My child is finally done with this school, and I am grateful I would say overall if your child is in the gate program this would be a great choice all of the resources appear to go toward the children in the gate program. My child was in the world language program 2 1/2 years mandarin and 1/2-year Spanish. They were supposed to give us the option to choose they did not. The mandarin program was not good. My child had three mandarin teacher and 2 of the teachers appeared to not want the kids to learn the language. My child advised me that the Spanish teacher did not assign work only told them to play games during class therefore the half year was a waste of time. I am glad my child is finish and would absolutely not recommend this school the school appears good, and they will sell you at orientation, but it is just a show in my opinion. read more

I attended Mark Twain middle Between 2021 and 2024 when I graduated there and I've been harassed before, and if you got a problem with bullying don't talk about Dean as they will either do nothing or try to downplay the situation, however the rest is good like the campus, I honestly won't put fighting as a problem as all schools have fighting problems, anyway the school has some good administators like Assistant Principal Kerrie Egerton helped a lot with the harassment I've got being there. read more

Truly a terrible school. Ms. Mcnairy is a terrible teacher. She constantly has an attitude and does not give your child a break. My child dreaded going to her class and when i went for a conference she was extremly rude. by all means, STAY AWAY FROM MS MCNAIRY. read more

Don't send your kids here if they are gay or leaning that way. They will hear the word "F@G" and many other homophobic slurs thrown around at least 4-5x a day. They stopped all the racial hate speak but the queer kids don't really matter here. It's sad that they aren't protected as the admins (POC) did make.surw to stop the racism but don't seem to mind the heavy gay bashing that goes.on here. When pandemic stopped in 2022, there were 5 security/weapons lockdown that year alone. Often Venice methheads with guns/weapons braking into campus but also students with weapons. The Principal and most teachers are good but the culture and student body is very segregated. Dr Ford fries really hard but if the parents aren't willing, they overall school still tests below 50% in all categories. The Language Immersion/Honors kids don't mingle much with the general population as they will get bullied or just assaulted. The regular kids fight a lot. In turn, those special program kids also develop a weird sense of entitlement as I had my son tell me 'those kids will be pumping my gas in 10y" (as he learned from his peers at school). General Pop is what it sounds like, prison style to the Honors.kids. they say "we just stay to the sides and don't make eye contact" during common times like lunch. We left after 1 year as it was not a safe environment for a gay kid... read more

Amazed by how good this school is...Dr. Ford, the teachers, staff, administration and parents WORKING TOGETHER to make this school as good as it can be for the students is unlike anything I've seen. The diversity, high academic standards, sports, performing arts and a social emotional team that includes an outstanding Restorative Justice Counselor and superb Gardening Teacher is something rare to see not just in the LAUSD system but in a public school setting as a whole. This school is concerned about the WHOLE child...especially during these challenging times, post-pandemic. The leadership of Mark Twain listening to what these students need today is why this school has it right. My kid is thriving and actually overjoyed to go to school...MIDDLE SCHOOL I'm talking about...everyday! Incredible relief for my husband and I. read more

This is a review by an actual parent of a Mark Twain student. Not the racist fat-shaming ramblings of a reviewer none of the other parents at the school recognize. My 7th grader is in the residential program (meaning, not the magnet) and so far, our experience has been wonderful. The teachers and administration work hard to help every student excel. At the beginning of 6th grade, we had an incident of minor bullying that is consistent with middle school school tweens. The administration stepped right in and addressed the issue with all the kids involved, and within 24-hours, my son came home to tell me it was all a misunderstanding and that he was now friends with the boys he complained about the day before. The academics are challenging and the teachers are supportive. Many make themselves available after school for tutoring. The magnet program has brought in many accelerated students and engaged parents. Like any community, it's the participation of the families that enhance the experience. Dr Ford's leadership has put Mark Twain on a fast track for improvement after decades of neglect. The enrollment is on a steady upward trend. Check your bias at the door and come in for one of the school tours and see for yourself what a great school and community Mark Twain is. read more

The Dual-Language Program is outstanding. The teachers in that program are serious and hard-working and provide challenging homework assignments. The students give presentations in the world language. It is a solid program that I strongly recommend. The spelling bee contestants were excellent. Overall, my student loves the school and has good friends. read more

Has increased significantly since the Mandarin Immersion program started. Now is over enrolled & has the Individual Honors Program (IHP) as well as a growing list of electives, sports, clubs, & after school program. read more

Great school highly recommend it My kids love it and we as parents The teachers are super nice and knowledgeable I look forward to a great relationship with this school. read more

My daughter has been a student at Mark Twain in the Mandarin dual language program since 6th grade. I believe strongly that every student should have the right to a quality education. I would never send my child to a school that I thought would not meet my child's academic and social needs. As a student at Mark Twain my daughter's test scores have improved and this year she scored exceeded expectations in both ELA and Math. This is the result of quality of instruction. There is no perfect school, but if you find a school where administration, teachers and parents are willing to work together to support the needs of its students, you then have a quality community school and each year Mark Twain will continue to strive for excellence! You should want to be a part of that and not tear it down. read more

We love Mark Twain! My son has never felt this comfortable in a school setting. Coming from a private school this was a great choice! Not only because it is our local school and because my son can bike/skateboard to school but the teachers, parents and students involvement is amazing. Also, Principal Dr. Ford and the staff are loving and well prepared. We are so lucky to have such amazing community in Venice. read more

Great school and great staff and parents ... and definelty recommend it to anyone that asked. Go sharks!!

