Dayton School District 8

Dayton School District 8 is a small Oregon district serving roughly 834 students across three schools — Dayton Grade School (K–5, 320 students), Dayton Junior High School (6–8, 204 students), and Dayton High School (9–12, 310 students) — with no alternative school in the area. The district ranks 116 of 141 Oregon districts, at the 18th percentile with a 1-star rating, and it trails the state in every tested subject: ELA by 13.5 points, math by 15.3 points, and science by 6.7 points.

Dayton High School is the district's bright spot, ranking 142 of 271 (48th percentile, 2 stars) and posting a 91.4% graduation rate against the state's 83.0%, plus ELA proficiency of 47.4% versus 43.8% statewide. Its weaknesses are math (18.2% vs. 32.9%) and the district's highest chronic absenteeism, 43.2%. Dayton Grade School has the best attendance at 27.3% chronically absent — below both district and state — and science at 30.0%, essentially at the state's 30.6%, but remains below state in ELA (32.5%) and math (23.7%). Dayton Junior High School is the clear concern: 335 of 371, 10th percentile, 0 stars, with ELA at 21.6%, math at 12.0%, and science at 11.5%. Its 7th-grade ELA is 9.7% and 8th-grade math is 8.9%.

For parents, three patterns matter. First, math is weak everywhere — every school is below the state, and the district's 17.6% compares with 32.9% statewide. Second, attendance does not simply explain achievement: the grade school has the best attendance but still below-state scores, while the high school has the worst attendance but the strongest ELA and graduation results. Third, the junior high has the lowest per-student spending ($18,990) and the highest student-teacher ratio (18.8), though the high school spends slightly less than the grade school and still performs better in ELA. Finally, the reported free/reduced-lunch figures exceed 100% at every school, so treat those numbers as unreliable.