Tony Thurmond, Superintendent of Public Instruction, California Department of Education | California Department of Education
Tony Thurmond, Superintendent of Public Instruction, California Department of Education | California Department of Education
The grade with the second highest number of students was 11th grade, with 791 students, or 9.2% of the student body.
The school that had the highest number of 12th grade students in Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District during the period was Santa Monica High School, while Olympic High (Continuation) had the fewest.
Overall, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District enrolled 8,630 students, ranking as the 193rd highest enrolled district in California for the 2023-24 school year. It ranked 188th highest in the previous school year.
California's public schools face a growing financial crisis driven by declining enrollment and an increase in chronic absenteeism, both impacting the state's school funding model.
Enrollment, which peaked at 6.3 million students in the early 2000s, has steadily declined to under 6 million today, with projections indicating it could fall below 5.2 million by 2032. This trend is attributed to lower birth rates, slowed immigration, and families relocating out of state due to high housing costs. Rural and coastal districts have been particularly affected, facing tough decisions such as school closures and staffing reductions.
At the same time, chronic absenteeism has surged from 12% pre-pandemic to 25%, disproportionately impacting younger students and jeopardizing their long-term success.
| School | Total Enrollment |
|---|---|
| Edison Elementary School | 395 |
| Franklin Elementary School | 612 |
| Grant Elementary School | 570 |
| John Adams Middle School | 808 |
| Lincoln Middle School | 884 |
| Malibu Elementary School | 191 |
| Malibu High School | 390 |
| Malibu Middle School | 247 |
| McKinley Elementary School | 393 |
| Olympic High (Continuation) | 32 |
| Roosevelt Elementary School | 588 |
| Santa Monica Alternative (K-8) | 219 |
| Santa Monica High School | 2,573 |
| Webster Elementary School | 205 |
| Will Rogers Elementary School | 523 |
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