Elementary and middle schools across Orange County are featured in U.S. News & World Report’s latest roundup of high-quality campuses.
Similar to popular high school rankings, U.S. News’ analysis of elementary and middle schools is based on student proficiency and performance while taking into account socio-economic profiles. However, unlike the high school ratings, the elementary and middle school versions include only statewide rankings and no national comparisons.
U.S. News said it looked at data from more than 100,000 schools as part of the review process. Elementary and middle school rankings were based on state assessment results in math and reading/language arts, weighing proficiency and performance scores against socio-economic demographics and modeled expectations.
“In other words, all of the top-ranked schools have high academic performance and are successful in educating all of their students,” U.S. News reported.
It’s worth noting that rankings typically reflect a single perspective on educational quality, and no methodology can fully capture everything a school has to offer, but Orange County’s It turns out that some schools are included.
Notable achievements in elementary education include Los Alamitos Unified School District’s Jack L. Weaver Elementary School (24th place), Richard Henry Lee Elementary School (72nd place), and Francis Hopkinson Elementary School (78th place). Ethan B. Allen Elementary School (number 42) from the Garden Grove Unified School District. Golden Elementary School (No. 53) in the Placentia-Yorba-Linda Unified School District. Roy O. Andersen Elementary School (No. 68), from the Newport-Mesa Unified School District. Stonegate Elementary School (No. 69) in the Irvine Unified School District. and Tustin Unified’s Orchard Hills (85th).
In the list of middle schools that include K-8 campuses, Oxford Academy in the Anaheim Union High School District led the way in second place. Irvine Unified had several schools in the top 100, including Vista Verde Middle School (13th place). , Beacon Park K-8 School (36th), Lakeside Middle School (56th), Rancho San Joaquin Middle School (57th), Sierra Vista Middle School (60th), Jeffrey Trail Middle School (2019) 102).
The Fullerton School District’s Robert C. Fisler Elementary School (22nd) and Beachwood Elementary School (54th) are also among the top 100 middle schools, along with Orange County School of the Arts (42nd). Ladera Ranch Middle School (No. 48) in the Capistrano Unified School District. Oxford Preparatory Academy campuses in Mission Viejo (53rd) and Lake Forest (89th);
Rankings were compiled using publicly available information from the U.S. Department of Education. Schools serving special populations or with insufficient evaluation data were excluded, as were private schools.
U.S. News released its 2025 Best Elementary and Middle School rankings on November 13th. Visit the U.S. News & World Report website to access the complete rankings and learn more about the media’s methodology.
Did your local school make the top 100 list in California? Email us at communications@ocde.us.
