A Letter from Our Founder
To the VIPHS community, and to families just getting to know us,
Every once in a while, something happens that makes me stop what I'm doing, look around, and appreciate just how far we've come.
This is one of those moments.
We recently learned that VIPHS has received some extraordinary recognition in Niche's newly released 2027 Best Schools rankings.
VIPHS has been named the #4 Best Charter High School in California and the #20 Best Charter High School in the United States!
Let that sink in for a moment.
Our school of approximately 300 students, tucked away in Northridge, California, is ranked among the top charter high schools in the entire country.
And there's more. Niche also ranks VIPHS:
#2 among charter high schools in Los Angeles County
#3 among charter high schools in the greater Los Angeles area
#1 among charter high schools in the San Fernando Valley
And we've earned an A+ overall grade.
Here's another distinction we're particularly proud of: VIPHS ranks #14 among public high schools for the arts in California and #57 nationally!
What's especially remarkable about that recognition is the company we're keeping. The California schools at the top of these rankings are specialized arts academies or larger institutions with dedicated arts programs. VIPHS is not an arts-specialty school. We're a college-preparatory high school, yet our students and teachers have built an arts program that stands proudly alongside some of California's most celebrated arts institutions.
I've spent a good deal of time thinking about what these rankings mean, beyond the obvious pleasure of seeing our school's name in such distinguished company.
When we established VIPHS, we had one mission, and it remains the centerpiece of everything we do: to help students find and gain admission to colleges that are genuinely appropriate for them, with meaningful choices about where to go. We believe that the kind of sophisticated, individualized college advising traditionally associated with expensive private schools should be available to public school students, too.
It's our longstanding mission. Everything else about VIPHS—our curriculum, our programs, our staffing, and the countless practical decisions involved in running a school with limited resources—is shaped by that singular purpose.
In other words, we built a school around college advising. Unlike others, we didn't build a school and then develop a college advising program. Over the years, hundreds of students, families, teachers, staff members, and board members have helped us turn that idea into a living, breathing school.
Behind every one of these accomplishments are the people who have made them possible.
There is one person I particularly want to recognize as we celebrate this extraordinary news: our principal, Mr. Michael Horne.
Mr. Horne has been part of VIPHS since the very beginning in fall semester 2014. He started as a social studies teacher, went on to become assistant principal, and was the chief architect of the current charter petition that earned our school's standalone approval from LAUSD in 2018. When I moved into the Executive Director role that same year, Mr. Horne became our principal, a position in which he has flourished.
Through all of those years and changing responsibilities, Mr. Horne has brought extraordinary vision, intelligence, and persistence to the development of our academic program. Working alongside our faculty and staff, he has steadily strengthened our curriculum, raised expectations, and helped create the kind of school culture in which students and teachers alike are encouraged to do their best work.
And here's what I find especially meaningful about these new rankings: VIPHS has produced outstanding college outcomes for years. It is and has always been our central mission. But the recognition we're receiving today reflects something broader—the cumulative results of years of attention to curriculum, instruction, academic achievement, and the overall quality of the school experience.
This is the long game. And Mr. Horne has been playing it, with enormous dedication, since the day we opened our doors.
Of course, no school reaches this point through the efforts of any one person.
To our extraordinary teachers and staff: you are the heart of VIPHS. The relationships you build, the creativity you bring into your classrooms, the patience, encouragement, expertise, and sheer hard work you contribute every day—these are the things that make a school worth celebrating. Rankings may measure outcomes, but you are the people who make those outcomes possible.
To our students, past and present: you are the reason we exist. Your accomplishments, your curiosity, your creativity, and your willingness to take chances and try something new continually remind us why we started this adventure in the first place.
To our families and board members, including those who have been part of our journey in years past: thank you for believing in this school, for supporting it, for challenging it, and for helping it grow. You have all left your fingerprints on what VIPHS has become.
And to Michael, especially: Thank you for believing in this school from the beginning, for helping shape what it could become, and for the years of work you've invested in making it better. You have earned this moment, and I can't be more delighted to celebrate it with you.
One of the parent reviews featured on Niche describes VIPHS as "a hidden gem in the valley." I smiled when I read that passage. Because for a long time, that's exactly what we've been. A school doing ambitious things, usually without much fanfare, demonstrating that there is more than one way to give young people an excellent education.
And if you're a family just discovering us, welcome.
Despite all the awards, accolades, and accomplishments we've accumulated over the years, I'm still astonished by how often I hear someone say, "VIPHS? What's that?"
We know that not having a sports program takes us out of consideration for some families, and that's perfectly understandable. But sports aren't everyone's cup of tea. And for four-year-college-bound students who aren't looking for a traditional sports-centered high school experience, chances are good that VIPHS is an ideal fit.
Sometimes all it takes is one conversation to introduce a family to a school they never knew existed. If you're a family with a child approaching high school age, we hope this letter is the start of that conversation. And if you already know us, please pass it along.
Of course, rankings aren't everything. No set of numbers can capture the excitement of a student discovering a new talent, the kindness of a teacher who stays after school to help, the exhilaration of a performance, or the pride of a family watching their child graduate with confidence and a sense of possibility.
Those things matter far more than a number on a list.
But sometimes it's nice to have the rest of the world notice what we've known all along: something pretty wonderful is happening at VIPHS.
And whether you joined us fifteen years ago or fifteen minutes ago, you're part of that story.
With enormous pride and gratitude,
Anne Cochran
Executive Director
Valley International Preparatory High School