Why LBUSD?

World-Class Schools - An international study lists LBUSD among five of the world’s highest performing school systems.

The Global Education Study is a publication of the national nonprofit Battelle for Kids organization. LBUSD also is one of the world’s top 20 school systems — and one of the top three in the U.S. — in terms of sustained and significant improvements, according to a report described as the most comprehensive analysis of global school system reform ever assembled. The study was conducted by McKinsey & Company, a trusted advisor and counselor to many of the most influential businesses and institutions in the world. McKinsey serves more than 70 percent of Fortune magazine’s most admired companies.

U.S. News and World Report’s Top Schools - 

The ranking of America’s top high schools by U.S. News and World Report has repeatedly included all LBUSD high schools, including Avalon, Browning, Cabrillo, Jordan, Lakewood, McBride, Millikan, Poly, Renaissance and Wilson schools, along with Sato and the California Academy of Mathematics and Science (CAMS). Alternative education schools Educational Partnership High School and Reid High School have been listed as well. In 2024, CAMS ranked as the fifth-best high school in California and 39th-best nationally. The annual list reviews nearly 25,000 public high schools in the nation.

National 'District of the Year' -

LBUSD earned the District of the Year award from the national business news publisher Industry Dive and its publication, Education Dive.  The honor is part of the Dive Awards recognizing education’s “top disruptors and innovators.”

America's Best Urban Schools - LBUSD is a five-time finalist and national winner of the Broad Prize for Urban Education, America’s most prestigious prize for public school systems. The award recognizes outstanding student achievement, including significant reductions in achievement gaps among students from lower-income and higher-income families.

Washington Post's Top High Schools - 

The Washington Post’s annual ranking of top high schools has repeatedly included multiple LBUSD high schools among those in the top 12 percent in the nation based upon college prep programs.

Grad Rates Increase - LBUSD graduation rates regulalry surpass state and county rates. Students of color in Long Beach schools also outperform their peers countywide and statewide. A record eight high schools here posted graduation rates above 90 percent.

Linked Learning Certification - Eleven high school pathways have earned gold or silver certification from the Linked Learning Alliance for demonstrating key components of specialized academic and career learning experiences.

The certified pathways are offered at Browning, Cabrillo, McBride, Jordan and Wilson schools, along with Sato and the California Academy of Mathematics and Science.

Advanced Placement College Prep Tests - Data from the Washington, D.C.-based Council of the Great City Schools depict Long Beach as a national leader in providing students greater access to Advanced Placement college preparatory courses.

A recent report looked at 48 of the nation’s largest school systems and found that the LBUSD ranked first nationally on the percentage of African American male students who took one or more AP courses; ranked second on the overall percentage of students who took one or more AP courses; ranked second on the percentage of Hispanic male students who took one or more AP courses; ranked second on the percentage of reduced price lunch students who took one or more AP courses; and ranked second on the percentage of students with disabilities who took one or more AP courses. Record numbers of students are taking college-level AP exams. The number of AP exams taken has grown steadily for the past 15 years, and LBUSD has earned national recognition from the College Board and others for increasing access to AP courses and tests.

National PTA Honor - Long Beach's Marshall Academy of the Arts earned a National PTA School of Excellence Award for building effective family-school partnerships.

Exemplary Attendance - State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond recognized LBUSD as a model of how to improve attendance and reduce the number of dropouts.

Work-based Learning - The school district offers more than 40 career pathways for students to choose from in high school. These pathways are based upon industry themes such as engineering, health and medical science, and travel, trade and tourism – all areas that offer good jobs not far from home.

Harvard Book Highlights Long Beach - The first book to detail examples of successful large-scale reform in the nation's most improved urban districts was released from the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s publishing group, and it featured LBUSD. Bringing School Reform to Scale: Five Award-Winning School Districts, from Harvard Education Press, described specific district-wide reform strategies that led school districts to outpace their peers in raising student achievement – not just in individual schools – but in numerous schools districtwide.

College Promise a Model for State and Nation - The College Promise initiative has improved college access by providing key incentives and services, including free tuition for thousands of students at Long Beach City College, guaranteed admission at Cal State Long Beach for local students who qualify, and college preparation and guidance as early as elementary school to help children understand that college is within reach. A 2019 report by the Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality included The Promise as one of three case studies exemplifying "bold steps to increase educational and employment opportunity for young people." The City of Long Beach joined the effort as an official partner in 2014, when the initiative expanded to emphasize preschool, or early education, and internships. Gov. Jerry Brown awarded the program a $5 million Innovation in Higher Education grant in 2015. The Little Hoover Commission, an independent agency that recommends ways to improve efficiency and effectiveness of state programs, released a detailed report citing The Promise as a successful model.

State Business Group Honors 21 Schools 

Twenty-one LBUSD schools are listed on the most recent California Business for Education Excellence Honor Roll for academic excellence and for reducing achievement gaps among student populations. The annual list is compiled by CBEE and the nonprofit Educational Results Partnership.

Musical Excellence - Year after year, LBUSD students are well represented in Southern California honors orchestras. The music program at Poly High School was recognized by the Grammy Foundation as one of the top seven high school music programs in the nation, and several schools have won national, state and regional honors.

Top Rating by Sports Illustrated - Sports Illustrated magazine selected Poly High School as its top sports high school in the nation. In what the magazine called "the most selective ranking in all of sports," Poly topped the list of nearly 38,000 high schools in the U.S. based on all-around excellence during the past 10 years, state titles won and college athletes produced. Sports Illustrated also commended Poly's rigorous academics. Students at other local high schools also regularly earn millions of dollars in full-ride athletic scholarships to prestigious colleges and universities.

Stanford Report Lauds LBUSD - A report from Stanford University said LBUSD is creating lasting reforms at the high school level. The school district’s reform model, known as linked learning (or multiple pathways), provides multiyear programs of study that are rigorous, relevant and directly connected to regional and state economic needs. The idea is to prepare students for success in a full array of options after high school.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Calls LBUSD a National Leader - A report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Center for American Progress and the American Enterprise Institute singled out LBUSD as an effectively managed school system. The report, "Leaders and Laggards," graded the 50 states on various aspects of their educational systems, and it described LBUSD as a leader in educational reform.

U.S. Secretary of Education Lauds LBUSD - U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan had high praise when he met with educators, parents and students at LBUSD’s Tincher Preparatory School. “I’ve studied your school district for a long time, and I think you have so much to be proud of,” Duncan said. “I don’t say this lightly, but more so than the vast majority of other school districts that I visit, this school district has gotten things right for a long time.”

Presidential Praise - In his first major policy speech on education, President Obama pointed to LBUSD's data-driven instruction as something other school districts across the nation should emulate. “Far too far too few districts are emulating the example of Houston and Long Beach, and using data to track how much progress a student is making and where that student is struggling," Obama said. President Clinton during his time in office also praised LBUSD for setting a national trend with its pioneering school uniform policy. "The entire United States of America is in your debt, because you took the first step," Clinton said.