In Los Angeles, a private education can cost more than an entire year at UCLA — and the perks are just as over the top.
A California Post review found the city’s five priciest private schools charge more than $57,000 annually for upper grades — far more than the roughly $45,500 a California student pays for a year at UCLA, including tuition, housing and food.
At the top is Westmark School in Encino, which charges $69,928 a year for grades 2 through 12 and serves students with learning differences. New families also pay a $4,200 deposit and a one-time fee of $2,125.
The school describes itself as the only place for students with these specific learning needs in the greater Los Angeles area that goes through senior year. Classes have about eight students, and reading groups have five or fewer.
The school’s award-winning lower school campus is a net-zero carbon building with rooftop gardens, an amphitheater, a black box theater and “quiet corners designed to reduce cognitive overload,” the school told The Post.
Interactive screens track how much energy the solar panels save. Fifth graders produce their own TV show, and older students have a film and broadcasting lab and a ceramics kiln.
In second place is The Buckley School in Sherman Oaks, at $58,788 a year for grades 6 through 12. A family of five earning $678,000 a year would get no financial aid, according to the school’s own example.
Buckley sits on 18 acres in a canyon near the gated Mulholland Estates. Its facilities include a four-acre outdoor field and stadium, and its students come from more than 70 ZIP codes. Its trustees emeriti include Guess co-founder Maurice Marciano and former Yahoo CEO Terry Semel.
The school has a long list of famous alumni, including Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Paris Jackson and Rashida Jones. When Michael Jackson’s children went there, two bodyguards waited outside their classrooms and followed them across campus.
Brentwood School comes in third, at $58,207 for grades 6 through 12. The Hollywood Reporter has called it the go-to school for the Westside’s powerbrokers. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver’s children went there, as did developer Rick Caruso’s.
Its classrooms were the first zero-net-energy classrooms in LA County.
Alumni include Olympic gymnast Peter Vidmar, who won gold in 1984, and Casey Wasserman, who leads the LA28 Olympic organizing committee. Journalist Katy Tur is also a graduate.
Oakwood School in North Hollywood ranks fourth, at $57,550 for grades 7 through 12. New families also pay a $2,500 new-student fee and a $2,000 building assessment.
Oakwood has Hollywood roots. Its founders included actor Robert Ryan, and his backyard served as the campus for the school’s first three years. Its alumni include Chris Pine, director Todd Haynes, Lily-Rose Depp and Danny DeVito’s kids.
Oakwood is also known for an in-depth two-week program where students take on real-world challenges. One parent told The Hollywood Reporter their son took a class all about roller coasters.
Rounding out the top five is Milken Community School, which charges $57,450 plus a $2,700 annual security fee and a one-time $2,500 new-student fee.
Milken’s finance program has students manage an investment portfolio with mentoring from professionals, according to the school’s brochure. Hollywood director Jon Avnet is mentoring its young screenwriters and filmmakers this year, and an emergency medicine physician, Dr. Sam Torbati, mentors its science researchers.
Students take three trips to Israel, in 8th, 10th and 12th grades, which cost extra. They also run their own film festival and morning show, and the course list includes fashion design for middle schoolers and a class called “Art of Comedy.”
Tuition covers books, overnight retreats and service-learning day trips, the school said. Laptops, required school clothing and the Israel trips are billed separately.
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