Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District

In 1992 84.5% of relevant voters voted approved Proposition Z to move the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) portion of Rancho Palos Verdes to PVPUSD but Stephen E. O'Neil, a judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court, blocked the transfer.[1]

The district is headed by a superintendent - Dr. Alex Cherniss - and governed by a five-person, publicly elected school board.

The current board members are:

• Matthew Brach (term expires in 2022)
• Megan Crawford (term expires in 2022)
• Linda Reid (term expires 2024)
• Richard Phillips (term expires in 2022)
• Jeff Frankel (term expires in 2024)

The superintendent is:

• Dr. Alex Cherniss - Superintendent of Schools

Temporary School Closure

On March 12 of 2020, the district closed all schools to students from Friday, March 13 through Friday, April 3, 2020. The district made this decision following public board meetings on the tenth and eleventh of the month.[2]

• The PVPUSD serves the cities of Palos Verdes Estates, Rancho Palos Verdes, Rolling Hills, and Rolling Hills Estates.
• Parts of the city of Rancho Palos Verdes, known as Eastview, are served both by the PVPUSD, and the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). Two LAUSD-owned schools fall within the city of Rancho Palos Verdes: Dodson Middle School and Crestwood Elementary School.
• In 1999, an optional attendance boundary was agreed upon by the two school districts in which residents in Eastview could opt to either send their children to PVPUSD schools or LAUSD schools. Middle school-aged students in the area may attend Miraleste Intermediate School and high school-aged students attend both Palos Verdes Peninsula High School in Rolling Hills Estates and Palos Verdes High School in Palos Verdes Estates.

In 1985, there were 1,365 students born outside of the United States. 346 were from Japan, 214 were from Taiwan, 150 were from Korea, and others originated from several countries including Iran, Mexico, other countries in Latin America, and the Philippines. In 1988, the district had 1,559 students born outside of the United States. 434 were from Japan, 249 were from Taiwan, and 193 were from Korea.[3]

There are three high schools, Palos Verdes Peninsula High School (formerly called Rolling Hills High School), Palos Verdes High School (the latter located just a half block from the Pacific Ocean) and Rancho Del Mar High School (located on Crest Road in Rolling Hills). In the 1970s the high schools were: Palos Verdes High School, Rolling Hills High School, and Miraleste High School.

• Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District
• Peninsula Education Foundation