Summary:
Molalla River School District 35 is a small Oregon district with just one high school: Molalla High School, which serves grades 9–12 and enrolls 745 students in the town of Molalla. Because Molalla River School District 35 operates only one high school, district 11th-grade results are identical to the school's, while district all-grade results include younger students and are not directly comparable. All findings below therefore describe a single school rather than a comparison among several.
The most striking signal is a sharp rank decline: Molalla High School was ranked 105 of 268 (61st percentile, 3 stars) in 2023–2024 and 111 of 270 (59th percentile, 3 stars) in 2024–2025, then fell to 222 of 271 (18th percentile, 1 star) in 2025–2026 — a drop of 111 positions in one year. Eleventh-grade proficiency is below state levels in every tested subject: ELA at 26.7% versus 46.0% statewide, math at 15.1% versus 22.9%, and science at 20.4% versus 33.8%. The graduation rate is 78.5%, slightly above the district's 78.1% but below the state's 83.0%, and chronic absenteeism is 36.5%, higher than both the district (35.8%) and state (33.5%). Nearly 70% (69.66%) of students qualify for free/reduced lunch, per-student spending is $19,933, and the student-teacher ratio is 18.5, or roughly 40 teachers.
Two points stand out for families. First, science is a relative bright spot: the school's 20.4% is slightly above the district's all-grade science result of 19.1%, even though it trails the state. Second, the school combines high poverty and high per-student spending with below-state outcomes, and its attendance and graduation figures tend to reinforce each other. The 2025–2026 rank drop may reflect real changes in outcomes, shifting demographics, or a change in ranking methodology, so it is worth watching whether the trend continues and how results vary by student group.
Thank you for your feedback!