This is a huge failure of a school. So bad that it should literally be shut down. Immediately. There are parents here with tattoos ON THEIR NECK. There are 8th graders who DON'T KNOW HOW TO READ. Science class consists of talking about how your weekend went. "Honors" algebra consists of learning to add and subtract. Also the students here are grossly overweight making it child abuse to have your child have to change for PE in the same locker room and witness the disrobed obesity. No tax money should be spent on this farce, these kids should just be given a lawnmower and sent to work. read more

If you care about your kids don't bring them here, this school has gone from good to bad to worse. It's already bad enough that they don't do anything about kids bullying kids but now teachers as well? If a child doesn't feel protected by an adult then how can we expect for kids to respect each other. They don't communicate with the parents either you have to find out till after your child gets hurt and it's not them telling you it's your own child. I wouldn't recommend this school even if it was the last school on earth. read more

My daughter just started 6th grade here and loves it. She's made great friends and has really enjoyed her teachers. It's also wonderful to go to a local community school where she can meet other kids in the neighborhood. The parents are engaged and the principal is terrific. This is definitely a school that is on the rise and just keeps getting better. read more

The diversity is great - preparing our children to get along with everyone. My daughter is a current 7th grader in the Spanish Dual language program. Her standardize test scores have improved both in math and ELA. Her teachers this year are awesome and while they are challenging her, she appreciates it versus hating school. I've been seeing a lot of project based learning that you usually don't see in Public School. It's a huge school but there are four programs so the there are mini cohorts where your child won't feel overwhelmed coming from a small school like my child did. I'll be sending my younger son there next year. read more

Middle school transition has been a breeze. This is an up and coming school with an excellent Principal, supportive and demanding parent body, students that care about academic excellency. Beautiful large and safe campus. Really happy here so far. read more

It's an amazing school. The students and the teachers are kind the teachers are really helpful and the staff they are amazing I loved coming here it's a nice place there aren't really fights the teachers teach really interesting stuff. Everyone in the school is amazing and I'm happy to say that this school will be such a good school for your kids read more

This is our 2nd year at Mark Twain in the residential program and we love it. What I like the most is how caring and supportive the teachers and administration is. My daughter is enjoying the school immensely. My older child attended a different charter Middle school and I would choose Mark Twain any day over that school! read more

Why you should choose Mark Twain middle school because it a good school a teachers are friendly and friendly counselors that help with problems read more

Our kids moved here last year and started at Mark Twain Middle School and we could not be happier with the administration, especially Mr. Jacob!, most of the teachers and support. We were welcomed and at every turn got immediate responses for our family's and childrens' needs. Whether it was with scheduling or additional resources (for a public school they offer way more than you may realize) or extra help from teachers. Everyone is incredibly responsive and helpful. Because it is a small school they know most all of the students and genuinely care. The kids especially love the restorative justice circles. The parent support and FOMT group is also great and does everything they can to help fundraise and supplement he school's budget. The Boys & Girls club is great and they offer great clubs and sports. While it would be nice to see the library revived they definitely do all they can to make this school a great place. Having lived in the neighborhood for years it has been great to see first hand how great public schools can be. I feel grateful for many of the teachers and administrators at Mark Twain for having impacted our lives. I would strongly recommend this Middle School Ans you don't have to be a magnet student to get the support you need - we aren't! read more

We are not currently enrolled here, but having taken a tour we were very impressed. They seem to have had a bad reputation in the past but the neighborhood and community has rallied and with a new and ambitious principal, Ms Ford, now have a great school. We seriously thinking of driving our daughter there to avoid our Santa Monica school. read more

WE LOVE MARK TWAIN MIDDLE SCHOOL!!! There are so many different programs there. We love the diversity because that is the way of the world and it helps our children to learn about different people with different ethnicities, cultures, and socioeconomic back grounds while building understanding, compassion and tolerance. When there is a problem, as is the case in ANY SCHOOL, the principal and administrative staff are right there to work with you and handle any situation fairly and compassionately. The teachers are wonderful and they are going above and beyond what most of us do on a daily basis with regards to teaching our own kids. I am doing what I can at home to be the support system the teachers need by providing a place and an environment at home for my children to focus and do their homework. I make sure they get a good breakfast before school so they can concentrate and I make sure they go to bed on time and get enough sleep. We also eat dinner together so my children can share about their day at school and feel that their lives matter and that I truly care about them and their education. Parents need to be involved in their children's lives more than dropping off and picking up from school. A school can only do so much, and Mark Twain Middle School does a lot and they do it very well!!!! The only reason I gave them 4 stars instead of 5 is because LAUSD isn't giving ANY of the schools enough money to provide a full arts progam and that is what is lacking in many of the schools. But that's not the school's fault it's the district's fault!!!!! We are VERY HAPPY with MARK TWAIN MIDDLE SCHOOL!!!! read more

the school is just like any other school in LAUSD. It's obviously not going to be as advanced as a private school, but my son hasn't had any problems here. It's just like any other school in LA. Some kids may be doing bad things, but most of them get there work done and try to avoid the bad kids. read more