The Charter School of San Diego operates a free public secondary program for grades 6 through 12 from its San Carlos resource center at 8776 Lake Murray Blvd, serving students across San Diego County from the 92119 ZIP. Founded in 1994, the school holds the distinction of being the first charter approved by the San Diego Unified School District Board of Education — a unanimous vote that followed a year of planning after California implemented charter law in 1993. The program blends online media with traditional classroom instruction and pairs every student with a personalized educational plan, and academic support resources in the San Carlos corridor include supplemental centers such as Mathnasium on the east side of the neighborhood. One-on-one and small-group sessions adjust to individual pacing — a structure that draws students who need scheduling flexibility or academic acceleration beyond the conventional high school format. WASC accreditation validates the school's academic standing, and courses carry NCAA, UC a-g, and College Board approval, meaning credits transfer directly to four-year university applications. AP and Honors tracks are available for students who want weighted GPA points for competitive admissions. Lake Murray Blvd places this resource center in the residential core of San Carlos, near Cowles Mountain and the Navajo Road commercial strip. The school now operates under the Altus Schools network, with resource centers at College Avenue, Downtown, North Park, Mira Mesa, and more than a dozen other locations — a geography that draws students from traditional feeder campuses such as Lewis Middle School in the College Area orbit. In 2021, the organization received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award from the National Institute of Standards and Technology — the nation's highest presidential honor for performance excellence.