Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools

In 2004, Alliance College-Ready Public Schools opened a single high school with a profound promise: to prepare underserved students in areas of Los Angeles with historically low-performing schools to graduate ready for success in college. Students and their parents have embraced our rigorous instruction, personalized campuses, longer school year and the expectation that every student can achieve at high levels.

The Alliance opened five schools in the 2009-10 academic year and now operates a total of 11 high schools and 5 middle schools in low-income areas of Los Angeles. The student body numbers about 5,600: 84% Latino and 15% African American. Also, 27% are English-language learners and 94% qualify for free or reduced federal meal program.

In June 2009, the Alliance celebrated three high school graduations.100% of our 289 graduates applied to four-year colleges and 73% were accepted to four-year colleges. Alliance grads currently attend UC and Cal State public and private universities such as Vassar, Wellesley, Mills and Dartmouth. In June 2010, six Alliance schools will have graduating classes.

Five Alliance high schools have earned 2009 Academic Performance Index (API) scores that rank them in the top 16 high schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District; two scored higher than 800 and rank in the 10 top-scoring high schools.All Alliance schools outperformed nearby traditional schools by a range of 86 to 331 points, but single test scores don’t tell the whole story.  It’s growth over time that ensures sustainable change in student learning. For example, Gertz-Ressler High School improved 131 points since 2005 and Huntington Park College-Ready Academy High School jumped 188 since 2006.

Overall between 2007 and 2009, Alliance schools increased the percentage of students performing at advanced or proficient levels on California Content Standards Tests by 1% in English and 16% in math.

A survey of 3,000 Alliance families shows that parents strongly support the academic program, the college-bound culture and the school environment. The average daily attendance rate at Alliance schools is 95%.