Founded in San Francisco in 2010 by seven families with a shared vision for a different kind of education, Alta Vista School began with a simple idea: create a school where curiosity drives learning and students learn by questioning, experimenting, building, and creating. Today, AVS is an independent JK–8 school serving more than 300 students across two San Francisco campuses, carrying forward that founding spirit through an inquiry-based, STEAM-powered approach to learning.
Alta Vista School has two campuses in San Francisco, approximately three miles apart. Lower School (JK–5): Located in the Portola District, featuring bright classrooms, a library, art and tinkering studio, gym, performance stage, playground, climbing wall, and organic garden. Middle School (6–8): Located in the Mission District, featuring a 1,200-square-foot art and engineering lab, black box theater, music and practice spaces, indoor gym, and student-designed commons.
Junior Kindergarten–Grade 5: 8:25 a.m.–3:30 p.m. Grades 6–8: 9:00 a.m.–3:30 p.m. After care: 3:30-6:00pm Before-school care is available for Junior Kindergarten–Grade 5 from 7:30–8:00 a.m. Early care for Middle School students is available as needed.
16:2 (students to full-time faculty) in Grade(s) JK-4. 14:1 in Grade(s)s 5-8.
in 2026-27
