7 Lake Forest Schools Among Best For Grades K-8: U.S. News

LAKE FOREST, CA — Several elementary and middle schools in Lake Forest have been ranked among the best in California, according to a brand-new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

Statewide, more than 7,850 elementary and middle schools have been ranked among the best in California, according to the report.

Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools. California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.

For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.

Schools are ranked at the state and district levels. The best charter schools and best magnet schools ranked as stand-alone categories.

U.S. News ranked Oxford Preparatory Academy — which hosts grades K-8 — as the highest in the state among schools in Lake Forest, ranking no. 729 in among California's elementary schools and no. 173 among the state's middle schools according to the new list. Serrano Intermediate, at no. 658 and Rancho Canada Elementary, at no. 1,343, were ranked next.

Here’s a look at how other elementary schools in Lake Forest ranked compared with others in the state:

• No. 1,470 La Madera Elementary, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
• No. 2594 Lake Forest Elementary, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
• No. 3,257 Ralph A. Gates Elementary, Saddleback Valley Unified School District
• No. 4,151 Olivewood Elementary

Here's how middle schools in Lake Forest ranked:

• No. 173 Oxford Preparatory Academy
• No. 658 Serrano Intermediate

Here’s a look at how elementary schools throughout California ranked:

See the full list here.

To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:

• Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
• Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.

Here's how middle schools in the Golden State stacked up:

See the full list here.

The state assessment data used in the rankings are from the 2018-19 school year and, therefore, predates any effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on test-taking.

Schools were also ranked by district. Here’s how elementary and middle schools in Saddleback Valley Unified measured up.

Elementary schools:

• No. 1343 Rancho Canada Elementary
• No. 1470La Madera Elementary

Middle schools:

• No. 658 Serrano Intermediate

See the complete list of 2021’s Best K-8 Schools.