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Thomas Jefferson High School

Public Grades 9-12

325^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 396 Washington High Schools

Better than 18% of Washington high schools

Summary

Thomas Jefferson High School is a public grades 9–12 school serving about 1,810 students in the Federal Way School District, near Auburn, Federal Way, Kent, and Des Moines. It serves a high-need community, with 71.88% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. The school’s 22.6:1 student-teacher ratio is higher than at Federal Way High School, Auburn Senior High School, and Kent-Meridian High School.

Academically, the school’s profile is uneven. English Language Arts is a relative strength: 45.05% of students were proficient in 2025–2026, above the district average of 38.33% and nearly identical to Federal Way High School. Science proficiency was 32.55%, about equal to the district and higher than results at Federal Way High and Kent-Meridian, though well below the state. Mathematics is the clearest challenge, with only 16.32% proficient—below the district’s 27.11% and the state’s 43.11%. Math performance has remained near 16% for four straight years, suggesting a persistent issue rather than a one-year dip.

The school ranked 325th out of 396 Washington high schools, in approximately the 18th percentile—an improvement over the previous two years but still a low statewide position. Nearby Mount Rainier High School ranked much higher, while Thomas Jefferson ranked ahead of Federal Way High and Kent-Meridian. Its 84.4% graduation rate was slightly above the state average and higher than Auburn Senior and Kent-Meridian, although below Federal Way High and Mount Rainier. The dropout rate improved to 9.0% from 13.0% the prior year. Overall, the strongest opportunities are improving math achievement, supporting special education and other lower-performing groups, and stabilizing graduation outcomes.

1,810

Students ?

22.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,474

Per pupil spending ?

71.9%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

4248 S 288th St
Auburn, WA 98001-2820

(253) 945-5600

District: Federal Way School District

Feeder schools for Thomas Jefferson High School:

Elementary:	Camelot Elementary School
	Meredith Hill Elementary School
	Star Lake Elementary School
	Sunnycrest Elementary School
	More...
	Valhalla Elementary School
Middle:	Evergreen Middle School
	Kilo Middle School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

37.3%

White:

18.5%

Asian:

17.3%

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 28th percentile in 2016 → 18th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Washington average (31% vs 48% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (18th percentile)

!Ranking has slipped — down 10 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school31%

District avg33%

Washington avg48%

325^th of 396

Washington public high schools ?

Bottom 18%▼ down 11 pts since 2016

From bottom 28% (2016) to bottom 18% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Washington High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 5High Schools in the Federal Way School District

183^rd of 238Federal Way 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
2026	21.9	325 of 396	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	16.2	377 of 438	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.0	377 of 437	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.9	359 of 442	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.3	346 of 434	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	15.2	406 of 455	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	34.1	297 of 417	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.3	243 of 315	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	33.4	224 of 301	25.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	36.4	219 of 306	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	31.5	248 of 341	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	48.6	268 of 454	41.0%	★★☆☆☆
2012	50.4	243 of 450	46.0%	★★☆☆☆
2011	52.3	210 of 440	52.3%	★★★☆☆
2010	66.8	149 of 423	64.8%	★★★☆☆
2009	74.0	93 of 402	76.9%	★★★★☆
2008	79.3	57 of 396	85.6%	★★★★☆
2007	81.1	49 of 399	87.7%	★★★★☆
2006	74.1	87 of 395	78.0%	★★★★☆
2005	72.0	102 of 394	74.1%	★★★★☆
2004	61.2	164 of 390	57.9%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	27.8	57 of 77	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	31.9	56 of 80	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	14.4	65 of 70	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	23.9	63 of 78	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.5	64 of 89	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	18.4	102 of 111	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	30.3	63 of 86	26.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.3	43 of 54	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	17.1	68 of 81	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	14.9	109 of 119	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.3	106 of 113	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	102 of 118	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.0	104 of 124	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.6	118 of 136	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	43.9	72 of 121	40.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.6	62 of 87	28.7%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	33.3	71 of 104	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	14.7	84 of 85	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	17.4	63 of 68	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.7	43 of 44	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.3	66 of 70	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	16.9	99 of 102	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	39.8	44 of 69	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.1	56 of 65	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	23.4	254 of 309	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.7	292 of 350	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.2	312 of 347	10.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.4	337 of 357	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.6	308 of 368	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.8	350 of 390	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.2	268 of 358	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.4	202 of 243	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	17.2	210 of 236	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.5	236 of 249	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.7	242 of 248	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.5	222 of 249	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.0	252 of 261	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.9	270 of 278	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	29.8	179 of 241	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.9	153 of 156	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	17.7	31 of 36	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	29.2	20 of 24	16.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	21.2	270 of 325	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	14.5	322 of 355	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.8	337 of 356	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.1	327 of 362	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	16.1	342 of 370	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	12.7	378 of 392	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	27.8	268 of 344	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	15.0	216 of 227	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	16.8	284 of 326	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	10.6	340 of 359	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.1	335 of 362	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.9	279 of 358	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	17.2	313 of 363	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.8	357 of 395	9.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	34.7	249 of 355	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.4	208 of 254	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	28.5	80 of 121	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	8.9	164 of 170	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	22.2	134 of 161	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.8	140 of 166	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.7	141 of 179	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.9	164 of 195	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.6	121 of 163	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.8	69 of 91	24.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	73.5	3 of 12	75.0%	★★★★☆
2021	17.2	31 of 33	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	42.2	11 of 18	38.9%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	16.8	128 of 144	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.0	123 of 127	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.5	119 of 130	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	37.4	126 of 212	40.6%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	35.1	219 of 319	31.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	23.3	308 of 373	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	27.2	289 of 374	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.9	269 of 379	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	53.6	175 of 390	55.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	34.3	277 of 413	32.9%	★★☆☆☆
2019	42.1	232 of 382	39.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	33.1	183 of 222	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Pacific Islander (2026)75th percentile+57 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)34th percentile+16 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)32nd percentile+14 vs school

