Schools in Zip Code 97321

ZIP code 97321 in Albany, Oregon is home to nine public schools — six elementary, two middle, and one high school — serving roughly 3,721 students, all within a single district, Greater Albany Public School District 8J. Because every school shares one district and one funding stream, the differences between them reflect the schools themselves rather than different district policies. Grade spans vary at the elementary level: Takena Elementary School serves K–2 and Central Elementary School serves grades 3–5, which is why Takena has no test scores — state testing begins in grade 3.

Oak Grove Elementary School is the strongest all-around performer, ranking at the 91st percentile statewide with math proficiency of 65.4%, about double the district and state. North Albany Elementary School leads in English language arts at 67.9%, and North Albany Middle School matches it at the 87th percentile, beating district averages in every subject. West Albany High School posts a 95.1% graduation rate, more than 12 points above the state. Central Elementary improved the most, rising from the 33rd to the 60th percentile. At the other end, Waverly Elementary School sits at the 11th percentile with the highest absenteeism (41.8%), while Memorial Middle School trails district and state in all three subjects.

Attendance is the measure most closely tied to achievement here: the four schools with the lowest chronic absenteeism all rank at or above the 72nd percentile, while the three with the highest are the lowest-ranked. Poverty is uniformly high across the ZIP, between 75.6% and 82.8%, so it explains little of the variation. Spending and class size also fail to predict results — Waverly spends the most per student and has among the smallest classes, yet records the lowest achievement.