I love this school and how it has taught my children to be part of a community. They have been engaged in learning, both socially and academically. The arts specialists and teachers have integrated the arts into the curriculum which spurs creative thinking, imagination and new ideas from all of the children. My son is now in a public Middle School and doing so well, despite the jump in the amount of students and the different teaching approaches. LFCSA did him well. The teachers, staff and administration are incredibly hard working and wonderful at their jobs. And I think the front desk does an amazing job of guiding parents without over-engaging and getting distracted from their jobs helping run the school. While there are sound issues, the administration and school board have found some fairly good temporary solutions while working towards the (more expensive) permanent ones. But the space itself is wonderful and inspiring. I see in other reviews a complaint about the need to constantly raise money for the school. In no way is anyone ever required to donate anything towards the school. But the special things about this school (not including a parking lot and and amazing building), including programs such as the Artists in Residence, Professional Development for the teachers, Aides to help on the playground and in the classrooms, supplies, field trips, other special programs and more all cost a LOT OF MONEY and are not supported by LAUSD, the City, County or State.. So if you do not or can not help in fundraising, I plead you to contact your City Councilperson, your State Representatives, your Governor, and your President and let them know that public schools like Los Feliz Charter School for the Arts need much more monetary support. I am happy to say that my children love to learn and love to go to school, and I give LFCSA the credit for that. read more

My child was having a difficult time at his previous school where there were 36 kids in his classroom. He wasn't receiving challenging materials, nor the support when children were bullying him. I have to say from day one CalCreative offered an amazing 180 degree difference from the traditional setting. He made friends the first day and has been eager to come to school every day. I'm kicking myself for taking so long to move him. I wish I had done it earlier in his education. read more

My child was molested twice at this school by a boy who harassed her for months. I was not notified by the school of either incidents, and the principal did not reply to my request for a meeting. My child is having nightmares, has been out of school for a month, and no one from the school board or administration is taking action to get her trauma counseling or a safe return to school, in violation of Title IX law. We have filed complaints with the Office for Civil Rights and are seeking legal action as well. We have a detailed document of evidence that they tried to cover this up and lie about what happened. This is not a safe environment for children. Avoid at all costs. read more

We LOVE CalCreative! A fun and mindful school that thinks outside of the box! So much wonderful learning through art and being kind to one another. Elementary school grades TK-5th and Middle school grades 6th-8th! read more

My family and I are forever grateful for our twins boys' early education at CCLA (kinder to fourth grade). Their teachers were talented and caring individuals who inspired curiosity for learning. The enrichment teachers created strong communities in their classrooms where students broaden their abilities with music, art, and physical education. CCLA is a great school, and we are thankful for the wonderful experience and community. read more

Both of my children attended CCLA when it was LFCSA. They both had dedicated and energetic teachers and left with a love of learning and true senses of self. They had great experiences in a strong community environment. The parents, staff, administration and board worked together constantly improving both the physical and relational realms of the school and dealing with the challenges presented. It was a true pleasure being a part of the community at California Creative Learning Academy and both of my children can credit their academic success and social confidence with their time spent there. read more

It's my 4 year old's first year of school. Huge transition! The amount of growth we've seen in him from the time school started to now has been so incredible. In fact, as soon as he gets home, he does art for another 2-3 hours on his own. His teacher, Ms. Cruz and her aide, have been kindly supporting him (and his classmates) both academically and socio-emotionally. They highlight what he's learning to do well and what needs improvement - all in effort to encourage him to be himself and make connections within the community. At times, it takes a village to raise a child to be whole, and I am grateful to how much I've seen the school's mission translating into classrooms like his. read more

We are finishing third grade and my daughter has been going to this wonderful school since the middle of kindergarten. We have talked about transferring to other schools that end at a later year, but my kid has made it clear that she wants to finish at LFCSFA and then move on. The school did go through a transition last year and a mass exodus of staff, but I'm happy with the changes that the school felt that it needed to do. Although I am sad the school is ending at 5th grade instead of 6th, but I get it. It boils down to enrollment. As far as the complaint of the school not being in Los Feliz...That's silly...Learn about the public charter beforehand and understand that they found a building in Glassel Park but decided to hold on to their original name...That's ok. Buildings are hard to come by in Los Angeles. I wish the playground had grass, but it doesn't. It has other positive things instead. I remind myself of this when I drive from Pasadena. I love this school. My kid is happy. She has made wonderful friends and it is free! read more

