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Santa Barbara Unified Schools
Santa Barbara Unified is a public school district in California, based in Santa Barbara County (Santa Barbara). SchoolGrade grades 20 of its schools on actual versus projected test scores; every school below has its own page.
Santa Barbara Unified on the map
District boundary from the NCES EDGE composite school district file. Each marker is a graded school; click it for its grade and scores.
SchoolGrade summary for Santa Barbara Unified
19 of 20 schools in Santa Barbara Unified carry a SchoolGrade (1 have no school-level proficiency results in our source data). Grade distribution:
A: 2B: 9C: 5D: 2F: 1
Best schools in Santa Barbara Unified
Statewide rankings: all 1561 high schools in California · all 1283 middle schools in California · all 5668 elementary schools in California
The ten highest SchoolGrades in the district. Grades reward actual test performance against the projection for each school's student context, so a B in a high-poverty school can outrank an A- elsewhere on impact.
- A- La Colina Junior High (Middle school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- A- Dos Pueblos Senior High (High school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- B+ Washington Elementary (Elementary school, meets expectations)
- B+ Santa Barbara Charter (Elementary school, meets expectations)
- B+ Goleta Valley Junior High (Middle school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- B+ San Marcos Senior High (High school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- B Roosevelt Elementary (Elementary school, exceeds expectations)
- B Adams Elementary (Elementary school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- B- Franklin Elementary (Elementary school, greatly exceeds expectations)
- B- Monroe Elementary (Elementary school, exceeds expectations)
Every school in Santa Barbara Unified
High schools (5)
- C- Alta Vista Alternative High, Santa Barbara
- A- Dos Pueblos Senior High, Goleta
- F La Cuesta Continuation High, Santa Barbara
- B+ San Marcos Senior High, Santa Barbara
- C+ Santa Barbara Senior High, Santa Barbara
Middle and junior high schools (4)
- B+ Goleta Valley Junior High, Goleta
- A- La Colina Junior High, Santa Barbara
- C+ La Cumbre Junior High, Santa Barbara
- C- Santa Barbara Junior High, Santa Barbara
Elementary and primary schools (7)
- B Adams Elementary, Santa Barbara
- D+ Cleveland Elementary, Santa Barbara
- B- Franklin Elementary, Santa Barbara
- D- Mckinley Elementary, Santa Barbara
- B- Monroe Elementary, Santa Barbara
- B Roosevelt Elementary, Santa Barbara
- B+ Washington Elementary, Santa Barbara
Other schools and academies (4)
- Alta Vista, Santa Barbara
- B- Harding University Partnership, Santa Barbara
- B+ Santa Barbara Charter, Goleta
- C- Santa Barbara Community Academy, Santa Barbara
Where Santa Barbara Unified schools are
Cities and towns served (2)
- Santa Barbara (17)
- Goleta (3)
About this district
- State: Best schools in California
- County: Santa Barbara County
- Type: regular local school district
- Setting: small city (NCES locale of the district office)
- Enrollment: 12,491 students with 646 full-time-equivalent teachers and 1,386 total staff FTE (NCES CCD, 2023-24)
- NCES district ID: 0601414
- Grades are the 2025-26 SchoolGrade model: each school's actual proficiency against the level projected for its student context. How SchoolGrade works
Nearby school districts
- Hope Elementary (3 schools, 4 mi)
- Carpinteria Unified (6 schools, 10 mi)
- Goleta Union Elementary (9 schools, 11 mi)
- Ventura Unified (27 schools, 23 mi)
- Ojai Unified (8 schools, 29 mi)
- Oxnard (20 schools, 30 mi)
- Cuyama Joint Unified (3 schools, 30 mi)
- Hueneme Elementary (11 schools, 33 mi)
Questions about Santa Barbara Unified
How many schools are in Santa Barbara Unified?
SchoolGrade grades 20 public schools in Santa Barbara Unified, across 2 cities and towns. Every one of them is listed on this page with a link to its own report.
Which cities does Santa Barbara Unified serve?
The largest by graded schools: Santa Barbara, Goleta.
How good are the schools in Santa Barbara Unified?
Across the 19 graded schools, the average SchoolGrade is C+, with 37.1% of tested students meeting the state bar against a projected 31.1%. 89% of schools meet or exceed the expectation for their student context.
How many students attend Santa Barbara Unified?
12,491 students were enrolled in Santa Barbara Unified in the 2023-24 school year, about 19.3 students per full-time teacher (NCES Common Core of Data).
Where is Santa Barbara Unified?
Santa Barbara Unified is in California, based in Santa Barbara County, with its district office in Santa Barbara. Its boundary covers about 23.1 sq mi.