Crossroads School (Santa Monica, California)
Private, college preparatory school in Santa Monica, California, United States
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences is a K-12 independent, progressive, coeducational day-school with two campuses, located a few blocks apart, in Santa Monica, California.[2]
| Crossroads School for Arts and Sciences | |
|---|---|
| |
 | |
| Location | |
 | |
1714 21st Street , California United States 34°01′28″N 118°28′26″W | |
| Information | |
| Type | Private, college preparatory |
| Opened | 1971 |
| Founder | Paul Cummins, Rhoda Makoff |
Head of school | Mariama Richards |
| Grades | K–12 |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Enrollment | 1,207 |
| Colors | Blue and Red |
Athletics conference | CIF Southern Section Gold Coast League |
| Nickname | Roadrunners |
| Publication | Kollektiv (academic journal), Dark as Day (literary arts journal) |
| Newspaper | Crossfire |
| Yearbook | Crossroads Yearbook |
| Tuition | $46,694 (lower school) $55,489 (upper school)[1] |
| Website | xrds |
History
Founded in 1971 by Paul Cummins and Rhoda Makoff, Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences opened its doors in the fall of 1971, in three rented rooms in a Baptist church, with an initial enrollment of just over 30 students in seventh and eighth grades.[3] Over the decades, it moved and expanded, now serving around 1,200 students in kindergarten through high school.[4]
Campus facilities
Crossroads School operates two campuses and a performing arts center. The Norton Campus houses the Crossroads Elementary School, the Joanie Martin Community Room, and the K-12 Sports Center for all grade levels of interscholastic athletic teams.[2] The Norton Campus was endowed by Crossroads parent and entrepreneur Peter Norton.
The 21st Street Campus is located a few blocks away from the Norton Campus and houses the middle and upper schools, as well as administrative offices; a humanities building; a science education and research facility; the Sam Francis Gallery, named in honor of Crossroads parent and artist Sam Francis; the Stephen Morgan Middle School, named in honor a former Crossroads teacher who died from AIDS; and the Paul Cummins Library, named in honor of Crossroads' co-founder.[2] On 22nd Street, the Bezdek Center for the Performing Arts hosts Crossroads' musical and theatrical events and productions.[5]
Demographics
Crossroads students represent 107 zip codes. 56% of students and 46% of faculty identify as people of color. One in four students receive some form of financial aid through the School’s Affordability Program.[6] In 1991, Crossroads parent and A&M Records co-founder and musician Herb Alpert and his foundation established the Herb Alpert Endowment to provide merit and need-based student scholarships and to enhance student body diversity.[7]
Athletics
Crossroads Upper School participates in a full range of interscholastic athletics as a member of the CIF Southern Section. Teams include baseball, softball, basketball, soccer, tennis, volleyball, beach volleyball, cross country, track, golf, and swimming.[8]
In the media
The 2004 book Hollywood, Interrupted, by Andrew Breitbart and Mark Ebner, dedicated a large section to Crossroads; it depicted the school (and the celebrities who send their children there) in a negative light, focusing mainly on a handful of high-profile parents and "drug problems" stemming from the 1980s. The school was also featured in a May 2005 issue of Vanity Fair; like Breitbart's book, it also focused on the school's celebrity clientele.[9]
In his 2023 biography, Elon Musk alleges that Crossroads teaches "full-on communism," and blames his daughter's transition, alleged communist ideology, and decision to cut him out of her life on Crossroads.[10]
On the Dec. 11, 2025 episode of Amy Poehler’s podcast “Good Hang,” alumna Maya Rudolph said of Crossroads, “It was such a f…g great, creative, cool school. It was so punk and weird and artistic.”[11]
On the Sept. 19, 2024 episode of the podcast “WTF with Marc Maron,” alumnus Jason Ritter said of Crossroads, “I really loved it. … There’s a class where we passed around a stick and talked about our feelings. It forced 14- and 15-year-olds to be like, ‘I guess this is what’s going on inside my heart and brain.’”[12]
On the Mar. 24, 2025 episode of the podcast “The Diary of a CEO,” alumnus Evan Spiegel said about his introduction of the practice of Council at Snap, Inc., “Council is something that I stole from the school that I went to growing up called Crossroads School for Arts & Sciences, which is quite a unique school…(Council) really creates an opportunity for people to listen to one another because you're taking turns going around the circle, but you get to know people in a very very different way and I saw how powerful it was…”[13]
Notable alumni
- J. A. Adande, sports journalist[14]
- Maude Apatow, actress
- Sean Astin, actor, director and producer[14]
- Henry Baum, writer, blogger and musician[9]
- Michael Bay, film director and producer[15]
- Z Berg, musician[16]
- Jack Black, actor, comedian, and musician[9][17]
- Max Brooks, actor and author[18]
- Gary Coleman, actor, comedian, and writer[9]
- Austin Croshere, NBA basketball player and TV broadcaster[14]
- Baron Davis, NBA basketball player and TV commentator[14]
- Emily Deschanel, actress, director and producer[19]
- Zooey Deschanel, actress, model, and singer-songwriter[9]
- Alden Ehrenreich, actor[17]
- Jessie Ennis, actress
- Maya Erskine, actress and TV writer[20]
- Zack Fleishman, professional tennis player[21]
- Robert Francis, musician
- Nicole Gibbs, professional tennis player[22]
- Lauren Greenfield, artist, photographer, and filmmaker[23]
- Petra Haden, musician and singer[19]
- Rachel Haden, musician[19]
- Tanya Haden, artist, cellist, and singer[24]
- Simon Helberg, actor, comedian and musician[25]
- Jonah Hill, actor, director, producer, screenwriter, and comedian[17][26]
- Oliver Hudson, actor
- Kate Hudson, actress, author, and fashion entrepreneur[27]
- Bronny James, basketball player[28]
- Brody Jenner, television personality, disc jockey and model[29]
- Jenni Konner, television writer, producer and director[30]
- Alex Kurtzman, film and television writer, producer, and director[9]
- Alexandra Kyle, actress[31]
- Amadéus Leopold, music artist[32]
- Zosia Mamet, actress and musician[33]
- Milo Manheim, actor[34]
- Shareef O'Neal, basketball player[35]
- Michael Ojo, basketball player[36]
- Roberto Orci, film and television writer and producer[9]
- Gwyneth Paltrow, actress, businesswoman and author[14]
- Amy Pascal, business executive and film producer[9]
- Austin Peralta, jazz musician[37]
- Whitney Port, television personality and fashion designer
- Spencer Pratt, candidate for LA mayor
- Jack Quaid, actor[38]
- Jason Ritter, actor and producer
- Maya Rudolph, actress, comedian, singer, and voice actress[9]
- Tamir Saban (born 1999), American-Israeli basketball player
- Blake Schwarzenbach, musician[39]
- Evan Spiegel, businessman, co-founder of Snapchat[40]
- Dayna Tortorici, writer[41]
- Liv Tyler, actress and former model[42]
- Andrew von Oeyen, classical musician
- Gillian Welch, musician[9]
- Vivian Wilson, daughter of Elon Musk[43]
- Jessica Yellin, journalist[44]
- Harley Viera-Newton, model and DJ
