Viewpoint School and Berkeley Hall to Merge

Viewpoint School, a leading independent college preparatory school in Calabasas, and Berkeley Hall School, Los Angeles’ oldest independent co-educational school, have announced they will merge to become one school serving students from Preschool through 12th grade across two campuses rooted in the Santa Monica Mountains. Together, the merged school will build a stronger, distinctive, and vibrant community leveraging 180 years of educational leadership and service to their communities.

Each school will continue to operate as they do today through the 2026-27 school year. Beginning in the 2027-28 school year, by which time the merger is anticipated to have closed, both schools, as one institution, will work together to explore opportunities for academic integration to enrich and build on the strong educational experience that students and families have come to know and love.

The Boards of Trustees of both schools, after years of thoughtful planning and with the full support of the Heads of School, determined that this merger represents the most meaningful step either institution could take for its students, families, employees, and future. This merger reflects more than a decade of deepening ties and a natural continuation of a relationship that these communities have been building together. Viewpoint has been one of Berkeley Hall’s most consistent destination schools, and Berkeley Hall has been one of Viewpoint’s most numerous feeder schools – a testament to the fit of their missions, cultures, and programs. In 2019, the schools took an initial, formal step together with Pathways Partnership, an intentional admissions path for Berkeley Hall 8th graders to continue their education at Viewpoint.

Individually, each school has earned deep loyalty and built a community grounded in decades of tradition. Together, new and meaningful opportunities will emerge for students, families, and faculty and staff.

For Berkeley Hall families, this means a seamless path from Preschool through 12th grade, including a guaranteed place at Viewpoint, without a secondary application process.

For Viewpoint families, it means permanently welcoming a community of students, teachers, and parents with shared values and increased presence in the Los Angeles area.

Importantly, what matters most will remain: the campuses, the deep traditions, the teachers, and the unique cultures that make each school a special place. Over the long term, both campuses will remain open and will continue to serve the same grades they do today. As part of the transition, Mark McKee will become the President of the merged school.

Dr. Sarah Colmaire will remain Head of the Berkeley Hall campus, providing local leadership for its programs, people, and campus.

“This is a once-in-a-generation moment, and we are meeting it with a clear sense of purpose and vision,” said Andy Kieffer, Board Chair of Viewpoint. “At every step, our board was focused on one question: what gives our students the best possible education and the best possible future? Every answer led back to the relationship our communities had already built.”

Viewpoint School and Berkeley Hall to Merge

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