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OCS - South

Q: Is OCS - South a good school?

OCS - South ranks 1360 th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public, Charter Grades K-8

1360^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 5,857 California Elementary Schools

Better than 77% of California elementary schools

Summary

OCS - South is a highly-rated K-8 charter school serving 392 students in Altadena, part of the OCS - South District, and it consistently outperforms state averages in English, Math, and Science.

The school stands out for its exceptional academic results, particularly for Hispanic students, and its cost-effectiveness, achieving more with significantly less funding per student than many nearby schools in the Pasadena Unified district, such as Madison Elementary. While the area features schools with extreme performance differences, like high-achieving Paradise Canyon Elementary and lower-performing Washington Elementary STEM Magnet, OCS - South delivers strong outcomes that are closer to the top performers.

However, parents should be aware of two significant challenges: a very high rate of chronic student absenteeism and a noticeable drop in test scores in the middle grades, especially sixth grade. Despite these issues, the school maintains its strong overall performance, suggesting effective teaching methods, though addressing attendance and supporting students through the middle-grade slump could help it reach even higher levels of achievement.

392

Students ?

19.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,282

Per pupil spending ?

28.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

119 West Palm St.
Altadena, CA 91001-4375

(626) 209-5635

District: OCS - South District

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

35.2%

White:

33.4%

Two or more races:

14.3%

See top rated California elementary schools

Compare OCS - South to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 73rd percentile in 2022 → 77th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the California average (60% vs 41% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 23% of California elementary schools

Worth a look

!High chronic absenteeism (32% vs 19% California)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school60%

California avg41%

Elementary school

1,360^th of 5,857

California public elementary schools ?

Top 23%▲ up 3 pts since 2022

From top 27% (2022) to top 23% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

798^th of 2,761

California public middle schools ?

Top 29%▼ down 23 pts since 2023

From top 6% (2023) to top 29% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of California Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

324^th of 1,543OCS - South District among California districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	75.2	1360 of 5857	76.8%	★★★★☆
2024	75.7	1348 of 5869	77.0%	★★★★☆
2023	86.3	898 of 5859	84.7%	★★★★☆
2022	71.4	1559 of 5883	73.5%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	56.4	2109 of 5612	62.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	73.2	1359 of 5609	75.8%	★★★★☆
2022	58.7	1995 of 5635	64.6%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	95.1	160 of 5107	96.9%	★★★★★
2024	80.4	708 of 5107	86.1%	★★★★☆
2023	87.0	471 of 5087	90.7%	★★★★★
2022	73.5	994 of 5084	80.4%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	76.1	958 of 5460	82.5%	★★★★☆
2024	81.4	777 of 5517	85.9%	★★★★☆
2023	72.8	1082 of 5363	79.8%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	76.5	1217 of 5628	78.4%	★★★★☆
2024	81.0	1040 of 5643	81.6%	★★★★☆
2023	89.8	627 of 5638	88.9%	★★★★☆
2022	77.7	1207 of 5663	78.7%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	65.7	941 of 2651	64.5%	★★★☆☆
2023	79.1	464 of 2661	82.6%	★★★★☆
2022	54.2	1332 of 2726	51.1%	★★★☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2025	64.5	798 of 2761	71.1%	★★★★☆
2024	77.2	547 of 2783	80.3%	★★★★☆
2023	94.0	174 of 2781	93.7%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	California percentile	Rating
2024	72.4	583 of 2552	77.2%	★★★★☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Elementary school

Hispanic (2025)97th percentile+20 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)82nd percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)78th percentile~ school

White (2024)65th percentile-13 vs school

Female (2024)62nd percentile-15 vs school

Middle school

Male (2024)77th percentile-3 vs school

By subject vs California (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts/Literacy67%+19 vs state

