Jefferson School District 14J

Jefferson School District 14J is a small Oregon district with three schools — one elementary, one middle, and one high school — serving a total of 695 students, and it ranks 137th of 141 Oregon districts at the 3rd percentile with 0 stars, in a context where roughly 75% of students at each school qualify for free or reduced lunch.

Academically, all three schools are below Oregon averages, but the relative patterns differ. Jefferson Elementary School has the strongest all-grade results: ELA 30.6%, math 14.3%, and science 17.8%, all above the district but below the state; its 3rd grade ELA is at the state average of 41.5%, while 4th grade ELA is 16.3% and 4th grade math is 10.2%. Jefferson Middle School posts ELA 26.2%, math 12.3%, and the lowest all-grade science among the three schools at 8.3%; its 6th grade math is reported as under 5%, compared with the state’s 29.7%, though 7th grade math is 23.5%, the middle school’s highest grade-level math result. Jefferson High School has the lowest all-grade ELA (17.3%) and math (7.7%), while its science is 17.9%, above the district but below the state; its graduation rate of 84.5% is above Oregon’s 83.0%.

Chronic absenteeism is high across the district: elementary and middle are both 40.1%, high school is 51.3%, district 44.0%, state 33.5%. High school spends the most per student ($21,337) and has the lowest student-teacher ratio (31.8), yet it also has the lowest ELA and math proficiency and highest absenteeism. Middle school has the highest ratio (41.2). Rank history: elementary 15th percentile/1 star, middle 12th percentile/1 star, high 7th percentile/0 stars; high school fell from 66th percentile/3 stars in 2023–24. The main takeaway: elementary is the relative academic leader, middle has severe math and science weakness, and high school has the most dramatic decline despite a graduation rate above state average.