California Creative Learning Academy - Halloween Town at LFCSFA equals kid happiness! - Elementary Schools Near Me - Los Angeles, California

My son has been at LFCSA for 6 years, and we're still very happy! He benefits from the smaller class sizes and the flexibility with different learning styles. We like all the hands-on projects and the progressive curriculum. Instead of rote memorization and focusing on state tests, they are really getting him to connect with learning. And their ability to support students emotionally makes a big difference to us. read more

I highly recommend Cal Creative. Their project based learning with arts integration and a whole child approach has our kids thriving in school. The staff is thoughtful and compassionate and they set a great example for the students. I'm so glad we found this school. The community is amazing. No regrets! read more

I am a parent of 2 students at LFCSA. They've both thrived and are inspired daily. Our eldest entered LFCSA in 3rd grade (she's now in 6th). We were immediately impressed by how unified the teachers and administrators are in their approach towards educating and fostering creativity in the students while appreciating their unique qualities. The teachers, admin, parents, and kids all contribute to making this school a wonderful place to learn. LFCSA educates the whole child and as a result our children love to learn. read more

The curriculum is a joke. The punishments are an even greater joke. Bullying is acceptable here and made to look like the victims. The teachers are okay I GUESS. Location is terrible. The front desk girl is HORRIBLE! Disgustingly rude (The one with the bad acne on her face). Don't bother to come to this school, I will be taking my kid out. read more

I have two children who are special needs kids and I enrolled them to LFCSA for this school year. It's only been 4 days since I came to this school with my children with great hope because especially my first kid like drawing and talented. But, I'm really disappointed and frustrated with the people at your school. I don't understand why your school staff are treating us rude. All the treatment my children received, all the treatment I received, was our first time experience. No anywhere cannot compete with the rudeness my children (who needs special needs) and I have experienced at this school in the last 4 days. My first son, who is isolated from all the kids and sits at a sofa from day one. He sits there all day long without a desk, a seat, a friend... Then there is 2nd child, who can't come after the whole child when they come into the classroom from the playground, and no one brings him in, so he's left alone outside. They seem invisible to you people. Far from learning. Also school staffs treat me like criminal who has to be watched, supervised, followed until I'm out of the gate. Your staff and faculty treat me as a strange criminal, ignoring my greetings. I do not understand how people who teach children and work for children, can treat me, a parent, and especially my kids like that. There are no words to explain the pain your school has left in me and my poor babies who cannot even express their feelings. School staffs (especially, Michelle Jones) and teachers were rude to me and they didn't know how to handle with my kids and didn't even care. So today, I removed my children from this school in a week. I hope there will never be a parent who goes through things like me again. Also If you have plans to send special children to this school, don't send them to this school because you might have experience like me. read more

We love our school!!! This is our 2nd year at LFCSA and we couldn't be happier. My kiddo comes home every day super jazzed about school, and he always WANTS to go! The emphasis on social- emotional learning is huge and there is a theme of kindness that runs through everything. So far, we have had very thoughtful, communicative and compassionate teachers. The staff is on it! All the arts integration, project based learning that you read about on their website can be seen in action, especially when they do art walks and you get to see what your kids have been working on and HOW they do it. They learn to collaborate and be respectful of others' ideas, which is everything for the current and future work force. The TK/ Kinder/ 1st classes are at the new satellite campus on Eagle Rock and its so cute. It's the perfect bridge from preschool to elementary because it's a little more intimate than the other campus for the older kids. All that being said, no school is perfect. LFCSA is a public charter, so it is under funded just like all schools are, so they depend on fundraising to maintain all the art/ music/ dance enrichment. So, there are always improvements being made. But the PTA is really active in creating fun events and they seem to get parents involved in a fun and low pressure way. When I ask my kid how his day was in a scale of 1-10, he pretty much always says 20:) We love LFCSA!!! read more

