Black Student Success Data Tool
Explore how Los Angeles Unified schools are serving Black students through academics, school climate and support systems, and targeted resources.
Introducing the Black Student Success Data Tool
At EdTrust-West, we envision a school system that provides Black students with the supports and opportunities they need to thrive and build bright futures. This tool was created to help advocates, families, and community members understand how Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) schools serve Black students and to ensure that equity-focused policies, such as the Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP), are fully and effectively implemented. LAUSD serves nearly 37,000 Black students, and decisions made there often create ripple effects across California. As race-conscious policymaking faces growing challenges nationwide, protecting and strengthening initiatives that center Black student success is more important than ever.
What is the Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP)?
As a result of community advocacy following the murder of George Floyd in 2020, the LAUSD Board of Education approved the Black Student Achievement Plan (BSAP) in February 2021 to address longstanding opportunity and outcome gaps.
Through BSAP, the district committed to developing culturally responsive curricula, partnering with community-based organizations, and increasing the number of counselors, school climate advocates, restorative justice teachers, and psychiatric social workers to nurture Black student excellence.
To make this possible, the district redirected $25 million in funding from the Los Angeles School Police Department — an agency that has historically and currently harmed Black students — and invested it in BSAP. Since then, LAUSD has expanded the program to bring total funding to $175 million in 2025-26.
While BSAP is an important step forward, more work is needed to ensure these resources truly reach and support Black students.
About This Tool
The Black Student Success Data Tool shows how LAUSD schools serve Black students, using publicly available data on school experiences, academic outcomes, and BSAP funding. Designed for advocates, families, and community members, it helps users monitor progress, identify gaps between student groups, and push for accountability. We’ve compiled data from LAUSD and the California Department of Education into interactive dashboards that can help answer questions like:
- How are Black students in LAUSD experiencing school, and how are they performing academically districtwide and at individual schools?
- How do Black students’ experiences and outcomes compare to those of their peers?
- How have the school experiences and academic outcomes of Black students in LAUSD changed over time?
- How are BSAP funds being used, and what are they being spent on?
- What patterns emerge in achievement, school experience, and BSAP spending across schools?
By making this data easier to access and interpret, the tool helps users hold the district and individual schools accountable for using BSAP funds to support Black students’ academic success and positive school experiences.
Interactive Data Dashboard
This interactive tool allows you to explore school-level data on Black students’ experiences, outcomes, and BSAP funding. The dashboard includes three interactive views: District Profile, School Profiles, and School Explorer.
This tool offers a comprehensive view of how LAUSD schools are serving Black students and provides the information needed to advocate for meaningful implementation of BSAP.
- Community Organizers and Advocates: Use this tool to ground your campaigns, conversations, and calls to action in data. Leverage the insights to mobilize communities and demand change from LAUSD and its schools.
- Parents, Families, and Community Members: Use this tool to see how well your child’s school is supporting Black students. Leverage the data to ask informed questions, advocate for stronger student supports, and push for full use of BSAP resources in your community.
The tool includes three interactive pages:
1. District Profile
Explore district-wide data on Black students’ school experience, academic outcomes, and BSAP funding.
- Use the Academic Year filter to view trends over time.
- Use the Metric filter to select the aspect of School Experience & Supports or Academic Achievement you want to explore.
- Compare Black students’ outcomes to their peers and the district average (labeled “All Students”).
- See how BSAP dollars are allocated and spent.
2. School Profiles
Dive into the same data as above for individual schools across LAUSD.
- Like the District Profile page, use the Academic Year and Metric filters to explore the specific years and areas of interest.
- Use the School Name filter to select a school.
- View school-level contexts such as city, board district, and BSAP group.
3. School Explorer
View data for multiple schools to identify patterns and bright spots, and decide which schools to explore further in the School Profiles page.
- Filter by city, board district, or BSAP group to narrow schools.
- Use the School Name filter to create your own custom grouping of schools.
- On the map, use the % Black Students filter to find schools with higher Black student enrollment – the darker orange color indicates a higher percentage.
Tips for Navigating the Tool
- Clearing filters: To reset any filters, click the red “X” over the funnel icon located on the upper right-hand side of any filter section.
- Using tooltips: Hover over the bars charts and circles on the map for more detailed information about each metric and school, respectively.
- Navigating the Map: Hover over the arrow (▷) on the left side of the map and select “Pan” for easier navigation.
- Resetting the Map View: Select “Zoom home” (🏠︎) to return to the default view.
Each chart includes interactive tooltips to help interpret the data. Here's what you'll find:
School Experience & Support
Most metrics come from student survey data. Each year, LAUSD asks students to complete a survey to understand different aspects of their school experience, including the following:
Academic Support: This shows the percentage of students who reported feeling supported to learn and succeed academically at their school. Questions related to academic support include whether teachers explain how to improve students’ work, provide help when needed, grade fairly, encourage participation, and make learning engaging.
Future Orientation: This shows the percentage of students who reported feeling supported in planning for their future and preparing for college or career. Questions related to future orientation include whether students feel school is important for achieving their goals; whether adults encourage them to work hard for college or careers; whether adults talk with them about college and career options; and the level of education they plan to complete.
Opportunities for Participation and Leadership: This shows the percentage of students who reported feeling that they had meaningful opportunities to participate in school activities and have a voice in decision-making. Questions related to participation and leadership include whether students have a voice in school decisions, are encouraged by teachers to make choices, and have opportunities to join sports, clubs, student government, or other extracurricular activities.
Connectedness: This shows the percentage of students who reported feeling connected, supported, and respected at school. Questions related to connectedness include whether students feel happy to be at school, feel part of the school community, have adults they can trust, and feel accepted for who they are.
