A Christian school in Clairemont where your child's teacher knows them for years, not months.
Reformation Lutheran School has served San Diego families since 1970 with small class sizes, multi-grade classrooms, daily devotions, and tuition that a working family can plan around. Transitional kindergarten through 8th grade, with a year-round preschool on the same campus.
Four classrooms, and a teacher who stays with your child
Our classrooms are organized in grade pairs and bands rather than single grades. Transitional kindergarten and kindergarten learn together, as do first and second grade, third through fifth, and sixth through eighth. Each room has one teacher who keeps a child for two or three years, so the second year begins with someone who already knows how your child reads, works, and worries.
Inside the room, students break into grade-level groups for subjects like math, and the older students model the habits the younger ones are still learning. It's the oldest kind of schoolhouse there is, and it's the reason our teachers can say they know every child by name.
- TK and KMrs. Brennan ButhTransitional kindergarten and kindergarten
- Grades 1 and 2Mrs. Jenny ManginiFirst and second grade
- Grades 3 to 5Mrs. Becky HornThird, fourth, and fifth grade
- Grades 6 to 8Mr. Michael RossSixth, seventh, and eighth grade
- CatechismRev. James Werner, PastorSeventh and eighth grade
Christ-centered, and clear about what that means
Reformation is a school of Reformation Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. In practice that means every subject is taught in the light of God's Word, each day opens with devotions, the whole school worships together at a weekly chapel service, and the pastor teaches catechism to the seventh and eighth graders himself.
Families don't need to be Lutheran to enroll here, and many aren't. What they share is the wish for their children to grow in faith and in knowledge at the same time, in a place where the two were never separated to begin with.
Academics you can measure
Students in kindergarten through 8th grade take NWEA MAP Growth assessments three times a year, and the school shares how its grade-level averages compare with national averages. The results are a habit here, not a brochure line.
- Spanish from kindergarten through 8th grade
- Algebra I and Geometry in middle school
- Chromebooks with Google Workspace, 3D design, and computer programming
- Music, art, drama, and physical education for every grade, with ukulele in grades 3 and 4
- A WELS certified teacher with a degree in elementary education in every classroom
Where our graduates go
Eighth graders leave Reformation for Cathedral Catholic, Santa Fe Christian, Christian Unified, Maranatha Christian, High Tech High, Scripps Ranch, University City, Clairemont, Madison, St. Augustine, and our affiliated California Lutheran Academy, among others. Families who move away tell us their students arrive ahead of the standards at their new schools.
Within reach for a working family
$9,500Tuition for transitional kindergarten through 8th grade, 2026-2027 school year
That's the whole year, billed monthly through FACTS. Families paying the year in full receive 4% off, each additional child enrolled receives 15% off, and members of Reformation Lutheran Church receive 15% off. Need-based tuition assistance is available by application.
Built around a parent's workday
- Shepherd's Care
- Before and after school care from 7:00 to 8:15 a.m. and 3:15 to 5:30 p.m., billed only for the time you use at $7.25 per hour.
- Hot lunch
- Served on Mondays and Wednesdays, run by parent volunteers and billed through FACTS.
- One campus
- Preschool, transitional kindergarten, and grades K through 8 all at 4670 Mt. Abernathy Avenue, so one drop-off covers every child in the family.
A California Purple Star School
The California Department of Education awards the Purple Star designation to schools that support military-connected students and their families. The school is one of only four private schools in California, and one of two Christian schools, to have earned it.
With MCAS Miramar, Naval Base Point Loma, and Naval Base San Diego a short drive from Clairemont, we've done this many times. We enroll midyear when there's space, start the process remotely for families still on their way, prorate tuition for midyear arrivals and departures, and reduce the enrollment fee for new military students.
Life outside the lesson
Raiders volleyball and basketball in an independent school league for grades 5 through 8, track and field, drama performances, Fine Arts and Knowledge Bowl days with affiliated schools, field trips, and class trips to San Francisco, Catalina Island, and Washington, D.C. for the upper grades.
What parents tell us
My children are happy and are learning and growing academically and in their faith. They have had really good teachers. This is a great school.
The teachers, staff and students. I believe it is a loving, inclusive and supportive environment that mirrors Christ's teachings.
I feel the teachers really care about the students and the school offers a variety of activities for the students to get involved with.
Come see a classroom in action
The best way to know whether Reformation is right for your family is to walk through our four classrooms on a school day and meet the teachers. Tours take about an hour, and you'll leave with an information folder and answers to your questions.
- Address
- 4670 Mt. Abernathy Ave
San Diego, CA 92117 - Office
- (858) 279-3311
school@refsd.org - School day
- 8:15 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., Monday through Friday
Shepherd's Care from 7:00 a.m. and until 5:30 p.m.