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Graham Kapowsin High School

Q: Is Graham Kapowsin High School a good school?

Graham Kapowsin High School ranks 256 th of 438 Washington high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

256^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 438 Washington High Schools

Better than 42% of Washington high schools

Summary

Graham Kapowsin High School is a large public high school serving about 2,100 students in grades 9-12 within the Bethel School District in Graham, WA.

The school presents a notable paradox: it excels at graduating students, with a 93.1% graduation rate that surpasses the state average and rivals nearby schools like Orting High School, yet its academic proficiency, especially in math where only 26% of students are proficient, lags behind. Its performance in English Language Arts is a relative strength, outperforming other Bethel School District high schools such as Spanaway Lake High School. However, the school's statewide ranking has declined over the past decade, and it shows significant performance gaps for specific student subgroups, including students in special education.

Compared to schools in neighboring districts, such as Emerald Ridge High School in the Puyallup School District, GKHS spends less per student and has a higher student-teacher ratio. Within its own district, it is a mid-tier performer; Bethel High School ranks higher academically, while Challenger High School, an alternative school, ranks lower but receives more funding per student.

2,087

Students ?

24.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,170

Per pupil spending ?

47.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

22100 108th Ave E
Graham, WA 98338

(253) 800-6100

District: Bethel School District

Feeder schools for Graham Kapowsin High School:

Elementary:	Frederickson Elementary
	Graham Elementary
	Kapowsin Elementary
	Nelson Elementary School
	More...
	Pioneer Valley Elementary
Middle:	Frontier Middle School
	Liberty Middle School

Racial breakdown:

White:

45.0%

Hispanic:

20.4%

Two or more races:

16.2%

See top rated Washington high schools

Compare Graham Kapowsin High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 83rd percentile in 2015 → 42nd in 2025

Strengths

✓93% graduate in 4 years — above the Washington average (83%)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 41 percentile points since 2015

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Math scores 17 pts below the Washington average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school44%

District avg43%

Washington avg48%

256^th of 438

Washington public high schools ?

Bottom 42%▼ down 41 pts since 2015

From top 17% (2015) to bottom 42% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Washington High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 4High Schools in the Bethel School District

138^th of 247Bethel School District among Washington districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	41.4	256 of 438	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	28.8	321 of 437	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.3	319 of 442	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	39.5	265 of 434	38.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	44.8	236 of 455	48.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	41.5	254 of 417	39.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	44.8	202 of 315	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2017	64.8	118 of 301	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2016	65.1	107 of 306	65.0%	★★★☆☆
2015	76.8	59 of 341	82.7%	★★★★☆
2013	62.0	169 of 454	62.8%	★★★☆☆
2012	49.7	247 of 450	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2011	53.5	201 of 440	54.3%	★★★☆☆
2010	61.2	186 of 423	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2009	56.9	205 of 402	49.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	59.7	179 of 396	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2007	53.4	213 of 399	46.6%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	40.0	50 of 80	37.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	24.6	53 of 70	24.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	41.3	48 of 78	38.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.8	55 of 89	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	56.4	40 of 111	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	49.0	39 of 86	54.7%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	17.8	100 of 119	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	6.0	111 of 113	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.2	99 of 118	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.9	89 of 124	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.8	102 of 136	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.2	96 of 121	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	8.6	84 of 87	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	26.4	62 of 85	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	46.5	42 of 102	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	40.5	41 of 69	40.6%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	43.5	196 of 350	44.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	33.1	245 of 347	29.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	30.6	256 of 357	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	37.9	233 of 368	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	49.1	176 of 390	54.9%	★★★☆☆
2019	45.1	213 of 358	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.9	151 of 243	37.9%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	48.2	114 of 249	54.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	41.1	136 of 248	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.2	167 of 249	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	44.1	140 of 261	46.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	42.8	147 of 278	47.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	37.2	152 of 241	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.1	87 of 156	44.2%	★★☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	30.9	25 of 36	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	56.9	8 of 24	66.7%	★★★★☆
2019	36.1	29 of 43	32.6%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	44.6	195 of 355	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	31.2	260 of 356	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.5	304 of 362	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	45.7	193 of 370	47.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	47.0	193 of 392	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	36.3	238 of 344	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	47.9	136 of 227	40.1%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	33.5	245 of 359	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	20.4	304 of 362	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.5	288 of 358	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	34.2	243 of 363	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.0	233 of 395	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	37.3	237 of 355	33.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.9	184 of 254	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	38.8	22 of 34	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	7.7	33 of 34	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.0	30 of 31	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	38.5	27 of 38	28.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	14.1	46 of 47	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	21.4	27 of 31	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	33.8	118 of 170	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.6	112 of 161	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	16.7	150 of 166	9.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.8	130 of 179	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.1	150 of 195	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	28.8	125 of 163	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.1	70 of 91	23.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2021	98.6	1 of 19	94.7%	★★★★★

