfield Topanga shopping center, along with retail, healthcare, and service employment. Housing is predominantly rental in the core, with owner-occupancy stronger in surrounding areas. The area is in the midst of substantial growth driven by the Warner Center 2035 Specific Plan, which is transforming nearby office parks into mixed-use, denser residential neighborhoods with significant new apartment construction, including units set aside for very low-income households.

A parent may want to look further into the school's specific support structures, curriculum approaches, and staff resources given the proficiency results, and to understand whether the school has identified strategies to address the performance gap or begun implementing changes in instruction or student support.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 615%

School 15% · District 35% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 710%

School 10% · District 34% · ▼ 24 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 820%

School 20% · District 32% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 625%

School 25% · District 46% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 722%

School 22% · District 46% · ▼ 24 pts below district

▼ 24 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

Grade 834%

School 34% · District 45% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Science

Grade 821%

School 21% · District 27% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 829%

School 29% · District 43% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

This schoolLos Angeles Unified, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income22%Higher-income50%28 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income20%Higher-income42%22 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income33%Higher-income47%15 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income13%Higher-income29%15 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income10%Higher-income13%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income20%Higher-income24%4 pp gap