iLead Agua Dulce

iLead Agua Dulce is a small, K-12 alternative school of 378 students in its own iLead Agua Dulce District, serving the Agua Dulce area with a moderate level of student economic need.

The school faces significant challenges, with academic proficiency in English, Math, and Science consistently below state averages and a chronic absenteeism rate of 30.6%, which is much higher than the state average and a major concern for student success. Interestingly, there is a wide performance gap between grades, with 8th graders scoring much higher than elementary grades, suggesting inconsistency in learning experiences. Compared to other local alternative schools, iLead Agua Dulce's academic results are among the lowest, and its high absenteeism stands out, especially next to schools like iLEAD Hybrid and iLEAD Online Charter which have similar names but far better attendance and test scores.

Key takeaways for parents include that the school's struggles appear closely tied to its attendance issues, and that higher spending on students does not automatically mean better results, as seen when comparing various schools in the area. The standout performance of a larger school like Granada Hills Charter shows that alternative schools can achieve high results, indicating that iLead Agua Dulce's challenges may be linked to specific local factors like school culture or program consistency rather than its educational model alone.