The national academic ranking service Niche ranked the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District as the seventh best in Los Angeles County and the 19th best out of a total of 440 school districts in the State of California in its 2021 Best School Districts in California list.
An email on behalf of Superintendent Dr. Ben Drati described the ranking as “based on rigorous analysis of key statistics and millions of reviews from students and parents using data from the U.S. Department of Education.” The ranking took into account such factors as state test scores, college readiness, graduation rates, SAT and ACT scores, and teacher quality.
In a statement, the superintendent said the district was “honored to be recognized for the extraordinary achievements of [its] students and teachers” and “dedicated to providing the education and support all students need.”
Niche also awarded Santa Monica High School an “A+” and Malibu High School an “A” for their educational outcomes, “a category that includes academic data such as SAT and ACT scores with special consideration given to schools whose students matriculate to high-ranked colleges and universities.” The statement said both high schools had graduation rates in the 90th percentile range.
Despite the fact it has been a year since Juan Cabrillo Elementary School and Point Dume Marine Science School merged into the new Malibu Elementary School, Niche ranked each of the two schools individually, with both of them and Webster Elementary each earning “A” grades in the 2021 ranking.