Santa Lucia Middle

Tucked into the coastal village of Cambria — a charming, artsy enclave of pine forests and ocean bluffs along California's Central Coast — Santa Lucia Middle offers a small-school experience that's hard to find anywhere else. With solid scores across the board and a particularly strong showing in science, it's a good fit for families drawn to a tight-knit community where kids don't get lost in the shuffle. Life in Cambria moves at a slower, more intentional pace, and that sense of place tends to carry over into a school where everyone knows everyone.