Lake Balboa College Preparatory Magnet K-12, Lake Balboa CA

Original Research by School Decision on Lake Balboa College Preparatory Magnet K-12

Lake Balboa College Preparatory Magnet K-12 sits on Balboa Boulevard in the San Fernando Valley neighborhood of Lake Balboa, a residential community within Los Angeles that grew out of what was historically part of Van Nuys. The school is part of Los Angeles Unified and serves students from kindergarten through twelfth grade, making it one of those rare settings where a child can theoretically spend their entire K-12 career without changing campuses. It is classified as an alternative school within LAUSD.

The neighborhood itself is a mid-century, tree-lined residential area with a family-oriented character that residents consistently describe as more relaxed than nearby communities like Encino. Daily life leans heavily on the park anchoring the neighborhood's name, where a walking and jogging loop rings a man-made lake and connects to the larger Sepulveda Basin Recreation Area with its wildlife reserve, sports fields, and bike trails. Casual dining and basic shopping line Victory Boulevard and Sherman Way; for anything beyond that, residents go elsewhere. Transit access includes Metro's G Line bus rapid transit, with a Balboa stop serving the neighborhood directly, though the nearby Van Nuys station is publicly reported to be closed through December 2027 for reconstruction. The housing market here is expensive relative to national norms, with home values well above both state and national medians, though the year-over-year direction is essentially flat. Rents have climbed modestly year over year and consume a substantial share of typical household income, making affordability a real consideration for families relocating to be near the school. Families buying into LAUSD also face a long-term property tax increase tied to a major school facilities bond that voters approved to fund repairs to aging school buildings, publicly reported as the district's largest such bond ever.

Academic results from the 2024-25 CAASPP assessments are mixed and worth a close look. In English Language Arts, proficiency climbs as students move through middle school, reaching its strongest reported levels in grades six through eight. Math tells a more uneven story: grades three and four show majority proficiency, but grade five drops sharply, and middle school grades cluster in the low-to-mid forties range. Science proficiency at the tested grades is lower still, with fifth grade well below the math and ELA figures and eighth grade more moderate but not strong. Across all tested subjects and grades combined, the school sits just above the midpoint among the districts in Los Angeles County in the comparison set available, which is a meaningful position given how many districts that set includes and how varied they are. No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these results reflect improvement, decline, or stability over time. Parents will want to ask the school directly about trajectory and about what academic supports are in place, particularly in math and science.

The school's name promises a college preparatory pathway, and it spans the full grade band to deliver one continuous sequence from early childhood through senior year. Programs data in what was provided is limited to music as a confirmed offering. Information on AP courses, dual enrollment, or other upper-division pathways was not available in the data, so a parent interested in the breadth of the high school academic program should ask the school directly. A graduation rate was not available in the data provided.

A substantial share of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the economic range of families this school serves. The student population is primarily Hispanic and white, with meaningful Asian representation and smaller shares of other groups. Data on English learner enrollment and students with IEPs was not reported in what was provided.

At the district level, LAUSD implemented a full-day cellphone ban in early 2025, covering lunch and passing periods, with lockable pouches in use at most middle and high schools. That is a concrete daily-life change for students and for families used to mid-day check-ins. The district has also expanded a student achievement and support program that places counselors and climate advocates at targeted campuses, funded through a culturally responsive curriculum initiative that was restructured in 2024.

The K-12 span under one roof is the defining structural feature of this school. For a family drawn to continuity of community, the college-prep framing, and the neighborhood's park-centered residential character, this warrants a real conversation with the school about what that pathway looks like in practice from first grade through graduation.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=90%Cohort of 37 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

2,394 schools plotted. 142 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 357%

School 57% · District 48% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 453%

School 53% · District 43% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 526%

School 26% · District 36% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 35% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 741%

School 41% · District 34% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 32% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 44%

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 441%

School 41% · District 45% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 546%

School 46% · District 47% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 1 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 46% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Grade 759%

School 59% · District 46% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 864%

School 64% · District 45% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Science

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 29% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 839%

School 39% · District 27% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 868%

School 68% · District 43% · ▲ 25 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above 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 3Lower-income36%Higher-income64%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income35%Higher-income64%29 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income43%Higher-income58%15 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income57%Higher-income69%12 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income60%Higher-income54%6 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income59%Higher-income80%21 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income55%Higher-income64%9 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income48%Higher-income73%25 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income26%Higher-income25%1 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income46%Higher-income46%0 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income40%Higher-income46%7 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income39%Higher-income73%35 pp gap