An Accredited California Online High School for College-Bound Students
Laurel Springs is a private online school serving California students in grades 9-12. Our accreditation comes from WASC, the regional accrediting body for California schools, and from Cognia. This online high school in California pairs a college-prep curriculum with certified teachers, one-on-one counseling, and pacing set by each student’s progress rather than by a bell schedule. Families arrive from district schools, from charter programs, and from households that have homeschooled for years. Every student who finishes with us earns an accredited high school diploma and an official transcript.
Proudly accredited by:
Why California Families Choose Laurel Springs
Families across California turn to online learning for different reasons: a training or performance schedule that collides with a traditional calendar, coursework a local school does not offer, or a need for more structure than teaching at home can provide on its own. Our online program is built to handle all three.
- Asynchronous coursework available anytime, anywhere
- One-on-one support from certified teachers and counselors
- Over 300 courses spanning core subjects, electives, Honors, AP, and dual enrollment
- A course load paced to each student’s goals rather than to a fixed cohort
- NCAA-approved curriculum with dedicated Athletic Counseling
- The Academy hybrid program for grades 6-12
- Over 90 virtual clubs, honor societies, events, and leadership opportunities
- Rolling admissions with start dates almost every Wednesday
We measure our online school by where our graduates land, not by how many students we enroll. Every graduate leaves with the same accredited high school diploma, whether they joined in ninth grade or in twelfth.
Academic Outcomes
84%
of students were admitted to at least one of their top three schools
71%
of students were admitted to their top choice school
$195K+
average scholarship dollars awarded to the past three years of graduates
28%
of graduates were admitted to colleges and universities with acceptance rates below 25%
5
students received an AP Capstone certificate or diploma
Hear From Our Students
“One thing that I really love about being at Laurel Springs is being able to set my own pace and make my own schedule. When I’m traveling, I don’t really do that much online work for Laurel Springs because I just need to be in the zone, especially if I’m at a competition or something. It’s very rigorous and I need to make an effort to become better and put all my knowledge into my craft.”
Julia Jones
Class of 2022
“Stanford University was my ultimate goal in terms of academics and the game of golf. I’m excited to meet my teammates on the golf team and other ambitious students at Stanford.”
Ethan Gao
The Academy at Laurel Springs, Class of 2023
“Laurel Springs has really given me the freedom and opportunity to dance much more while still maintaining the education I’ve always wanted. The teachers, counselors, and staff have always been supportive in helping me navigate and manage my academic life.”
Madison Yueng
Class of 2021
Laurel Springs Welcomes Students From the Following California Districts
California Graduation Requirements and the Laurel Springs Diploma
The California Department of Education sets a state minimum course load for graduation, and individual districts routinely add requirements on top of it. Those rules are periodically revised, so families comparing programs should confirm current requirements with the California Department of Education or with their local district.
Those rules govern public schools. As a private secondary school, Laurel Springs sets its own diploma requirements, and we set them to meet or exceed state minimums. Plus, our courses are approved by the University of California a-g system, so our graduates are never at a disadvantage when they apply to California colleges and universities. High school credits earned at Laurel Springs appear on an official transcript issued by an accredited institution, which is what admissions offices and registrars ask for.
Students who arrive mid-year or short on credits can recover them here. Rolling admissions allow a student to start almost any Wednesday, and each course carries a five-month semester or a ten-month year-long completion window.
Homeschooled Students and the Accredited California Diploma
California families who teach at home usually do so by filing a Private School Affidavit with the California Department of Education, which establishes the household itself as a private school. That path works well for many years of a child’s education. It runs into a limit at the end, because a family operating under its own affidavit issues its own high school diploma, and that document carries no outside accreditation behind it.
This is the single most common reason homeschooled students come to Laurel Springs. A homeschooled teenager who has done excellent work for four years still has to explain, on every application, what their transcript means and who stands behind it. Enrolling in an accredited school removes that problem. Our graduates receive a high school diploma and a transcript from an institution that colleges already recognize.
