By Costanza Genoese Zerbi | RealTrends Verified Top Agent Southern California | eXp Realty of Greater Los Angeles
Published September 2026 | Reading time: approximately 4 minutes
If you're moving to Long Beach with kids, you've probably heard the phrase "school of choice" — and with the new school year underway, it's a great time to understand exactly how it works before you assume a home's address guarantees a specific school.
Unlike Most Districts, Address Isn't Everything
Long Beach Unified School District (LBUSD) operates a school of choice system, meaning families can apply to schools outside their default attendance boundary — not just the one tied to their home address. That gives families real flexibility, but it also means you can't assume a home's location locks in a specific school the way it might in other cities.
High School Choice Options
LBUSD has 11 high schools, split between comprehensive (traditional) and thematic (specialized) campuses:
- Comprehensive High Schools — Millikan, Lakewood, Poly, Jordan, Cabrillo, and Wilson — offer traditional, full CIF sports programs and give priority to local neighborhood residents, while also hosting specific magnet pathways.
- Thematic / Specialized High Schools — Sato Academy, McBride, Browning, and CAMS — are smaller campuses focused on distinct themes like STEM, medicine, or global citizenship, operating entirely through school of choice.
- Popular Pathways include MEDS (Medical & Health Care), NOVA (Tech & STEM), PACRIM (Business), and various Arts clusters, available within several of the comprehensive high schools.
Middle School and K-8 Options
Families choosing a middle school path have two options: 15 traditional middle schools, which tend to have larger populations and broader elective offerings, or 6 K-8 schools, which offer smaller middle-school cohorts integrated on an elementary campus.
The Application Rule Families Often Miss
Here's the detail that catches a lot of families off guard: all rising 6th-grade families should submit a School of Choice application through ParentVUE. Failing to submit doesn't mean a student defaults to their nearest residential school — it means they aren't automatically assigned there at all.
Why This Matters for Your Home Search
I always tell my clients with kids: don't pick a home based purely on assumed school boundaries. Understand the school of choice process first, know which schools and pathways you're hoping to get into, and build your home search and application timeline around those windows — not the other way around.
If you're relocating to Long Beach and school access is part of your decision, I'm happy to walk you through how school of choice actually works here, and which neighborhoods tend to give families the most flexibility.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does my address determine which school my child attends in Long Beach? Not entirely. LBUSD operates a school of choice system, allowing families to apply to schools outside their default attendance boundary, though comprehensive high schools give some priority to local neighborhood residents.
How many high schools does LBUSD have? LBUSD has 11 high schools: six comprehensive campuses (Millikan, Lakewood, Poly, Jordan, Cabrillo, Wilson) and four thematic/specialized campuses (Sato Academy, McBride, Browning, CAMS).
What happens if I don't submit a School of Choice application for 6th grade? Students are not automatically assigned to their immediate residential school. All rising 6th-grade families should submit an application through ParentVUE.
About Costanza Genoese Zerbi
Costanza Genoese Zerbi is a Broker Associate at eXp Realty of Greater Los Angeles and the founder of Costanza Genoese Zerbi & Associates. She is a RealTrends Verified Top Agent in Southern California — five consecutive years — with 600+ closed transactions and more than $500 million in career sales volume. She serves buyers and sellers across Long Beach, the South Bay, greater Los Angeles, and Orange County.
Contact: 📲 (562) 221-4527 🌐 costanzagz.com 📍 1650 Ximeno Ave Suite 300, Long Beach CA 90804 DRE #01941438
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