Location: La Canada, CA
Are you a student or parent at La Canada High School? Want to understand how to get the most out of high school?
We've written the best guide to La Canada High available. Here we'll cover:
- Breakdowns of student ethnicity, gender, and family income
- How safe La Canada High is to attend
- SAT/ACT/AP scores earned by La Canada High students
- Which AP/IB classes you can take at La Canada High
- Every sports team you can join at La Canada High
Let's get started!
Basic Information
La Canada High School is a public school, supporting grades 7 to 12 . It's located in La Canada, CA in Los Angeles County.
Based on its location, La Canada High is classified as a school in a large suburb. Here's the location on a map:
Contact Information
Mailing address:
La Canada High School4463 Oak Grove Dr. La Canada, CA 91011-3738
Phone number: 8189524205
La Canada High School homepage: http://www.lchsspartans.net/
Principal: Ian McFeatEmail the principal: [email protected]
Student Demographics
Student Enrollment
The total enrollment at La Canada High School is 2109 students, making it a large high school, in the top 25% of all California high schools by size.
Attending La Canada High will feel like attending a small college. You'll have a few hundred students in your class, enough to provide an interesting set of activities, sports, and classes to try. But compared to the largest high schools in California, the student body size won't be overwhelming.
Growth in Student Body Size
Is La Canada High School growing or shrinking? This will help you see trends in where the school is headed.
From our calculations, the enrollment at La Canada High has decreased over the past few years. We calculate this by comparing enrollment in grades 9 to 12.
| Male Students | Female Students | All Students | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9th grade | 173 | 168 | 341 |
| 10th grade | 171 | 167 | 338 |
| 11th grade | 198 | 161 | 359 |
| 12th grade | 201 | 172 | 373 |
As you can see in the table above, the senior class is 32 students larger than the freshman class. This suggests that La Canada High is shrinking in size and taking on fewer students.
There are a few reasons this can happen. The population of La Canada could be decreasing, thus sending fewer students into La Canada High. Alternatively, other schools (like charter or private schools) might be appearing, drawing students away.
Gender Split
Are there more boys or girls at La Canada High School?
From our statistics, La Canada High has a 53:47 split between male and female students in the high school grades.
La Canada High has a balanced male-female ratio that's largely representative of the general population in Los Angeles County. Since the student body is roughly half and half, it should feel like there are equal numbers of boys and girls in your classes.
This usually means that La Canada High doesn't strongly select for either males or females, unlike other schools that have a large majority of males or females.
Ethnicity Breakdown
What's the racial diversity at La Canada High School? Does one ethnicity make up most of the student body, or is it fairly balanced?
From our statistics, La Canada High has a somewhat homogenous student body, with the majority of students identifying as one ethnicity, but not representing over 70% of the student body. Most schools in California fit this profile, so La Canada High isn't out of the ordinary. Most students attending class with you will be of the predominant ethnicity, but there will be meaningful diversity from other races.
The majority of students at La Canada High are white. In California, white students make up 26.3% of all California students, and are the second most common ethnicity after Hispanic students. Thus La Canada High is one of hundreds of schools in the state that have a majority of white students.
| Percentage | Number | |
|---|---|---|
| American Indian/Alaska Native | 0.1% | 3 |
| Asian | 27.1% | 572 |
| Hispanic | 10.5% | 222 |
| Black | 0.5% | 11 |
| White | 56.2% | 1186 |
| Hawaiian Native/Pacific Islander | 0.0% | 0 |
| Two or more races | 5.4% | 115 |
High schools usually reflect the population in the surrounding area, so the ethnicities of students likely resembles those of La Canada. If you'd like to see how other nearby schools look in diversity, just google "[name of school] prepscholar" to find our guide to that specific school.
Income Level of La Canada High Families
What are the family incomes of students at La Canada High School? To determine this, we look at the number of students who qualify for free or reduced lunches, a classification by the US federal government.
To qualify for a reduced price meal, family income needs to be below 185% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $45,000 or below.
To qualify for a free meal, family income needs to be below 130% of the federal poverty guidelines. For a family of 4, this means an income of around $32,000 or below.
The lower the percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced price meals, the higher the income levels are likely to be.
At La Canada High, 0.3% of students qualify for reduced-price lunches, and 0.4% qualify for free lunches.
This means La Canada High has a very low poverty level. Nearly no students at La Canada High qualify for free or reduced price lunches. La Canada is thus likely to have a very affluent community, and La Canada High is in the top 10% of California schools in terms of family income.
| Number | Percent | |
|---|---|---|
| Reduced-price lunches | 7 | 0.3% |
| Free lunches | 10 | 0.4% |
| Do not qualify for reduced-price or free lunches | 2092 | 99.1% |
As with ethnicity, this likely reflects the surrounding community in La Canada and doesn't speak much about the school itself.