Good elementary School, Bad middle school. Ive been here since third grade and now I'm at my last year 8th. Third grade though fifth grade had an actually good education but once it gets to middle school it really starts to lack in education. We only have 2 teachers and learn the same thing again and again. This school has no walls which makes it incredibly hard to learn when you can hear everyone else. I came here to do art and I think artistically you would be better off in a public school. 2\5 cause I don't want to be to mean. read more

My daughter has received IEP and specialist time since she was in Kindergarten. LFCSA, staff and teachers have helped my daughter thrive to be a better student everyday. She has gained so much confidence in herself that she was able to give a culmination speech that was written herself and it was a tear jerker! She is now a happy Middle Schooler. If you are looking for a school that treats students with special education needs like scholar-ed human being this place is for your child! read more

Our family is so happy with LFCSA. We have a son in Kinder who happens to have special needs. After spending 3 years in a private Montessori​ school, I was always concerned that a public school wouldn't be a nurturing environment for him or that his learning style would be treated like a burden. LFCSA proved me wrong. This school appreciates all types of learners and all of our differences are embraced. The school takes great pride in it's support for kids with IEPs and even hosts a meet and greet so that parents can meet all of the service providers as well as each other. Having a child with special needs can be so isolating and this is the first time in a while that I've felt at home. Our first IEP meeting was handled with such care, patience and precision and all of the parties took their time to ensure that we felt heard. While my son learns differently than others, a strong curriculum is important to me to ensure my son has any opportunities available to him. The curriculum really impresses me even at the Kindergarten level and the emphasis on Social Emotional Learning should be modeled at all schools. LFCSA is helping to develop the type of humans and leaders we need in this world. read more

I will preface my review by saying that this school seems to work for some parents and their kids... We didn't know whether the arts curriculum would be a good fit for our kid, but since we are both artists we were excited by the school, the space, and the idea of a school that is arts integrated. But after Kinder, we went elsewhere. The reasons were many, but I just wanted to post this to forewarn parents considering this school. The K classes are blended with Pre-K and this creates a room of about 40-50 kids run by two teachers on any given day. This is sometimes chaotic (obviously) but in some kids (like ours) it creates anxiety. There is not much one-on-one instruction and a lot of interactions happen between students that are not observed by the teachers. This is a related issue, but the school also seems to have a lot of hitting. I suspect it has something to do with size of space, number of students, and lack of classroom control. This is a charter school with an alternative educational philosophy that should be able to serve all students, but unfortunately does not. The space, the building, and the way the classrooms are run do not create an environment where all students have the opportunity to be free and open. read more

After having such a bad experience at Los Feliz Charter we moved my son to a different school. What a difference! He is thriving and so much happier. read more

I love this school! My shy, sensitive daughter has thrived in this learning environment, full of cooperation and arts focused curriculum. It is a special place full of growth and learning while being inclusive and welcoming to everyone. I have met many amazing people at this school and am proud to be a part of this wonderful community. read more

Watch as schools all over this city try to implement the progressive, engaging, enriching, nurturing, project-based curriculum, and focus on differentiated learning and group-work that LFCSA has had in place from the get-go, for over ten years now! My 17 year-old was one of the founding LFCSA kindergarteners, and he is the well-rounded, artistic, kind, empathetic, positive, imaginative, hard-working, grateful, big-picture-seeing, and UNentitled person he is today due in no small part to the supportive community we were part of during his five years at LFCSA. For those newbies freaking out about a lack of spelling drills, let me assure you that my son can spell, and that the freedom to TELL HIS STORIES without being constantly corrected as a kindergartner nurtured his creativity and confidence in ways we are still seeing spiraling out into the world... Admittedly, the beautiful but quirky physical space isn't for everyone, and wasn't the right fit for my more distractable younger child, so I would remind prospective parents to choose LFCSA if it's the right fit for your particular child. Please do not force a round peg into a square hole. And PLEASE don't bang your head against a wall trying to force this lovely school to be something it isn't and hasn't been and shouldn't be just to suit your particular kid. read more

