The UCLA Community School, first opened in 2009, is the product of years of planning and organizing by a group of visionary educators seeking to provide innovative K-5 dual language programs to the local Spanish and Korean speaking families in the Koreatown neighborhood. The school has since expanded to include grades 6th -12th grade. It should be noted that the school is both an LAUSD pilot and community school. This means the school operates more autonomously and democratically than a regular LAUSD school. The school includes wrap-around services like an Immigration Law Clinic and other support catering to the Koreatown community.  UCLA CS is also unique for having a research partnership with the University of California Los Angeles. The school serves a diverse and under-resourced population of 967 TK-12 students. According to the most recent UCLA CS annual online report by Karen Quartz, 84% of students are Latino/a/x, 7% are Asian American or Pacific Islander, 5% are Filipino, 3% are African American, and 2% are White (Quartz). The report also states that about 95% of families reported using another language other than English at home. It should also be mentioned that 95% of students receive free and reduced lunches. UCLA CS also  has a  diverse faculty made up of many bilingual teachers. 

UCLA is is one of six schools in the RFK Community of Schools Campus. Formerly the site of the Ambassador Hotel, the RFK campus is one of the largest and most expensive public works project ever built. As such, it's creation was the source of tension between conservationists wanting to preserve the site's history and grassroots organizers who wanted to end the bussing of local children to schools across LA county. 

The UCLA Community School itself was conceived in 2006. It was part of a national reform movement that prioritized school choice, small schools, and teacher autonomy. UCLA teamed with LAUSD, United Teachers of Los Angeles (UTLA), and the community to reimagine public education. LAUSD operates the school, in partnership with UCLA. 

When UCLA-CS opened in 2009 it had an immediate impact. Students from the surrounding neighborhoods had been enduring long bus rides to attend over 60 schools throughout the city because local schools were critically overcrowded. Now, students can attend school just down the street.

Though school has not been around very long, in 2023 our community is experiencing a decrease in enrollment due to inflation and gentrification. Still a hub for newly arrived immigrants, our school's immigration clinic also provides legal advice to renting families facing evictions. 

Our school's vision is focused on social justice and equity. Even so we recognize the inevitability of blindspots. Staff relational trust is key to bringing to light issues of equity,  access and marginalization. Our school is largely Latinx which is why it is important to keep in mind the way Black, Filipino, and Asian children experience UCLA CS. Such students sometimes experience marginalization just the same even in Latinx spaces. Students with disability also represent a group at our school that faces marginalization. There is an ever increasing group of students identified with learning disabilities or other health impairments. These identifications affect their ability to assimilate socially and productively at school. Teachers at UCLA CS report feeling inadequately trained to address the emotional and behavioral needs of students with disabilities.