In the “olden” days, “conventional wisdom” propelled parents to beg/wheedle/fudge the gas bill to try to get into Wonderland Elementary. Nowadays, a new wave of parental involvement/community engagement is attracting families to schools such as Cheremoya, Los Feliz, and Valley View.
Anecdotally, Franklin in particular seems like a new locus of one world grooviness, fashion and bohemia (gay parents welcome!).
Ask A Magnet Yenta 
In Atwater Village, there’s Glenfeliz Blvd. Elementary:
http://www.friendsofglenfeliz.org/
Cheremoya Elementary also has a parent booster group that’s really building momentum; have also heard there’s a very good new principal this year. My cousin’s son goes there and they’ve been very happy with the school.
Cheremoya is doing amazing things. We’ve been there since my daughter started kinder, the same year the new principal started, Mrs. Gorsuch. With Mrs. Gorsuch’s strong leadership and support, direct influence, money spent and many programs brought in by the cheremoya foundation, the school has had a tremendous growth spurt. (there’s a waiting list to get in now.) There wasn’t anything ever “broken” with the school either. the teachers are amazing. the kids are bright, polite and motivated. the school lacked strong leadership. communication with prior principals wasn’t quite right. but mostly, the perception was of this worn out dowager and the remnants of “white flight” from the bussing days were still laying around making the school look unattractive and lacking. Cheremoya has good thrust and are implementing many cool ideas and programs, not to mention the basics, such as painting, cleaning! the parent group alone are the ones who have taken it on to paint the inside of the school one section at a time. i hear we are still waiting for LAUSD to give us an outside paint job, but i know for sure our parent group will have the inside completed before LAUSDs trucks ever pull up. 😉 the school’s web site is pretty up to date and there is more on the foundation’s website. http://cheremoyafoundation.org
Hi there, I have a three year old currently in private pre school. I heard I can start applying for a mag school now even though she’s too young to go in order to build points. Is this true? Thank you…
Hi Steve,
You’ve heard partially right. You will apply the year before she starts kindergarten, but that will be for kindergarten. In less than a month the website will open for the 2014-2015 school year. But you can’t apply before she’s eligible for kindergarten.
Most magnets start in first grade, so by applying for kindergarten, you’re hoping to get rejected to build points for first grade. But you could conceivably get in.
Good luck!
If you want to collect points, your child can apply at Valley Alternative Magnet school for kinder classs (if her age is eligible for kinder class next year).
Valley View is wonderful! And we have a few spots now in Open Enrollment in all grades, including Transitional Kindergarten. Valley View Elementary is a hidden gem in the Hollywood Hills — with great teachers, free after school care until 6 pm, an edible garden and much more. I’d be happy to chat about the school with any prospective families. My son is in first grade and we really love it!
We are in our last (sigh) year at Franklin with our twins. Will miss the school, and teachers a lot next year. I honestly think that Franklin (which has close to 40% title 1 kids) is a much more diverse and well-rounded school than Ivanhoe (have had a few friends who moved into that district from Franklin, and they miss Franklin a lot). Mrs. Sasso (principal) runs a very tight ship, but there is a wonderful emphasis on art and music that really makes the school stand out. Differentiated teaching, allowing the gifted kids in 4th and 5th to go deeper in the material while the others work at a more moderate level. Onto King next (magnet apps are in, my oldest is there), along with most of our twins’ friends. We actually moved into Mayberry’s district a few years ago, but kept the kids at Franklin on SAS permits. Alas, that is no longer an option as Franklin has become more popular with the local parents. But, if you are looking in the area for a rental or to buy, know that it’s just as good as Ivanhoe.
Good to hear that Franklin Ave is highly recommended. I’m confused on King MS. It looks like everyone needs to apply — is there preference for those living in the neighborhood or feeder pattern? What MS do students attend if not King? LAUSD only shows King when looking up by address.
We’re moving to Los Feliz this summer, and my son, who is going into second grade, will be in the Los Feliz Stem Magnet draw area, and he is currently in a magnet program in the South Bay, How can Los Feliz STEM Magnet be a magnet and still have a draw area? Is the magnet located within LFES? Is this why the school gets such a mediocre score? Additionally, we would love for our son to go to Franklin ES (We’ll be living above Franklin, and the school is very close but not within the drawn boundaries for it.) Does that mean it is not an option? Thanks for your help.
This whole magnet with a ‘draw’ area is fairly new. Hopefully a newer magnet parent will explain because it’s not something we’ve seen as our kids went through. King had it first and now it’s trickling into other schools. It appears to be related to keeping school populations up without sending neighbhorhood families away.
As of 2017-2018, Franklin is accepting kids on permits – with all the charters around, it is less overcrowded than in the past, so keep this in mind as an option!
Hi – Sorry to pick up an old thread but I wanted to see if you wound up staying at Los Feliz STEM Magnet and, if so, what you thoughts are. We’re moving to LA soon and aiming to land in the Los Feliz area. Besides Ivanhoe and Franklin Ave, I wanted to see if Los Feliz STEM might be a good option for my 9 year old. Thanks!