Because La Canada High is in the top quartile of schools by family income, it's likely to be well-funded relative to other high schools in California. This means you'll likely have access to advanced coursework like AP/IB classes and better-funded extracurriculars and sports.
It's still up to you, though, to take advantage of the resources La Canada High has to offer. If you work hard and spend your time effectively, you'll likely be well positioned to succeed in college and beyond.
Download our free guide on the top 5 strategies you must be using to improve your score. This guide was written by Harvard graduates and SAT perfect scorers. If you apply the strategies in this guide, you'll study smarter and make huge score improvements.
School Safety
How safe is La Canada High School to attend? Can you expect a lot of conflict as a student here?
To study this, we look at disciplinary data for two types of incidents at La Canada High: referrals to law enforcement (when incidents are reported to police), and arrests.
These are the most serious disciplinary actions available to school administration and are more severe than suspensions or expulsions. Suspensions are often discretionary and can be given just for being disruptive in class. In contrast, law enforcement referrals and arrests often indicate incidents that put the safety of other La Canada High students at risk.
In the school year of 2011-2012, there were 19 referrals to law enforcement (11 male, 8 female), and 19 school-related arrests (11 males, 8 females). This is out of a total enrollment of 2118 students.
To put this into perspective, most California schools (59% of them) reported 0 law enforcement referrals and arrests.
This means that 1.7 La Canada High has minor safety issues. For every 100 students, there were just 1.7 law-enforcement related actions, but this is still higher than 75% of California schools.
Academic Performance
Now we get to a major aspect of assessing a high school: academic performance. How good of an education will you get at La Canada High School? Will you be competitive for college? Will you have access to advanced classes?
We've compiled everything we could find about La Canada High's academics here.
Graduation Rate
To start off, an important benchmark of academic achievement is graduation rate. For all students who start high school at La Canada High, the state of California wants as many students to graduate as possible, since a high school diploma can mean a big difference in getting a job.
At La Canada High, 98% (of 377) La Canada High students graduated within four years of starting high school.
Here's how this stacks up to other schools. The California state government has defined 90% as a target rate. The state average is around 80-85%.
La Canada High is in the 99th percentile of all public high schools in California for graduation rate. This is extremely good. Generally, a graduation rate of above 90% is considered good and well above average, and below 75% is well below average.
Note: This data comes from a few years back, but the trends are likely to stay the same, since schools don't get significantly better or worse within a short period of time.
Standardized Testing
Next, we'll look at another major piece of high school academics: standardized testing performance for La Canada High School students. These are tests that are administered to large populations of students for comparison purposes.
Let’s start by taking a look at the data for nationally administered standardized tests.
SAT Scores
As you probably know, the SAT is a critical test used for college admissions. The higher the score you get, the better your academic performance compared to students nationwide, and the easier it is to get into top colleges.
We did in-depth research and found the average La Canada High School SAT scores.
The average composite SAT score is a 1800 out of 2400, compared to a national average of 1500. Each year, roughly 424 at La Canada High take the SAT.
This is an extremely high average SAT score, putting La Canada High School in the elite top 2% of all California high schools. The average student at La Canada High is already scoring in the 80th percentile nationwide or higher - indeed, 85% of students score above the national average. This means that the top students are likely scoring well in the top percentiles, and some may even be getting perfect scores every year.
Because you're surrounded by very talented students, this is a good sign that you'll receive a top-of-the-line education at La Canada High. By following the trend at your school, you'll have a very strong chance at getting into some of the best colleges in the country.
Here's a breakdown of SAT scores by section:
Average SAT Scores (2013-2014)
| Source | Critical Reading | Math | Writing | Composite |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Canada High | 592 | 619 | 594 | 1800 |
| California | 498 | 510 | 496 | 1504 |
| United States | 495 | 511 | 484 | 1490 |
Note that the SAT has since changed to a 1600 scale, but the trends above for your high school are likely to continue. Just use this guide to convert between the old 2400 scale and the new 1600 scale.
To learn more about SAT percentile rankings, read our guide on what SAT percentiles really mean.
How good is 1800 as an SAT score? Find out with our complete 1800 SAT score guide, including which colleges you can get into with a 1800 or any other SAT score!
