By type
Private high schools in Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara’s private high schools span the full range — from small seminar-style independent schools to faith-based college prep and a national boarding school. They are far smaller than the public campuses, charge tuition, and report their own figures rather than state ones.
The list below includes the independent schools Laguna Blanca School, Anacapa School, and Cate School (a boarding school in nearby Carpinteria), alongside the faith-based Bishop García Diego High School (Roman Catholic) and Providence (a non-denominational Christian school).
The schools5
Private · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1959
Bishop García Diego High School
Roman Catholic (Archdiocese of Los Angeles)
Bishop García Diego High School is Santa Barbara's Catholic, college-preparatory day school for grades 9-12, established under its current name in 1959. Its roots trace back through earlier Santa Barbara Catholic schools (Dolores School in 1914, later Notre Dame High School). It is accredited by WASC and the California Association of Independent Schools and competes athletically in the CIF Southern Section's Tri-County Athletic Association.
Private · Grades EK-12 (Upper School grades 9-12) · Est. 1933
Laguna Blanca School
Santa Barbara
Founded in 1933, Laguna Blanca School is an independent, co-educational, college-preparatory day school spanning early kindergarten through grade 12 across two campuses (a Lower School in Montecito and the main Hope Ranch-area campus on Paloma Drive). Its Upper School (grades 9-12) is a small, selective college-prep program, and its Owls field roughly 30 middle- and upper-school athletic teams in the CIF Southern Section.
Private · Grades PreK-12 (Upper School grades 9-12) · Est. 1959
Providence School (Providence, A Santa Barbara Christian School)
Non-denominational Christian
Providence (also styled 'Providence, A Santa Barbara Christian School') is a non-denominational Christian independent school serving grades PreK-12, formed in 2013 by the merger of Providence Hall and Santa Barbara Christian School. Its Upper School (grades 9-12) is college-preparatory, with small average class sizes (~16). It offers interscholastic athletics including basketball, cross country, tennis, track and field, and volleyball.
Private · Grades 7-12 (high-school grades 9-12) · Est. 1981
Anacapa School
Santa Barbara
Anacapa School is a small, independent, secular junior-high and high school (grades 7-12) founded in 1981 in downtown Santa Barbara, housed in a historic building that previously served as a WWII hospital, the Anna S.C. Blake School, and Santa Barbara Junior College. Known for very small class sizes, an outdoor-education program, and strong college placement, Anacapa caps enrollment at roughly 72 students.
Private · Grades 9-12 · Est. 1910
Cate School
Carpinteria
Cate School, founded in 1910, is a highly selective coeducational boarding (and some day) school on a mesa in Carpinteria, about eleven miles southeast of Santa Barbara. Roughly 78% of its ~307 students board. With a ~17% acceptance rate, it is one of the most prestigious independent secondary schools on California's Central Coast and offers significant financial aid.
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