Grading the arts in LAUSD

Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts

450 N Grand Ave, Los Angeles

Enrollment: 1,704

Low-income students: 62%

Race/Ethnicity: Latino: 69%, white: 11%, Asian: 6%, black: 9%, other: 5%

Rank

1 of 249

secondary schools

A

What arts classes are offered?

Theater

Visual

Dance

Music

Vocal

Film

Media

Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts scored 68 out of 80 points on a first-of-its-kind survey of arts education at L.A. Unified. The secondary school offers six 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 an A grade in a Times analysis of the results. Districtwide, 35 schools (4.6%) 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

Yes

Grants

No

Donations

Yes
* Amount from budget reported as "more than $3,000"

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

Yes

Grants

No

Donations

Yes

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

Yes

Parent or community volunteer

Yes

Accomplished artist

Yes

How did nearby schools score?

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

Name Type Address Grade
Castelar Street Elementary Elementary 840 Yale St B
Downtown Business High Secondary 1081 W Temple St C
Edward R. Roybal Learning Center Secondary 1213 West 1st St B
Ann Street Elementary Elementary 126 E Bloom St C
CDS Secondary Secondary 333 S Beaudry Ave 18th Fl D
Betty Plasencia Elementary Elementary 1321 Cortez St C
School of Business and Tourism at Contreras Learning Complex Secondary 322 S Lucas Ave C
Harris Newmark Continuation Secondary 134 Witmer St D
Contreras Learning Center-School of Social Justice Secondary 322 S Lucas Ave C
Contreras Learning Center-Los Angeles School of Global Studies Secondary 322 S Lucas Ave D
Contreras Learning Center-Academic Leadership Community Secondary 322 Lucas Ave C
Belmont Senior High Secondary 1575 W 2nd St C
Gratts Learning Academy for Young Scholars (GLAYS) Elementary 309 Lucas Ave C
Sal Castro Middle Secondary 1575 W 2nd St C
Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez High Secondary 1200 Plaza Del Sol N/A

Reader comments

Share what you know about arts education at Ramon C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts 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