We have been at LFCSA for four years and we love it. It's a wonderful school with a community that is doing their best to serve our kids through arts integrated learning as well as social/emotional growth. I remember touring the school and thinking the second graders were learning art the way I did at university! I think we should always be striving to do better and be better as well as listening to our kids needs. No one school fits all but if you have family values that are centered around a positive and diverse community, the arts (not only performing but ALL facets of art) and looking into the future of learning in a project based atmosphere that fosters independent thinking and out of the box problem solving, well then LFCSA is the best. read more

I have been teaching at this school for a number of years and I can wholeheartedly say that it is amazing for developing children's creativity, collaboration, self-directedness and empathy. I am so excited to continue to be a part of an organization that is constantly evolving to be a beacon of democracy and authentic community. read more

Schools are strange places. For one child it might be a wonderland & for another it might be a nightmare. And that's just from the perspective of the child- what a parent experiences can be wildly different. For us we started at Ivanhoe & excitedly so. It was a terrible for for my son who needed a more progressive approach to his education & social structure. Also he responded to the amazingly creative aesthetic of the campus. It really is amazing & has a profound on people who are sensitive to that sort of thing. My son has done very well there- no, we have not been without incident, but I don't think there is a school where that would not happen. For us the benefits cannot be found elsewhere, especially at a publicly funded school. We feel very lucky to be there & I hope we always do. read more

My kids love LFCSA. Art, dance and music is integrated in their academic curriculum which makes learning effective, fun and tactile. In addition to providing amazing academic curriculum, they also cater to their socio/emotional needs which in return allows my kids to be open to learning and thrive academically and be confident while respecting others that are different. The teachers are exceptionally experienced and compassionate. They truly model the behavior they expect and my kids look up to them. LFCSA is not just our school; it is an extension of our home. read more

Well, a couple of months after writing this review I moved my son to a different school. I still think LFCSA is an amazing school, it just wasn't for my son. But if your current school isn't a good fit its a great place to try out, and I'm glad I did. I think he learned alot about different types of children and how to get along with different people. But he's happier with a more academic atmosphere for the long run. read more

First I want to start out by saying, please take these negative reviews with a grain of salt. There's a few helicopter-ish type parents at this school who feel like no school is good enough for their kid. There are parents here who transferred their kids from AVESON - the creme de la creme coveted JPL/NASA kids school in Altadena because they were unhappy there. Some even have older kids at the school who love it but are leaving anyway. Mr Banger (sp?) is the PE teacher (the kids adore) who collects donations on Fridays. Why is this a big deal? All schools fundraise and people pay 30k to send their kids to private school. I'm happy to donate $2, $5, $10 whenever I can. Also can we show some respect for our educators? Panhandling!?! Man that is ice cold!! I can't really wrap my head around one of the reviews mentioning the school being called Los Feliz Charter School For The Arts but not being in Los Feliz as an issue. Why does this matter? Any parent I know knows every school in their district or area. Even though I don't live in Los Feliz I also know all the schools in that area as well. I have now gone to the school on many occasions to volunteer in my child's class. During free choice, (which follows the Scandinavian educational model of giving kids ample free time to help them refocus) yes, the school is quite loud....and the kids are having a blast. Honestly there's nothing they can do about the noise unless they move bldgs. However if you go to the school when there are lessons going on, you'll actually be quite amazed by how quiet it gets. From what I understand the classes coordinate schedules to accommodate the noise issue. It really hasn't seemed to bother my daughter. I cannot review on the 50 student classrooms of tk/k. I certainly hope the school can address the issue. What I can say is when I had an issue with something in a classroom I met with the new school director Dr Lee. It was a very productive conversation and the issue was addressed accordingly. I wonder if the parents who wrote negative reviews ever spoke to someone at the school about their issues so administration could handle it. The "girl in front" the reviews are referring to is named Sabra and she is as kind and respectful as others are to her. The ultimate plus of this school is my child wakes up every morning happy and can't wait to go to school. She did not feel that way about preschool. She dreaded preschool which happened to be a much stricter environment. In my opinion, kids should want to go to school. Think about us as adults. Do we want to teach kids that school/work is something to dread? What kind of environment do we think kids learn better in? One they don't like going to or one they love going to? I know my favorite classes and the ones I remember most from elementary school were project based. The kids love project based learning. Most of the kids I've seen at the school and in classrooms thrive and love that inspiring way of learning. The kids in my daughter's k1 class are always smiling. My daughter's teacher Ms Garcia is absolutely amazing - the quintessential kindergarten teacher. This all being said, I do feel disruptive kids take up too much lesson time and the school would greatly benefit from having a special ed class. Bullying should also be taken more seriously. However again, my daughter is thriving at LFCSA and has made many great friends. All in all we love this school! The parental involvement and community is amazing! The building itself is so inspiring! It makes me want to go to school there unlike some of the drab and sterile public schools I toured. From the community garden to the arts classes to the wonderful teachers and caring staff - we are happy with our choice here. read more

