Summary:
Jefferson Local serves 976 students across three schools: Norwood Elementary School (K–5, 445 students), West Jefferson Middle School (6–8, 252 students), and West Jefferson High School (9–12, 279 students). The district is ranked 427th of 773 Ohio districts, placing it in the 45th percentile with 2 stars — a mid-to-lower profile overall, though the three schools differ meaningfully from one another.
Norwood Elementary School is the academic leader. In 2025–26 it ranked in the 62nd percentile with 3 stars, and every tested subject and grade was above the state average, including 5th-grade ELA at 77.8% and 5th-grade science at 73.6%. It also has the lowest chronic absenteeism at 16.6%. West Jefferson Middle School is a math standout: Algebra I was 100% proficient in both 2024–25 and 2025–26, and 8th-grade math reached 78.6% versus 52.0% statewide. Its weaker areas are 7th-grade ELA (52.1% vs. 62.7%) and 8th-grade science (49.4% vs. 61.2%). West Jefferson High School posts a strong 98.8% graduation rate but ranks in the 32nd percentile with 2 stars; American Government and Algebra I beat the state, while English II, American History, Biology, and Geometry fell below it.
Chronic absenteeism climbs with grade level — 16.6% at the elementary school, 22.8% at the middle school, and 24.3% at the high school, against the district's 20.3%. The high school reports the highest free/reduced lunch rate at 75.99%, Norwood sits at 49.89%, and the middle school's value is not reported, so that comparison cannot be completed. Notably, the high school has the smallest classes (12.6 students per teacher) and the highest per-student spending ($10,654 in 2018–19) yet the lowest rank percentile, while Norwood achieves more with a higher ratio and lower spending. Norwood and the high school have slipped in rank percentile since 2023–24; the middle school has held steady.
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