NerdWallet Considers School Quality Alongside Affordability
NerdWallet, a consumer advocacy website, recently conducted a study to determine which school districts offer parents the best value for their money in Southern California – and Arcadia Unified ranked third.
While many top-rated schools are located in prohibitively expensive communities, NerdWallet sought to highlight sunny Southern California’s hidden gems and analyzed 153 districts spanning ten counties. The study weighted cost of living metrics against the following school quality indicators: standardized test scores, college readiness, and class size.
Arcadia Unified School District in Los Angeles County has 11 schools that offer student-teacher ratios of about 22:1. The average SAT score is 1789, and about 84% of students go on to postsecondary education. The high school offers several Advanced Placement and honors courses, and earlier this year, the school unveiled a $3.8 million library, media center and cafeteria. This summer Arcadia High School will also be unveiling a brand new pool and state-of-the-art sports medicine facility. During this year’s Super Bowl, a commercial featured a performance by the Arcadia High School band. The school’s Quiz Bowl team won the national championship, and four other academic teams competed at national championship tournaments. The district is also the host of the annual Arcadia Invitational Track and Field meet, which is the largest high school sporting event in the country, and also hosted the first-ever Arcadia Innovation Summit recently. An impressive 31 Arcadia High School students were named National Merit Scholarship semifinalists this past school year, and three juniors received perfect scores on their SAT exams. The district makes our top five due to its varied opportunities for its students and commitment to excellence.
You can read the full study online. For more information about NerdWallet, visit nerdwallet.com/cities.
