LAGUNA BLANCA - Admission

Welcome to Laguna Blanca School

“Laguna Blanca School is a place where students love to learn, teachers love to teach, and parents are engaged as partners in the intellectual and personal development of their children.”
~ Paul Chiment, Faculty Member

Welcome

Admission Philosophy

Laguna at a Glance

WELCOME
With a history dating back to 1933, Laguna Blanca School is a close-knit community in which all members form a dedicated partnership in the education and development of our students. From our kindergarten learners to those in twelfth grade, Laguna’s small classes and inspirational teachers create a nurturing environment where challenging academics and the opportunity for involvement, enrichment, and advancement abounds for just about any endeavor a student wishes to pursue. This unique setting instills confidence as students explore their strengths, achieve their goals, and develop into compassionate leaders both today and tomorrow.

We’re thrilled that you are interested in Laguna Blanca School, and the admission office is eager to help you explore the richness of our educational program. While our web site offers a glimpse into life and learning at Laguna, a personal visit provides a more accurate picture of the academic vibrancy and contagious spirit that infuses our community. Please contact us at 805.695.8143 for grades K-4 and 805.687.2461 for grades 5-12 to schedule a personal visit. Our students and faculty look forward to welcoming you to the School.

Hope to see you soon!

ADMISSION PHILOSOPHY

Laguna Blanca School believes that a successful educational community champions each student as an individual whose intellectual and social growth is enriched by the diversity of talents, backgrounds, interests, personalities, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status of its student body. Laguna is deeply committed to supporting the development of its students as caring human beings and scholars. Our teachers find that students work harder, achieve more, and treat each other with a higher level of dignity when their efforts are consistently encouraged and valued. Towards this end, Laguna provides meaningful lessons, challenging standards, and a nurturing community that inspire our students to achieve their full potential.

In the admission process, Laguna seeks bright, motivated candidates of good character who possess imagination, initiative, a concern for others, strength in extracurricular activities, a commitment to academic and personal growth, and who are ready to gain from and contribute to our dynamic learning experience. Through a strong, need-based financial aid program, Laguna is committed to providing a quality education to outstanding students who for financial reasons would otherwise be unable to attend the School.

If you would like to learn more about the School and the admission process, please fill out our online inquiry form and we will send you the appropriate materials.

Laguna Blanca School admits students of any race, color, religion, national and ethnic origin to all rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, or national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic or other school-administered programs.

LAGUNA AT A GLANCE

History
On land in Hope Ranch made available by Mr. Harold Chase for the establishment of a college preparatory independent school, Edward Selden Spaulding and three of his colleagues from the Deane School founded Laguna Blanca School in 1933. With Mr. Spaulding as the first headmaster, the School opened its doors to 45 young men and graduated its first official class four years later in 1937.

Each year to keep pace with increasing enrollment, the School added new buildings, classrooms, and science labs, growing from a six-acre campus to the approximate 35 acres that houses the school today. In 1942, Laguna became coeducational, and in 1957, the School added a kindergarten to complete a full range of elementary and secondary classes.

The year 2000 proved pivotal in the history of Laguna Blanca with the acquisition of a new Lower School site in Montecito. Offering bright classrooms with science, music, art, computer, and library facilities, the Lower School expansion provided a wonderful learning space for our youngest students and allowed for welcomed growth in grades 5-12 on the Hope Ranch campus. Through the vision of its founders and the generosity of parents, alumni, and friends of the School, Laguna continues to provide an exceptional educational experience that allows its students to become scholars and leaders and its graduates to gain acceptance to the nation’s most selective colleges and universities.

Enrollment

Lower School (K-4): 95 students

Middle School (5-8): 120 students
Upper School (9-12): 210

Faculty

K-12 Faculty: 60

70% hold advanced degrees

Mascot

Owl

School Colors
Blue and White

Location

Lower School Campus

260 San Ysidro Road