Grading the arts in LAUSD

Christopher Columbus Middle

22250 Elkwood St, Canoga Park

Enrollment: 712

Low-income students: 87%

Race/Ethnicity: Latino: 80%, white: 6%, Asian: 5%, black: 4%, other: 4%

Rank

128 of 249

secondary schools

C

What arts classes are offered?

Theater

Visual

Dance

Music

Vocal

Film

Media

Christopher Columbus Middle scored 28 out of 80 points on a first-of-its-kind survey of arts education at L.A. Unified. The secondary school offers two of seven standard arts classes tracked by the district and provides extra programs, according to responses by administrators before the 2015-16 academic year. The school's survey response earned a C grade in a Times analysis of the results. Districtwide, 535 schools (70.8%) received the same grade.

How much is taught?

Administrators answered multiple-choice questions about arts instruction, training and equipment provided by the school.

Students and class availability

Instructional time per week: The estimated amount of time spent on arts education per week

Number of arts courses: The number of arts programs offered

Instructional time per week

Number of arts courses

Teachers and facilities

Arts instructors: For elementary schools, this is the number of days per week that a district-employed arts teacher provides instruction. For secondary schools, this is the number of full-time arts teachers on staff.

Training: Arts-specific training opportunites offered to teachers

Equipment and facilities: Quality of equipment and facilities available at each school to support the arts

Arts instructors

Training

Equipment and facilities

Who pays and who else teaches?

Administrators answered yes-or-no questions about sources of funding and instruction for arts education.

Funds for standard classes

Sources of funding for arts resources and supplies (e.g. paintbrushes, instruments) used for instruction during the regular school day

School budget*

 Yes

Fundraising by school or parent groups

 No

Grants

 No

Donations

 No
* Amount from budget reported as "$501 - $1,000"

Funds for extra instruction

Sources of funding for arts programs that are not provided as part of the regular school day

School budget

 No

Fundraising by school or parent groups

 No

Grants

 No

Donations

 No

Teachers of extra classes

Who provides the extra arts instruction at this school

A district teacher not dedicated to teaching the arts

 No

Community arts partner

 No

Parent or community volunteer

 No

Accomplished artist

 Yes

How did nearby schools score?

Compare the grades earned by L.A. Unified schools in surrounding neighborhoods.

Name Type Address Grade
Capistrano Avenue Elementary Elementary 8118 Capistrano Ave C
Canoga Park Elementary Elementary 7438 Topanga Cany C
Nevada Avenue Elementary Elementary 22120 Chase St C
Owensmouth Continuation Secondary 6921 Jordan Ave C
Enadia Technology Enriched Charter Elementary 22944 West Enadia Way C
Canoga Park Senior High Secondary 6850 Topanga Cyn Blvd C
Justice Street Academy Charter Elementary 23350 Justice St B
Hart Street Elementary Elementary 21040 Hart St C
Hamlin Charter Academy Elementary 22627 Hamlin St N/A
Sunny Brae Avenue Elementary Elementary 20620 Arminta St C
Pomelo Community Charter Elementary 7633 March Ave C
Limerick Avenue Elementary Elementary 8530 Limerick Ave C
Welby Way Elementary Charter Elementary 23456 Welby Way A
Fullbright Avenue Elementary Elementary 6940 Fullbright Ave D
William Tell Aggeler Opportunity High Secondary 21050 Plummer St D

Reader comments

Share what you know about arts education at Christopher Columbus Middle in the comments or on social media using #gradeyourschool.

Footnote: Low-income percentage tallied using the total number of students receiving free and reduced-price lunch. Some errors in survey responses exist; read more about how these data were assembled.

Sources: Los Angeles Unified School District, California Department of Education, Times analysis

Credits: Ryan Menezes, Lily Mihalik, Zahira Torres, Ben Welsh

Icons: The Noun Project, Artworkbean, Raz Cohen, Benjamin Bours, Paul Stevens, Creative Stall, BraveBros., Jakub Caja, Alexander Cherkinsky, Austin Condiff, Yu Luck