I have had two kids at this school. I am so happy with our kids' emotional and academic educations. It feels like a small community and I love Love Love the physical campus. read more

We are now in our 6th year at LFCSA and we love it. Both of my boys have been here since Kindergarten and love coming to school. From the social emotional learning to the arts integration to the absolutely amazing and dedicated teachers, admin and staff, we feel so fortunate to have happened upon this terrific free, public school in the middle of our city. The parent community is strong here as well. With activities and volunteer options at all levels for the many various working family needs we have here. Even when we have come across hiccups, which of course we have because - where are there no hiccups! - the school gently and kindly works with the students involved, the teachers and the family to work through and find solutions for differences, behavior and/or academic situations that arise - they work with all in such a mature and social emotionally developed way that I can say 100% that my children are not the only ones learning here. By diving into this process with LFCSA of understanding one another and growing together as a community, our family has grown stronger, more loving and an more in tune with a new way of raising the civically engaged, arts integrated, whole child. We feel very lucky to be here. read more

My son has been here since Kindergarten. Before LFCSA he really struggled with boundaries in daycare, and had difficulty with focus there and in school. LFCSA got him extra help and independent counseling through free and fair support. In the past two years he has grown so much. With this support and amazing guidance from his teachers he has excelled as a student and as a person. He actually has excelled so much that we, with the school, have decided to scale back some of his counseling so he can spend more time with his peers in the classroom. I cannot day enough great things about this school and its faculty and administration. read more

I have 4 kids all of whom are attending LFCSA or have since graduated. We have seen go it through many changes over the years and from a parent's perspective, it gets better every year. All of my children are so different from each other and yet LFCSA has worked for all of them. My two oldest who are in High Schools elsewhere still choose to hang out with their Lfcsa friends on the weekends as the friendships cultivated at Lfcsa were so positive and real. Some of my kids have IEPs and some don't. All of them enjoy their learning space, peers, and LFCSA teachers. It's definitely different. We started out in a traditional LAUSD school and although we loved our neighborhood school we appreciate the project based learning, physical space, social/emotional component and civic engagement that goes into building up our kids and Lfcsa community. It's a great little engine that could school and in my experience very welcoming to parental input and suggestions. No school is perfect but my kids are happy, love their friends and teachers, and are fully engaged in their growth mind set learning experience. read more

I'm not sos sure about this school anymore.... we started out fine and excited my kids are in k/1 st grade and so far I have come to find that they are falling behind.. they also love to dance, sing and paint... but I feel that they are more in the artsy side than the educational side... i don't see any improvements in my children if anything I feel that they are losing iq points... I'm very concerned for the students here... read more

Thank you to the entire staff at LFCSA you give us community support music arts dance and so much more!!!!!!