Safety: This shows the percentage of students who reported feeling safe at school and in their community. Questions related to safety include whether students feel safe at school or online, feel safe in their neighborhood, believe adults would help if they were bullied, and have received guidance on handling uncomfortable situations.
Suspension Rate: This shows the percentage of students who were suspended from school during the year.
Share of Suspensions by Race: This shows the racial and ethnic makeup of students who received at least one suspension during the school year.
Chronic Absenteeism: This shows the percentage of students who missed 10% or more of school days in a year.
Academic Achievement
Academic Achievement metrics include:
ELA Proficiency: This shows the percentage of students who met or exceeded grade-level standards in reading and writing on the Smarter Balanced Assessment.
Math Proficiency: This shows the percentage of students who met or exceeded grade-level standards in math on the Smarter Balanced Assessment.
Graduation Rate: This shows the percentage of students who graduated within four years of entering high school.
A-G Completion Rate: This shows the percentage of high school graduates who completed the set of courses (known as A-G courses) required for admission to California’s four-year public universities.
BSAP Funding
Data related to BSAP budget and spending include:
Total BSAP Budget: This shows the total amount of money received for the school year, including unspent funds (or carryover) from the previous year.
Total Spent: This shows the total amount of money that has been spent so far (as of the date the data was retrieved: October 28, 2025).
Percent of Budget Spent: This shows the percentage of the total BSAP budget that has been spent so far (as of the date the data was retrieved: October 28, 2025).
Budget and Spending by Labor: This shows how much of the total budget is set aside for and spent on, respectively, paying labor versus non-labor expenses.
- Labor expenses include salaries for school staff—teachers, administrators, and support personnel.
- Non-labor expenses cover all other costs, such as supplies, services, and operational expenses.
- Budget and Spending by Major Expense Category: This shows how much of the total budget is set aside for and spent on, respectively, each major expense category. Major expense categories include:
Certificated Salaries: Salaries paid to teachers, counselors, assistant principals, and principals
Classified Salaries: Salaries paid to school staff, such as clerical and custodial staff
Employee Benefits: Funds for staff benefits like health care, retirement, and insurance
Other Operating Expenses: Funds for contracts, travel and conferences, dues and memberships, utilities, rentals, leases, repairs, and professional or consulting services
Books and Supplies: Funds allocated for textbooks, instructional materials, and general supplies
Capital Outlay: Funds allocated for facilities (land and buildings), books and media for libraries, and equipment. Most outlay costs are devoted specifically to school construction and modernization
For more information on budget and spending, please refer to the district’s website.
Other Key Definitions
- BSAP Group: When BSAP first launched, LAUSD placed schools into four “groups” based on Black student enrollment and indicators of need. Group 1 schools (largest Black student enrollment and highest need) received the most intensive supports, while Groups 3-4 received more limited supports. This approach aimed to target resources where they could have the biggest impact for Black students. LAUSD has since shifted to a different approach for determining BSAP school selection. For more information, please visit pages 25-26 of the Plan.
- Board District: Every school in LAUSD is part of one of seven Board Districts. Each Board District is represented by an elected school board member who makes decisions about policies, budgets, and programs that affect schools in their district. Knowing your school’s Board District helps you understand who represents your community in district decisions. To identify which Board District a school belongs to, please visit the Resident School Identifier.
If you have any questions, feedback, or inquiries about the data tool, don’t hesitate to get in touch with Melissa Valenzuela-Stookey, Director of Research at EdTrust-West. You can also leave feedback via this form.
California Department of Education:
LAUSD:
Notes About the Data:
- In some cases, data may be missing for student groups, including Black students, because public reports hide information to protect privacy when very few or no students are in that group.
- Not all metrics were collected or reported consistently across time. Missing data for certain years may be due to differences in when data collection and reporting began, current data release schedules, or changes in reporting standards.
- 2021–22 is the first year where data for all metrics is available. 2023–24 is the most recent year with complete data.
- We’ve done our best to match results to official sources like DataQuest and district dashboards. If you notice discrepancies, we recommend referring to the original source.
- School‑level data excludes some schools that could not be matched across all datasets, such as certain magnet schools, Early Education Centers, and directly funded charter schools, and specialized programs.
- BSAP funding data:
- District totals reflect the sum of “BSAP Programs” funds for all schools.
o FY21 and FY26 figures may appear irregular because the program launched in February 2021, and FY26 reflects in-progress data. - Some figures may also appear unusual—like overspending, spending with no budget, or negative balances— due to shifts or corrections in district budgeting.
- Periodic district updates to budget files may create discrepancies between this dashboard and LAUSD’s dashboard.
- For the most up-to-date information and resources, visit the district’s website.
- District totals reflect the sum of “BSAP Programs” funds for all schools.
Measuring Progress, Monitoring Investments: Using Data to Advance Black Student Success
Join EdTrust-West on March 11, 2026, from 3:30–4:30 PM PT for a webinar focused on strengthening advocacy and accountability for Black students in the Los Angeles Unified School District through the Black Student Success Data Tool.
Learn how accessible school- and district-level data can support equity-focused advocacy, track BSAP investments, and inform engagement with decision-makers. The session will also offer practical ways families, students, and community partners can turn data into action to protect and strengthen supports for Black students.
Can’t make it? The webinar will be recorded and made available on this page after the event.
We extend our gratitude to the following partners for their valuable input, feedback, and review of this data tool:
- Community Coalition
- CADRE
- InnerCity Struggle
- ACLU Southern California
- Catalyst California
- Reclaim Our Schools LA
- Dr. David C. Turner III, UCLA