Timing is flexible. Some homeschoolers enroll for all four years. Others join in eleventh or twelfth grade specifically to finish with an accredited high school diploma, and we evaluate prior work for transfer credit so the years spent learning at home still count. Students who have been homeschooled since elementary school often find the transition easier than expected, because the daily rhythm of independent work is already familiar.
What changes is the support around the student. Instead of a parent researching lab science or calculus, subject-area teachers handle instruction and counselors handle course planning. Families who have homeschooled for years tell us the relief is less about academics than about no longer carrying sole responsibility for whether a transcript will hold up.
Comparing Online Schools in California: Public, Private, and Home
California families have three broad options. California online public schools, such as California Virtual Academies, are tuition-free charter programs funded by the state, open to residents, and required to follow state testing and enrollment rules. California Virtual Academies runs on the K12 platform operated by Stride, and like the other California online public schools, it serves very large enrollments and typically includes special education services at no cost. For families whose deciding factor is cost, that is the natural starting point.
The second option is teaching at home under an affidavit, which offers freedom and the least outside structure, but with the diploma question described above waiting at the end.
The third is an accredited private online school. The value of high quality, college-preparatory academics and deep one-to-one attention from certified teachers and counselors at Laurel Springs is well worth the required tuition, especially since our tuition is set well below that of other online schools like Stanford Online High School. Laurel Springs also offers far more choice though hundreds of courses and extracurricular opportunities than public online schools or less-expensive accredited schools like Forest Trail Academy can provide. And, unlike public or charter online schools, Laurel Springs has the freedom to develop its own high-quality educational experience without the limits of state calendars or state-mandated testing.
Families comparing California online public schools against a private option often frame it as a cost question first. But the current and future value families receive from the Laurel Springs experience is well-worth the cost of tuition.
Tuition
As a private school, the full-time program at Laurel Springs is tuition-based. California does not currently operate an education savings account or voucher program that families can direct toward private school tuition, so tuition is paid directly. Current rates for full-time enrollment and for individual courses are listed on our tuition page.
Dual Enrollment and Community College Credit
California has an unusually strong community college system, and high school students can take college courses for credit through dual enrollment. Laurel Springs recognizes the value of dual enrollment. In addition to crediting dual enrollment courses taken through community colleges, Laurel Springs partners with two universities to provide dual enrollment courses as part of Laurel Springs tuition. Students can begin taking dual enrollment courses through our partner universities as early as ninth grade if they are enrolled in The Academy, or in grades 11 and 12 if enrolled in our main full-time program.
Courses completed this way can appear on both a high school and a community college transcript, which lets a student arrive at a four-year university already ahead on general education requirements. For students who have exhausted what a traditional secondary school offers in a subject, it is often the most direct next step.
Community and Socialization
Socialization is the first question most families ask about any online education, and it’s a fair one. Laurel Springs runs over 90 virtual clubs and 16 honor societies, plus in-person events including regional meetups and field trips for California families. Seniors can attend a live prom and commencement ceremony with all the appropriate pomp and circumstance at our annual Year-End Celebration.
Online learning does not have to mean isolation. Students who participate in at least one social activity – either in their local communities or through Laurel Springs programs – are far more likely to find success both academically and socially. The relationships students build virtually can span states or countries, and become even deeper when they meet each other in person at field trips, meet-ups, or the Year-End Celebration.
Additional Online Programs at Laurel Springs
Online Elementary School in California
K-5 curriculum with individualized instruction and dedicated teacher support.
Explore Online Elementary School
Online Middle School in California
Asynchronous curriculum preparing students for the transition to high school coursework. Laurel Springs operates as a single online k-12 school, so students move up without reapplying.
Explore Online Middle SchoolFrequently Asked Questions
Start Your Journey Today
Our Admissions team is here to guide your family through every step of enrolling at Laurel Springs online school.
