Elementary Schools in North Clackamas School District 12

The 19 elementary schools in North Clackamas School District 12 — mostly K–5 campuses, plus the K–8 Cascade Heights Public Charter School — together enroll about 7,048 students in the Milwaukie, Happy Valley, and Oak Grove area south of Portland. The district overall ranks 48th of 141 in Oregon (66th percentile, 3 stars), but that average hides an unusually wide spread: its elementary schools here range from the 3rd percentile to the 88th.

Four schools earn 4 stars and beat district results in all three subjects. Happy Valley Elementary School posts the highest math (57.4%) and science (48.2%) plus the second-highest ELA (64.3%). Sojourner School leads in ELA (67.6%) and has the lowest chronic absenteeism (12.0%). Scouters Mountain Elementary is the largest school (568 students), and Spring Mountain Elementary has held 4 stars three years running. At the other end, Linwood Elementary School has the lowest ELA (18.3%), math (12.1%), and science (6.9%) with 0 stars, while Whitcomb Elementary School has the highest chronic absenteeism (39.3%).

Three patterns matter most for parents. First, attendance tracks closely with achievement: the 4-star schools average roughly 18.1% chronic absenteeism versus about 36.4% at the two 0-star schools. Second, spending and class size do not predict results — Linwood has the lowest student-teacher ratio (15.3) yet the lowest scores, while Sojourner has the highest ratio (22.0) and the top ELA results. Third, free/reduced lunch rates are nearly uniform (about 58–60%), so they explain little of the variation; the most striking example is Sojourner School and Linwood Elementary School, which share the same building address and similar poverty rates yet sit at opposite ends of the rankings.