Tacoma School District

Tacoma School District includes 64 schools serving students from prekindergarten through grade 12 across Tacoma, with elementary, middle, high, alternative, online, Montessori, arts, science, and specialized programs. The district offers considerable variety, but performance differs widely by school. Districtwide 2025–2026 proficiency was 44.33% in English language arts, 31.16% in math, and 42.31% in science, below Washington averages in every subject. Math is the largest concern, particularly in middle and high school.

Elementary schools include some of the district’s strongest performers. Washington Elementary School ranked in the 89th statewide percentile, with about 71% proficiency in both English and math. Browns Point Elementary School, Jefferson Elementary School, and Sherman Elementary School also posted notably strong results across subjects. Science was a particular strength at Point Defiance Elementary School and Lowell Elementary School. At the middle-school level, Mason Middle School was the clear leader, ranking in the 79th percentile and exceeding district and state benchmarks in all three subjects. Meeker Middle School and Hunt Middle School were other comparatively strong options.

Among high schools, Science and Math Institute ranked highest academically, while Stadium High School combined strong assessment results with a 96.8% graduation rate and a 1.8% dropout rate. Results were much weaker at Foss High School, Mount Tahoma High School, and Lincoln High School, especially in math. Specialized programs such as Tacoma Open Doors and Oakland Secondary School should be compared cautiously because their students and program structures differ. Suppressed results indicate unknown data, not zero performance, and small or specialized schools may have unusual spending, staffing, or year-to-year results.