I cannot begin to explain the flaws in and around this school. The racism and segregation are shocking . HOw about I just fill out gifted program paperwork for all the kids whose parents give to the school and the poor SMART kids can get lost. That's their practice. What about hide air quality reports from parents. And lie to parents about hard to find test scores. read more

I have had both kids at LFCSA for 2 years now. It has been THE BEST thing for them. I know there have been some negative reviews but I have nothing but praise for this school. Disclaimer: If you are looking for rows of quiet children at desks, you will not find that here. It is a charter school that approaches education in a completely different and innovative way and for my children it is a perfect fit. You really need to come see it yourself and understand the method behind the approach to appreciate just how special a place it is. It isn't perfect (what school is) BUT there is always room for dialogue, and the teachers and staff are wholly committed to the kids. We moved from overseas and the transition for my girls was tough but I can say that because their teachers were AMAZING (thanks Ms. Soffer, Mrs. Richter and Mrs. Kazama) my girls settled in and have flourished and I couldn't be happier. read more

The idea of my son coming here and starting TK sounded exciting for us. I was thrown back a bit when I realized it's not in Los Feliz and in Glassell Park, because we live in Los Feliz. Within the first week of school I was called and told my son who was 4 had a small scratch from another student. When I picked him up he had 5 deep deep deep fingernail marks on his face and we were both appalled that it was downplayed. We walked into the school the next morning and met with the Assistant Principal and showed our disappointment. He was super nice, but what we walked away realizing was that they have way too many kids and not nearly even half of the adults they need watching these kids. 2 weeks later my son was pushed by accident when 4th graders were playing a game and running and my 4 year old was in the way walking in. Again should have been more supervision. Come to find out that there are 7 other parents I know of personally in the school that fear the harm that their child received in school because of no supervision will happen again. I volunteered in my sons 50 student room of TK/K kids and even here there aren't enough adults. I stayed for 3 months at this school solely because I am a huge fan of the 2 TK teachers who are almost unbelievable they are so amazing. read more

This is a beautiful campus with a very dangerous play structure, where a lot of kids got seriously hurt already. We saw some very nice teachers leaving while we were there. There is a lot of bullying going on, but this might be normal in a public school. However, what is not and should NEVER be normal at any school is that the bullies get protected and the victims not at LFCSA. We had a wonderful beginning there for about 3 months, but after the great teacher left, bc too many kids with behaviour problems were put into her class, it turned into an utter nightmare. We left completely disheartened and wished that the principal would have handled the severe psychological, emotional and physical bullying very differently. One of the bullies' parents apologized in a meeting with us and the bullying stopped instantly, but in the other case the parents didn't come to the school. So the principal did nothing, and believed the lies of the bully, who was in the principal's office multiple times per week for transgressions. In the end my child was made to apologize for things she never did. It was a true nightmare. We know lots of people who loved it there and lots of people who had a negative experience. We wish you have a great experience! read more

This is our 3rd year at LFCSA and I couldn't be happier. My daughter is truly thriving here! Besides an amazing arts education and project based learning style they really focus on the whole child. They teach mindfulness, empathy, self control, and other amazing tools that extend way beyond the classroom. All the teachers here are loving, caring, and really amazing at what they do. We feel very lucky to be in such an amazing school with a wonderful and highly involved parent community! read more

We love LFCSA! Our kids are learning to be great people and take on challenges in creative ways. The school's emphasis on social-emotional development is key for the way we want our kids to grow up. The arts focus keeps their curiosity growing. Their excitement for learning isn't stifled by excessive homework and strict academic targets. But, that means we need to be active in their learning at home to ensure they are meeting milestones we find reasonable within their different learning styles. All around a fantastic school. read more

My daughter is headed into second grade at this school. She's been there since Kindergarten and we've loved this school. Listen, if you're looking for a strict, organized structure for your child than LFCSA is NOT for you! If you're willing to step back from helicopter parenting and let your child work through life and school with direction (but not enforcement) from very caring adults than this may be the spot for you. My daughters freedom to pick her own clothes, the very meaningful relationships we've all made, and the caring and receptive staff make this school completely worthwhile. She loves dance, music, and art. With the younger kids being moved to Albion this year it should be easier for a lot of the negative reviewers to work through their concerns and issues before their kids make it into the media center without walls, traditional classrooms, etc. We absolutely love LFCSA and are so looking forward to 7 more wonderful years with the addition of k-8 curriculum, which is absolutely awesome! read more