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	28.0	7 of 8	12.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	72.5	3 of 17	82.4%	★★★★☆
2021	63.6	10 of 33	69.7%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	20.7	108 of 127	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.7	102 of 110	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.9	108 of 110	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	32.6	96 of 130	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	48.2	91 of 212	57.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	35.4	84 of 128	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	22.7	118 of 139	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	37.0	241 of 373	35.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	20.9	319 of 374	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.6	306 of 379	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.5	294 of 390	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	47.2	202 of 413	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	39.5	249 of 382	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.5	174 of 222	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Native American (2021)95th percentile+47 vs school

Hispanic (2025)54th percentile+13 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)45th percentile+4 vs school

Female (2025)44th percentile~ school

African American (2025)38th percentile-4 vs school

White (2025)35th percentile-6 vs school

Military Connected (2025)35th percentile-6 vs school

Male (2025)32nd percentile-10 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)31st percentile-11 vs school

Homeless (2025)31st percentile-11 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)27th percentile-14 vs school

Asian (2025)16th percentile-26 vs school

Special Education (2025)15th percentile-27 vs school

Pacific Islander (2025)12th percentile-29 vs school

By subject vs Washington (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts62%+9 vs state

Science43%-6 vs state

Math26%-17 vs state

1.0

2 ratings · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Monday, February 25, 2013

There are more teachers there than do not care than do. There is one particular math teacher who has more than 90% of his students fail his class and the administration will do nothing about him. They push the kids to take several AP classes in order to look good as a school. There is a serious bullying problem at that school and in the handbook it states that it is not tolerated, however, the administration turns a blind eye to the bullying. Just last year they had a student commit suicide over being bullied, yet the administration continues to allow it to go on. They have "orange and blue starts with you" days, but even the kids say that it is a joke. This school is more worried about looking good that it covers up anything that will show how it really is. They would not let my child out of the school to attend another Bethel school so we signed her up for running start, just to get her out of there. The following year we appealed and she was allowed to leave. A friend of mine had the same problem and they actually had to move out of the district to get away. Close Quote

