Slvusd Charter, Ben Lomond CA - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Slvusd Charter

SLVUSD Charter is a kindergarten-through-twelfth-grade charter school located at 325 Marion Avenue in Ben Lomond, a small, unincorporated mountain community in the Santa Cruz Mountains. It operates under the San Lorenzo Valley Unified School District, which also runs the valley's conventional elementary, middle, and high schools, mostly located along Highway 9 in nearby Felton. The charter campus itself sits on a residential street off Ben Lomond's main strip rather than in the downtown core.

The school serves a relatively small total enrollment for a K-12 school, with a student body that skews heavily white and draws a modest share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, well below what you would see at many California public schools. Data on English learners and students with IEPs was not available in what was provided.

On California's state assessments, the academic picture is mixed and worth looking at carefully. In English language arts, the school's results are reasonably solid across the middle grades, with seventh and eighth graders performing well into the majority-proficient range, and sixth and fourth graders not far behind. ELA results across all tested grades combined place the school somewhere in the moderate range, and the overall ELA proficiency index sits below the midpoint among districts in Santa Cruz County, though this comparison covers a K-12 charter against a field of full districts, so the framing is approximate. Math is a weaker spot. Scores in the elementary grades are notably low, and while the middle school grades improve, they remain modest. Across all tested grades combined, fewer than half of students reached proficiency in math. Science results at the tested grade levels fall short of half proficient as well. A parent interested in how math instruction works here, and what supports exist for students who are not reaching grade-level expectations, would do well to ask the school directly. Trend data was not available for comparison, as the state assessment results reflect only the most recent year.

No graduation rate data was available in what was provided, and the civil rights data section was empty. Program offerings were not listed in the data, so information on AP courses, dual enrollment, or career pathways for high school students is a gap worth raising with the school.

The community surrounding the school has its own distinct texture. Ben Lomond is a historic, rustic place where redwood forest and mountain topography shape daily life. The housing stock runs from small cabins to custom-built homes, with almost no uniformity. Publicly reported sources describe a notably high concentration of artists, designers, and knowledge-industry remote workers, and the community has a bohemian, independent-minded character. The small commercial center along Highway 9, with its farmers market, local cafe, and community library, is where much of civic life happens. For larger stores, residents drive to Santa Cruz.

The housing market here is expensive relative to most of the country. Home values run well above the California statewide benchmark and far above the national median. Monthly ownership costs, even accounting for a standard down payment at current mortgage rates, would consume a large share of most households' income. Rents are also high relative to typical income ratios. The area is not affordable by conventional measures.

Two forces have shaped this community and district in recent years. Voters approved a general obligation school bond that funds facility upgrades across San Lorenzo Valley Unified, carrying a long-term property tax obligation for landowners in the district. And the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire destroyed a substantial number of homes in the valley, displacing families and disrupting schooling. Rebuilding has been slow due to permitting and cost pressures, and the long-term effects on community stability and district enrollment are still unfolding.

SLVUSD Charter fits a family drawn to a small, community-embedded school in a deeply rural mountain setting, with a K-12 span that keeps siblings together and connects to a cohesive local culture. The academic results, particularly in math and science, suggest a school where some students are not yet reaching proficiency and where a family should probe what the school is doing about that before enrolling.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=80%Cohort of 23 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 339%

School 39% · District 57% · ▼ 18 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 429%

School 29% · District 49% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 54% · ▼ 28 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 643%

School 43% · District 33% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 756%

School 56% · District 45% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 846%

School 46% · District 41% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 339%

School 39% · District 52% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 465%

School 65% · District 54% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 56% · ▼ 16 pts below district

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

Grade 665%

School 65% · District 50% · ▲ 15 pts above district

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

Grade 771%

School 71% · District 50% · ▲ 21 pts above district

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

Grade 866%

School 66% · District 55% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 536%

School 36% · District 56% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 849%

School 49% · District 41% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Social studies

Grade 870%

School 70% · District 65% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

This schoolSan Lorenzo Valley 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 7Lower-income58%Higher-income75%17 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 7Lower-income50%Higher-income58%8 pp gap