Middle Schools in North Thurston Public Schools

North Thurston Public Schools operates five middle schools (grades 6-8) in the Lacey, Washington area, serving over 3,200 students with performance that varies significantly from school to school.

Aspire Middle School stands out as the district's top performer, consistently ranking among the best in the state with test scores well above both district and state averages in all subjects. In contrast, Nisqually Middle School has struggled, with the lowest test scores and rankings in the district. The other three schools—Chinook Middle School, Salish Middle School, and Komachin Middle School—perform in the middle range, with Komachin showing recent improvement.

Interestingly, higher spending and smaller class sizes do not guarantee better results here; Aspire achieves its excellence with the lowest per-student funding and largest class sizes in the district. As a whole, the North Thurston Public Schools district matches the state average in English but lags notably in math and science, indicating a potential area for district-wide focus. For parents, this data highlights the importance of looking at individual school performance, as outcomes can differ greatly even within the same district.