Best Public Schools in Kelso, WA

Kelso, Washington, has 12 schools serving about 4,941 students from elementary through high school, along with alternative and virtual programs, all within the Kelso School District. Overall performance varies considerably by school and grade level. The clearest districtwide challenge is mathematics: proficiency averages about 44% in elementary schools, 30% in middle schools, and just 15% at Kelso High School. Science is generally a relative strength, particularly in elementary and middle school.

Among elementary schools, Rose Valley Elementary has the highest current ELA and math results, while Lexington Elementary has the strongest overall ranking among the larger schools and leads in science. Carrolls Elementary stands out for excellent third-grade ELA and math results, though its smaller enrollment and weaker upper-grade results make year-to-year comparisons less certain. Butler Acres Elementary performs above district averages in all three reported subjects. Barnes Elementary and Wallace Elementary have lower ELA and math results, although Wallace has shown gradual ranking improvement.

At the middle-school level, Coweeman Middle School ranks higher overall and has stronger math and science results, especially in seventh grade. Huntington Middle School has improved notably in ELA, science, and statewide ranking, but math remains its main weakness. Kelso High School offers an important contrast: its 90.2% graduation rate and 4.7% dropout rate are better than state comparisons, while math achievement is very low. Kelso Virtual Academy reports relatively strong science results but weaker ELA and math. The very small Loowit High School and Kelso Goal Oriented Learning Design should be evaluated cautiously because small enrollments can make results fluctuate substantially.