Summary:
Six schools in zip code 93101 serve 1,670 students, from elementary grades through high school, in Santa Barbara Unified. The group includes three K–6 schools, one junior high, and two alternative or continuation high schools. Because they serve different grade spans, all-grades comparisons are descriptive rather than like-for-like. The most important finding is that results vary substantially across the area, especially between the two high schools and across subjects.
For 2025–2026 all-grades results, Roosevelt Elementary leads ELA at 54%, 5 points above the state; Harding University Partnership leads math at 54% and science at 51%, each about 15 points above the state. La Cuesta Continuation High is lowest in all three: 17% in ELA, 6% in math, and 11% in science. The high schools also differ in other reported outcomes: Alta Vista Alternative High reports a 93% graduation rate, compared with 77% at La Cuesta, while chronic absenteeism is high at both—68% and 91%, respectively, versus 18% statewide.
Results rose year over year in 16 of 18 school-subject comparisons. Notable gains include Harding science, up 27 points, and Alta Vista ELA, up 26; the exceptions are La Cumbre Junior High math, down 4 points, and Santa Barbara Community Academy science, down 2. SchoolDigger ranks Roosevelt at the 71st percentile and Harding at the 70th among these schools. The elementary schools have similar student-teacher ratios—17.5 at Roosevelt, 16.9 at Harding, and 17.5 at Community Academy in 2024–2025—but different results. Their reported free/reduced lunch eligible figures for 2024–2025 are 55% at Roosevelt, 78% at Harding, and 82% at Community Academy; these are context, not an explanation for outcomes.
Thank you for your feedback!