Schools Near Graham Kapowsin High School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				WCAS Science (2025)		SBAC English Language Arts (2025)		SBAC Math (2025)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	WCAS Science 11th Grade	WCAS Science All Grades	SBAC English Language Arts 10th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts All Grades	SBAC Math 10th Grade	SBAC Math All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Graham Kapowsin High School	Public	9-12	22100 108th Ave E	Graham	98338	Pierce County	Bethel School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 800-6100	2,087	86	24.1	47.9%	940 (45.0%)	149 (7.1%)	425 (20.4%)	105 (5.0%)	19 (0.9%)	111 (5.3%)	338 (16.2%)	41.4	256^th of 438 public high schools	41.6%		28.8	321^st of 437 public high schools	26.5%	65	42.9	42.9	61.8	61.8	26.0	26.0	$15,170	$1,041	$14,129
Emerald Ridge High School	Public	10-12	12405 184th St E	Puyallup	98374	Pierce County	Puyallup School District	No	No	No	Yes	(253) 435-6300	1,599	65	24.4	43.7%	730 (45.7%)	144 (9.0%)	337 (21.1%)	107 (6.7%)	21 (1.3%)	47 (2.9%)	198 (12.4%)	64.2	135^th of 438 public high schools	69.2%		64	132^nd of 437 public high schools	69.8%	3	59.5	59.5	74.7	74.7	29.6	29.6	$15,368	$606	$14,762
Bethel High School	Public	9-12	22215 38th Avenue East	Spanaway	98387	Pierce County	Bethel School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 800-7000	1,688	78	21.5	50.8%	716 (42.4%)	102 (6.0%)	392 (23.2%)	63 (3.7%)	15 (0.9%)	84 (5.0%)	308 (18.2%)	48.6	208^th of 438 public high schools	52.5%		44.4	244^th of 437 public high schools	44.2%	36	49.4	49.4	64.7	64.7	26.7	26.7	$17,225	$1,187	$16,038
Orting High School	Public	9-12	320 Washington Avenue North	Orting	98360	Pierce County	Orting School District	No	No	No	No	(360) 893-2246	876	41	21.3	36.9%	566 (64.6%)	22 (2.5%)	154 (17.6%)	21 (2.4%)	8 (0.9%)	10 (1.1%)	95 (10.8%)	46.6	222^nd of 438 public high schools	49.3%		38.1	276^th of 437 public high schools	36.8%	54	49.0	49.0	61.4	61.4	27.5	27.5	$16,046	$598	$15,447
Pierce County Skills Center	Public	8-12	16117 Canyon Rd E	Puyallup	98375	Pierce County	Bethel School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 800-5950	355	15	23.6	26.2%	204 (57.5%)	22 (6.2%)	76 (21.4%)	21 (5.9%)	1 (0.3%)	6 (1.7%)	18 (5.1%)								(n/a)							$18,068	$846	$17,222
Gov John Rogers High School	Public	9-12	12801 86th Ave E	Puyallup	98373	Pierce County	Puyallup School District	No	No	No	Yes	(253) 841-8717	1,788	76	23.5	46.7%	770 (43.1%)	139 (7.8%)	402 (22.5%)	153 (8.6%)	10 (0.6%)	60 (3.4%)	239 (13.4%)	51.6	200^th of 438 public high schools	54.3%		52.2	203^rd of 437 public high schools	53.5%	3	56.8	56.8	65.0	65.0	23.0	23.0	$15,752	$612	$15,141
Spanaway Lake High School	Public	9-12	1305 168th Street East	Spanaway	98387	Pierce County	Bethel School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 800-5600	1,787	79	22.7	60.5%	500 (28.0%)	243 (13.6%)	437 (24.5%)	126 (7.1%)	20 (1.1%)	158 (8.8%)	299 (16.7%)	32.1	305^th of 438 public high schools	30.4%		32.5	304^th of 437 public high schools	30.4%	1	44.2	44.2	55.7	55.7	16.9	16.9	$16,697	$1,532	$15,165
Gates Secondary School	Public	10-12	4608 128th St E	Tacoma	98446	Pierce County	Franklin Pierce School District	No	No	No	Yes	(253) 298-4000	104	14	7.6	76.9%	27 (26.0%)	8 (7.7%)	37 (35.6%)	4 (3.8%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (6.7%)	21 (20.2%)								(n/a)							$40,763	$1,195	$39,569
Puyallup Open Doors/POD	Public	9-12	1501 39th Ave SW	Puyallup	98373	Pierce County	Puyallup School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 864-5700	124	4	31.0	63.7%	61 (49.2%)	8 (6.5%)	36 (29.0%)	3 (2.4%)	3 (2.4%)	4 (3.2%)	9 (7.3%)								(n/a)	23.5	23.5					$14,880	$170	$14,710
Transition 18-21 Program	Public	12	516 176th St E	Spanaway	98387	Pierce County	Bethel School District	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(253) 800-2300	58	0		50.0%	23 (39.7%)	6 (10.3%)	14 (24.1%)	1 (1.7%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.7%)	13 (22.4%)								(n/a)							$5,612	$721	$4,890

Frequently Asked Questions about Graham Kapowsin High School

Is Graham Kapowsin High School a good school?

Graham Kapowsin High School ranks 256^th of 438 Washington high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Graham Kapowsin High School?

Students at Graham Kapowsin High School are 45% White, 20% Hispanic, 16% Two or more races, 7% African American, 5% Pacific Islander, 5% Asian.

What district is Graham Kapowsin High School in?

Bethel School District

What schools feed into Graham Kapowsin High School?

Graham Kapowsin High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Frederickson Elementary
Elementary : Graham Elementary
Elementary : Kapowsin Elementary
Elementary : Nelson Elementary School
Elementary : Pioneer Valley Elementary
Middle : Frontier Middle School
Middle : Liberty Middle School

How many students attend Graham Kapowsin High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 2,087 students attended Graham Kapowsin High School.

Rate Graham Kapowsin High School!

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Washington State Department of Health and the Washington Office of Superindentent of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.