This Los Angeles high school was just named one of the 10 best in America

Los Angeles has no shortage of elite schools (and wealthy families to fill them), but one local campus just earned a particularly impressive and elite academic bragging right: Science Academy STEM Magnet in North Hollywood was just named one of the 10 best high schools in America.

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The honor comes courtesy of U.S. News & World Report’s 2026–27 Best High Schools rankings, which evaluated nearly 24,000 public high schools across the country. The North Hollywood school came in at No. 10 nationally and No. 1 in California and in L.A. (Even if "public" isn't quite the right descriptor for a magnet school; after all, you still have to apply for admission.)

The rankings evaluated around 27,000 eligible public high schools across all 50 states on six major factors, including state assessment performance, graduation rates, college readiness, AP and IB participation and performance, curriculum breadth and how effectively schools serve underserved students. The data comes from the 2023–24 school year.

The small LAUSD magnet school serves students in grades 6 through 12 and has just 226 students in grades 9 through 12. It also posted a perfect college-readiness score in the latest ranking, according to data compiled from the U.S. News rankings.

And if you're wondering what exactly is happening in those classrooms: a lot of STEM. The school is designed around science, technology, engineering and math, with a strong emphasis on college preparation. According to the latest rankings data, its AP participation rate is 100 percent, and every AP test taker earned a score of at least 3 on one or more exams.

Science Academy STEM Magnet isn't the only Los Angeles-area academic powerhouse making a splash in the rankings, either. Two other Los Angeles County schools landed in the national top 25: Whitney High School in Cerritos at No. 11 and Dr. Richard A. Vladovic Harbor Teacher Preparation Academy in Wilmington at No. 24.

Still, Science Academy STEM Magnet is the big local winner this year. A North Hollywood public school sitting in the national top 10—and No. 1 in California—is a pretty impressive report card for Los Angeles.