Magnolia Public Schools in SoCal Awarded $11.3M Education Grant
Magnolia Public Schools in SoCal Awarded $11.3M Education Grant
Magnolia Public Schools (MPS), a network of 10 tuition-free charter schools in Southern California – including four in the San Fernando Valley – has been awarded an $11.3 million grant to replicate and expand its successful STEAM-focused charter school model.
MPS is one of only three recipients in California and 17 nationwide selected to receive the U.S. Department of Education’s competitive Charter Schools Program-Charter Management Organizations (CSP-CMO) grants, which awarded a combined $140 million in funding for 2024.
MPS received the highest score of this year’s grant applicants – over 115 points out of 121.
The network operates four Magnolia Science Academy (MSA) elementary, middle and high schools in the Valley with an emphasis on Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math curriculum – serving more than 1,800 students across school sites in Reseda, Northridge and Lake Balboa.
Learning at Los Lobos
Ali Kaplan, principal of MSA 5-Los Lobos – which has about 250 students in grades 6-12 in Reseda – was excited to learn about the grant award, which he said will help support a range of curriculum and programs for his “small but mighty school.” The funding will be used in part to continue growing their enhanced support for Los Lobos students who are English learners.
“We have about 33% of our students who are current English learners,” said Kaplan. He noted that about 90% of their students are current or former English learners.
Despite the language hurdles many students face, Kaplan said teachers help them succeed by offering more hands-on assistance in class and additional learning opportunities on Saturdays, during winter break and in summer school, which enables them to outperform students at comparable schools.
Compared to other LA County schools with similar student demographics, “MSA 5 is one of the top schools – we even surpass some of the magnet schools,” said Kaplan, adding that the school’s overall test scores surpass LAUSD’s, and Los Lobos has a 100% graduation rate. Last year 34 out of 37 Los Lobos graduates were accepted into four-year colleges.
Kaplan said the grant will help them build on their past successes and allow them to “expand and grow” their new dual enrollment college readiness program. Students can enroll in select college classes taught on-site at Los Lobos by professors from LA Pierce College in Woodland Hills, allowing them to earn college credit or even graduate with both a high school diploma and an associate of arts (AA) degree, giving them a head start on their college plans.
He added the funding would also aid the school’s transition to its new permanent site in Winnetka, which is under construction and slated for completion in August of 2025. Originally founded in Hollywood in 2008, Los Lobos has moved locations four times and shares its current site with MSA 1-Reseda, a 6-12 school.
“It has been a challenge for us, but MSA 5 has been able to strive and succeed, and we plan to continue,” the principal said.
Funding Growth at MSA 2
Principal David Garner of MSA 2-Valley in Lake Balboa – which has 535 students, 90% of which are Latino – said the grant would help grow the 6-12 school “across the board,” including in student enrollment.
“We’ve had growth in student enrollment every year for the last five years,” said Garner, which he deems an impressive feat, especially “when a lot of schools are declining [in] enrollment.” The goal, he said, is to increase enrollment to 664 students over the next five years, and eventually develop an additional satellite campus to keep up with the rising numbers of students.
Last year, MSA 2 was designated a California Distinguished School for many achievements, including low suspension and expulsion rates; high graduation rate; high math and English test scores; and its high percentage of reclassification of student English learners.
“We’re very proud of that. Not just because of the award – we don’t necessarily care about the award itself – it’s more about what it represents,” explained Garner. “For such a small high school, we can make incredible waves.”
Other noted accomplishments include a student team reaching the U.S. championship competition of VEX Robotics, a NASA-affiliated program, two years in a row; the jazz combo band won second place in the Stanford Jazz Festival; and its growing early college program, allowing students to take a selection of college courses at Pierce College, LA Mission College or LA Valley College, either in person at the local college or on campus at MSA 2.
“It’s been such an incredible blessing to witness all the hard work that the students and their families have been doing throughout the years … and to be able to experience that from so many different vantage points,” said Garner, who was a parent at MSA 2 before becoming working a math teacher, and later the dean of students. He has been the school principal for five years.
“These funds will be used to continue developing programs that can help build the culture and climate of support, to help provide [students] with more academic development and growth, and … make the school a better place to continue to draw more students to the school,” he said.
Supporting Underserved Students
To be eligible for a Department of Education CSP-CMO grant, applicants must serve racially and socioeconomically diverse high school students and help prepare and transition students from high school to college or university enrollment. All MPS schools are located in underserved communities, from the Northeast Valley to San Diego.
“This recognition is a testament to the hard work and countless hours our educators, school leaders and staff dedicate to Magnolia’s education model,” said Alfredo Rubalcava, CEO and superintendent of MPS, “so that families are supported and children can thrive in school and beyond.”
