Valley Prep School Loses Credentials

Stoneridge Preparatory School, a small private school in Tarzana once attended by actors Drew Barrymore and Corey Feldman, lost its accreditation from the Western Assn. of Schools and Colleges.

The association’s seal of approval is prized by private and public schools, and losing it can prevent students from attending certain colleges and receiving financial aid.

The accreditation was revoked this month because the 56-student school had not followed recommendations to address problems, said George Bronson, an association spokesman.

“They still didn’t have it to our satisfaction, so we said, ‘That’s it,’ ” he said. He would not specify the issues.

Stoneridge’s owner and director, Maria Arnold, said problems found during an inspection in January were “mainly administrative.” She said she has asked the association to dispatch another group of inspectors later this month.

“We have a sound academic program,” Arnold said, and she criticized the association for inconsistently evaluating schools.

“One group comes and says something. The next group comes and interprets entirely differently,” she said. “They do not understand small schools, especially for-profit schools.”

The school, which enrolls boys and girls in grades seven through 12, rents space at the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East on Lindley Avenue.