Science56%+23 vs state

Mathematics53%+16 vs state

★

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Schools Near OCS - South

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				CAST Science (2025)			Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy (2025)							Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics (2025)							% Completely Immunized (2022)	% Polio (2022)	% Hepatitis B (2022)	% Varicella (2022)	% DTP (2022)	% MMR (2022)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	CAST Science 5th Grade	CAST Science 8th Grade	CAST Science All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments English Language Arts/Literacy All Grades	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 3rd Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 4th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 5th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 6th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 7th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics 8th Grade	Smarter Balanced Assessments Mathematics All Grades	% Completely Immunized KG	% Polio KG	% Hepatitis B KG	% Varicella KG	% DTP KG	% MMR KG	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
OCS - South	Public, Charter	K-8	119 West Palm St.	Altadena	91001	Los Angeles County	OCS - South District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 209-5635	392	20	19.6	28.6%	131 (33.4%)	28 (7.1%)	138 (35.2%)	39 (9.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	56 (14.3%)	75.2	1360^th of 5857 public elementary schools	76.8%		75.7	1348^th of 5869 public elementary schools	77.0%	12	60.7	46.2	56.1	66.7	56.3	82.1	41.2		84.6	67.3	61.9	46.7	59.3	22.2		69.2	53.0							$15,282	$712	$14,570
Odyssey Charter	Public, Charter	K-8	725 West Altadena Dr.	Altadena	91001	Los Angeles County	Odyssey Charter District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 229-0993	463	18	25.7	25.5%	209 (45.1%)	31 (6.7%)	123 (26.6%)	29 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	71 (15.3%)	89.2	705^th of 5857 public elementary schools	88.0%		90.6	659^th of 5869 public elementary schools	88.8%	46	71.4	73.7	72.9	84.9	74.1	81.0	70.3	85.0	81.6	79.6	81.3	70.4	66.7	40.5	67.5	68.4	65.1							$14,884	$853	$14,031
Altadena Elementary	Public	K-5	743 East Calaveras St.	Altadena	91001	Los Angeles County	Pasadena Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 396-5650	527	23	23.4	52.9%	142 (26.9%)	65 (12.3%)	232 (44.0%)	20 (3.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	67 (12.7%)	57.7	2184^th of 5857 public elementary schools	62.7%		56.6	2204^th of 5869 public elementary schools	62.4%	20	36.9		36.9	53.9	50.6	40.9				48.9	51.3	54.4	26.9				45.1	81.6	86.8	93.4	92.1	85.5	84.2	$24,621	$3,965	$20,656
Mary W. Jackson STEAM Multilingual Magnet Elementary	Public	K-5	593 West Woodbury Rd.	Altadena	91001	Los Angeles County	Pasadena Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 396-5700	658	27	24.6	51.8%	98 (14.9%)	67 (10.2%)	413 (62.8%)	9 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	67 (10.2%)	46.2	2811^th of 5857 public elementary schools	52.0%		55.1	2284^th of 5869 public elementary schools	61.1%	527	34.1		34.1	40.7	42.7	45.6				42.9	40.7	42.7	28.6				37.6	93.9	93.9	93.9	93.9	93.9	93.9	$23,390	$3,759	$19,631
Washington Elementary STEM Magnet	Public	K-5	1520 North Raymond Ave.	Pasadena	91103	Los Angeles County	Pasadena Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 396-5840	428	20	21.6	86.0%	14 (3.3%)	41 (9.6%)	351 (82.0%)	12 (2.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.1%)	27.7	4159^th of 5857 public elementary schools	29.0%		21.1	4758^th of 5869 public elementary schools	18.9%	599	29.4		29.4	30.9	30.7	36.8				32.8	29.9	24.6	17.7				24.0	96.2			96.2			$29,101	$5,828	$23,273
Aveson School of Leaders	Public, Charter	K-5	524 Palisade St.	Pasadena	91103	Los Angeles County	Aveson School of Leaders District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 797-1440	279	17	16.7	27.6%	148 (53.0%)	14 (5.0%)	72 (25.8%)	28 (10.0%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (5.4%)	69.8	1609^th of 5857 public elementary schools	72.5%		76.8	1299^th of 5869 public elementary schools	77.9%	310	58.8		58.8	36.0	48.0	65.7				51.8	40.0	52.0	65.7				54.1	53.9	75.4	81.5	72.3	73.9	78.5	$17,889	$1,680	$16,209
Alma Fuerte Public	Public, Charter	K-8	524 Palisade St.	Pasadena	91103	Los Angeles County	Alma Fuerte Public District	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 204-5265	227	12	18.9	77.1%	5 (2.2%)	35 (15.4%)	174 (76.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (5.7%)	18.6	4961^st of 5857 public elementary schools	15.3%		17.9	5040^th of 5869 public elementary schools	14.1%	79	31.3	0.0	14.7	19.1	21.7	31.3	18.2	26.7	16.7	22.3	14.3	13.0	37.5	9.1	10.0	0.0	13.1							$17,031	$1,583	$15,448
Longfellow (Henry W.) Elementary	Public	K-5	1065 East Washington Blvd.	Pasadena	91104	Los Angeles County	Pasadena Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 396-5720	546	23	24.2	74.2%	42 (7.7%)	69 (12.6%)	396 (72.5%)	9 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.5%)	27 (4.9%)	50	2593^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	55.7%		51.4	2487^th of 5869 public elementary schools	57.6%	106	32.4		32.4	47.2	52.2	38.9				46.6	44.4	42.9	26.8				38.9	95.8	98.3	98.3		98.3		$27,809	$5,796	$22,013
Paradise Canyon Elementary	Public	K-6	471 Knight Way	La Canada	91011	Los Angeles County	La Canada Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(818) 952-8340	715	29	24.7	4.8%	293 (41.0%)	1 (0.1%)	86 (12.0%)	242 (33.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	93 (13.0%)	97.9	83^rd of 5857 public elementary schools	98.6%		97.9	84^th of 5869 public elementary schools	98.6%	1	79.3		79.3	80.4	85.9	87.5	87.7			85.6	80.4	82.6	85.1	84.4			83.3							$17,151	$191	$16,960
Madison Elementary	Public	K-5	515 Ashtabula St.	Pasadena	91104	Los Angeles County	Pasadena Unified	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(626) 396-5780	411	17	24.9	79.1%	2 (0.5%)	15 (3.6%)	390 (94.9%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	13.8	5359^th of 5857 public elementary schools	8.5%		14.7	5334^th of 5869 public elementary schools	9.1%	25	16.7		16.7	21.7	18.1	20.0				19.9	25.4	18.1	7.7				17.3	95.7			96.8			$28,399	$5,064	$23,335

Frequently Asked Questions about OCS - South

What district is OCS - South in?

OCS - South District

How many students attend OCS - South?

In the 2024-25 school year, 392 students attended OCS - South.

What is the racial makeup of OCS - South?

Students at OCS - South are 35% Hispanic, 33% White, 14% Two or more races, 10% Asian, 7% African American.

Is OCS - South a good school?

OCS - South ranks 1360^th of 5857 California elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate OCS - South!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the California Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.