Download our free guide on the top 5 strategies you must be using to improve your score. This guide was written by Harvard graduates and SAT perfect scorers. If you apply the strategies in this guide, you'll study smarter and make huge score improvements.
ACT Scores
In California, the ACT is less popular than the SAT. Fewer students take the ACT, and typically these students are more motivated and academically prepared for college. Therefore, it's harder to compare La Canada High School ACT scores with the rest of the country.
At La Canada High, the average ACT composite score was 26, compared to the nationwide average of 20. Each year, roughly 144 out of 1411 total students take the ACT.
This is very good performance, putting La Canada High in the top 25% of high schools in California by ACT score. Nationwide, a 24 on the ACT is 74th percentile, so most ACT test takers at La Canada High are well above average.
Since the ACT is designed to gauge what you learn in school, high ACT scores are are a good indication that you'll get a great education and be surrounded by other students who value academic achievements.
Here are the average English, Math, Reading, and Science scores for La Canada High compared to California and the US:
Average ACT Scores
| Source | English | Math | Reading | Science |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| La Canada High | 27 | 27 | 26 | 26 |
| California | 21.8 | 22.8 | 22.3 | 21.7 |
| United States | 20.3 | 20.9 | 21.3 | 20.8 |
Scores provided are for the 2013-14 school year.
Find out more about percentile rankings and the ACT in this article.
Every individual is different. What counts as a good ACT score for you? Learn more with this article!
Download our free guide on the top 5 strategies you must be using to improve your score. This guide was written by Harvard graduates and ACT perfect scorers. If you apply the strategies in this guide, you'll study smarter and make huge score improvements.
Advanced Placement (AP)
Advanced Placement (AP) classes are college-level courses that are an additional academic challenge may give La Canada High School students credit for college.
Here's what we're looking for: high average AP test scores as well as high AP passing rates.
AP Scores
Every year, roughly 580 students in grades 9-12 at La Canada High take 1265 AP exams. It's important to understand how students score on the AP - earning a 3, 4, or 5 on the AP test means passing the test and often earning college credit.
The average score of all AP exams taken at La Canada High is 3.8 out of 5.
This is a great achievement showing well above average performance. Most students get AP scores of a 4 or a 5, placing them above the national average of a 3. This high academic achievement places La Canada High School in the top 10% of schools for AP tests.
La Canada High therefore has a strong AP program, with high quality classes that will prepare students well for AP exams. There is still a sizable number of students who earn a 3 or below, but if you're a motivated and resourceful student, you'll be able to be one of the top performers.
We have specific data on how many students got a 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 (out of 5) on AP exams in the chart below:
To find out the passing rates for specific AP courses at La Canada High School, you'll have to talk to your guidance counselor (who can then help you find that information). For instance, one AP Calculus teacher may have an above-90% passing rate, while another might only have a 50% passing rate. If you can, you'll want to take the class with the teacher who has more students get a 3 or above on the AP exam.
Find out more about the average score for each AP subject here.
State Tests
As of 2014, eleventh graders attending La Canada High School must take standardized tests in English/Language Arts and Math as part of the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP). These align with the new Common Core standards and are called the "Smarter Balanced" tests.
If La Canada High students meet or exceed state standards, they're academically prepared to graduate high school and go to college. Specifically, we care about the percentage of students who meet or exceed state standards. The larger this number, the higher the preparation of students at La Canada High.
English/Language Arts
At La Canada High School, 89% of students meet or exceed state standards in English/Language Arts.
This is considered excellent and puts La Canada High in the top 5% of all high schools in California for English/Language Arts. The vast majority of La Canada High students easily meet state standards, and many of them are likely well above average. Students here are very well prepared academically.
English/Language Arts Test Results (2015)
Read more about what’s measured in each ELA area score here.
Math
The other major test taken for state assessments is Math. Across the state, Math performance is generally lower than English/Language Arts performance, so it's natural for this number to be lower.
At La Canada High School, 79% of students meet or exceed state standards in Math. This is considered well below average and puts La Canada High in the bottom 25% of all high schools in California. The vast majority of La Canada High students don't meet state standards, and only a small percentage pass.
Math Test Results (2015)
Read more about what’s measured in each Math area score, go here.
Academic Offerings
In addition to the standard high school curriculum, many high schools like La Canada High School offer advanced coursework as part of the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) programs.
Brief Intro to AP/IB
AP and IB courses are designed at the difficulty level of college introductory classes. There are several important benefits to taking advanced coursework at La Canada High. First, taking more advanced classes shows colleges that you're committed to challenging yourself academically, and that you're one of the more advanced students at La Canada High. Taking AP/IB classes also raises your weighted GPA and makes you a stronger college applicant.
