An active citizen participation has assured an excellent, smoothly functioning school system. Pleasant Valley, Mesa Union and Somis Union School Districts oversee elementary through intermediate education, while Oxnard Union High School District has jurisdiction over the two local high schools, Adolfo Camarillo and Rio Mesa. A continuation high school is operated by the county Superintendent of Schools. Seventeen private schools are also located in the greater Camarillo area.
With 14 schools for grades K-8 (including two intermediate schools), Pleasant Valley School District has the largest enrollment. PVSD also operates three alternative schools for those who desire a non-traditional or more structured educational environment for their children. Four of PVSD's schools have received state or national recognition for academic excellence.
The Ventura County Superintendent of Schools Office maintains a complete and functional electronic portal to educational resources; local, state, and world-wide.
Recent scores in the California Assessment Program (CAP), addressing five areas of educational concern, are above both county and state scaled scores, as reflected in the following chart: District Ventura Co. California
Reading 289 262 247
Math 290 283 270
History 287 271 255
Science 302 281 265
Writing 291 279 257
 Camarillo high school students' Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores have ranked consistently among the highest in Ventura County. Shown below, the recently released test scores for 1995/96 indicate that Camarillo's students also continue to rank well above the state and national averages, further testimony to the community's emphasis on quality education.
Camarillo State U.S.
Verbal 539 495 505
Math 551 511 508
30% of Camarillo's high school graduates enter the University of California or California State University system, and many more attend community and private colleges.
Higher Education
Some of California's most highly regarded community colleges, universities and private institutions are conveniently located to serve the needs of Camarillo residents.
Camarillo Community Colleges
The Ventura County Community Colleges, with campuses in Moorpark, Oxnard and Ventura, offer two-year associate degrees, all within a 15 mile radius of Camarillo. Oxnard College recently opened its full service branch at Las Posas and Arneill Roads, offering both day and evening classes.
Public Institutions - Four Year Colleges and Universities
 Undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate degree programs are offered at the Universities of California at Los Angeles and Santa Barbara, and at California State University at Northridge, all within a 50 mile radius of the city. CSUN and UCSB also hold classes on their satellite campuses in Ventura. The City of Camarillo is working closely with officials of the CSU system to ensure that the long-awaited Channel Islands campus, to be built on the site of the former Camarillo State Hospital, becomes a reality by the year 2000.
Private Institutions - Four-Year Universities and Colleges
Undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate degrees may be earned from the University of Southern California in downtown Los Angeles, while California Lutheran University in nearby Thousand Oaks offers undergraduate and graduate degree classes. Pepperdine University provides undergraduate, graduate and legal education programs at its Malibu campus just 30 miles southwest. St. John's Seminary & College (www.stjohnsem.edu), established in Camarillo in 1939, offers divinity education. (Graduate-level classes in business management are also offered by USC at Pt. Mugu.)
Specialty Schools
West Coast University in Camarillo and LaVerne College in Oxnard provide specialized education programs for working adults.
 Camarillo has a full-service library, with approximately 100,000 books on its shelves as well as Internet access. It is one of the 15 libraries operated by the Ventura County Library District. To contact the Camarillo Library, please call 482-1953.
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