Furthermore, many colleges will accept your La Canada High AP/IB coursework as college coursework. In some cases, you'll be able to skip introductory-level classes and move to more advanced classes. In other cases, you'll be able to avoid having to take required courses and might even be able to graduate earlier than the standard 4 years. Often this will require you to pass the AP test, getting a score of 3 or above.
So what advanced courses does La Canada High School offer?
AP Courses
La Canada High School offers AP courses in 17 subjects.
This is an impressive number of AP subjects, putting La Canada High School in the top 25% of California schools in AP offerings. You'll likely have all of the most popular AP courses available to you, as well as some broader interests.
The total number of AP subjects is 38, so La Canada High is missing a good number of subjects, but these are likely the least popular subjects, like less popular foreign languages. If there are any AP courses you want to take that aren't being offered at La Canada High, ask your counselor for other options.
Of course, keep in mind that quality matters even more than quantity - it's important that your AP courses are taught well by engaging teachers. But the strong AP program at La Canada High likely means you'll be in good hands.
The following AP courses were offered at La Canada High during 2015-2016:
| Course Title |
|---|
| Biology |
| Calculus AB |
| Calculus BC |
| Chemistry |
| Computer Science A |
| English Language and Composition |
| English Literature and Composition |
| Environmental Science |
| European History |
| Macroeconomics |
| Music Theory |
| Physics C: Mechanics |
| Psychology |
| Spanish Language and Culture |
| Statistics |
| United States Government and Politics |
| United States History |
Sports Teams
Finally, we'll cover which sports teams are available at La Canada High School. Sports are an integral part of many students' high school experiences. The more sports that are available, and the more levels supported (Frosh, JV, Varsity), the more likely you'll be able to participate in a sport at La Canada High.
By the way, the La Canada High mascot is the Spartans. Go Spartans!
La Canada High School fields 24 teams for girls' sports. This is an impressively high number that puts La Canada High in the top 10% of California schools that offer girls' sports. If you're a female, you'll have plenty of options of sports and levels to try out for. Furthermore, schools that offer more teams typically have a strong sports culture and field competitive teams.
And now for the boys: La Canada High School fields 27 teams for boys' sports. Clearly La Canada High has a strong sports culture - La Canada High is in the top 10% of California schools that offer boys' sports. Boys will find plenty of options of sports at different levels to try out for. Because more teams usually also means more resources devoted to sports, you can also expect La Canada High sports teams to be competitive.
| Boys Teams | Girls Teams |
|---|---|
| Lacrosse
Var
JV
|
|
| Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
Basketball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Golf
Var
|
Golf
Var
|
| Tennis
Var
JV
|
Tennis
Var
JV
|
| Football
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Wrestling
Var
JV
|
|
| Volleyball
Var
JV
|
Volleyball
Var
JV
Fr
|
| Baseball
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Softball
Var
JV
Fr
|
|
| Waterpolo
Var
JV
Fr
|
Waterpolo
Var
JV
|
| Trackfield
Var
JV
|
Trackfield
Var
JV
|
| Crosscountry
Var
JV
Fr
|
Crosscountry
Var
JV
|
| Soccer
Var
JV
|
Soccer
Var
JV
|
| Fieldhockey
Var
|
|
| Swimming
Var
|
Swimming
Var
|
What’s Next?
Want to get more useful information about high school classes and preparing for colleges? Our blog has a ton of articles and advice on topics ranging from coursework and GPA to letters of recommendation, extracurriculars, and much more!
Ready to bulk up your schedule and maximize your college preparedness? Read all about the Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate programs.
Not quite in high school yet, but eager to get started? We've also got information for younger students interested in advanced learning opportunities, both in and out of school.
If You Liked Our Advice...
Our experts have written hundreds of useful articles on improving your SAT score and getting into college. You'll definitely find something useful here.
Visit our blog now.Subscribe to our newsletter to get FREE strategies and guides sent to your email. Learn how to ace the SAT/ACT and get into college, with exclusive tips and insights that we share with our private newsletter subscribers.
You should definitely follow us on social media. You'll get updates on our latest articles right on your feed. Follow us on all of our social networks:
Sources
The data on this page is drawn from a variety of sources, including (but not limited to):
- National Center for Educational Statistics CCD 2013-2014
- "Free or reduced price lunch: A proxy for poverty?", NCES Blog
- CRDC 2011-2012 school year data
- California Department of Education SAT, ACT, and AP Test Results
- California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress (CAASPP) System Results
- AP Course Ledger
- IBO.org