White (2026)31st percentile+13 vs school

African American (2026)26th percentile+8 vs school

Female (2026)18th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)17th percentile~ school

Asian (2026)16th percentile~ school

Homeless (2025)14th percentile~ school

Male (2026)13th percentile-5 vs school

Special Education (2026)11th percentile-7 vs school

Hispanic (2026)11th percentile-7 vs school

By subject vs Washington (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts45%-8 vs state

Science33%-18 vs state

Math16%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Thomas Jefferson High School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				WCAS Science (2026)			SBAC English Language Arts (2026)					SBAC Math (2026)					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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	WCAS Science 8th Grade	WCAS Science 11th Grade	WCAS Science All Grades	SBAC English Language Arts 6th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 7th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 8th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts 10th Grade	SBAC English Language Arts All Grades	SBAC Math 6th Grade	SBAC Math 7th Grade	SBAC Math 8th Grade	SBAC Math 10th Grade	SBAC Math All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Thomas Jefferson High School	Public	9-12	4248 S 288th St	Auburn	98001	King County	Federal Way School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 945-5600	1,810	80	22.6	71.9%	335 (18.5%)	237 (13.1%)	676 (37.3%)	313 (17.3%)	6 (0.3%)	76 (4.2%)	162 (9.0%)	21.9	325^th of 396 public high schools	17.9%		16.2	377^th of 438 public high schools	13.9%	52		32.6	32.6				45.1	45.1				16.3	16.3	$17,474	$1,357	$16,117
Career Academy at Truman High School	Public, Magnet	9-12	31455 28th Ave S	Federal Way	98003	King County	Federal Way School District	No	Yes	No	No	(253) 945-5800	83	5	15.5	81.9%	18 (21.7%)	19 (22.9%)	23 (27.7%)	1 (1.2%)	1 (1.2%)	5 (6.0%)	14 (16.9%)								(n/a)														$28,970	$2,845	$26,125
Open Doors Youth Reengagement (1418)	Public	9-12	31455 28th Ave S	Federal Way	98003	King County	Federal Way School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 945-4590	154	4	35.5	82.5%	19 (12.3%)	36 (23.4%)	63 (40.9%)	4 (2.6%)	1 (0.6%)	13 (8.4%)	15 (9.7%)								(n/a)														$18,886	$694	$18,192
Federal Way High School	Public	9-12	30611 16th Av S	Federal Way	98003	King County	Federal Way School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 945-5400	1,665	81	20.6	73.8%	234 (14.1%)	284 (17.1%)	672 (40.4%)	204 (12.3%)	5 (0.3%)	87 (5.2%)	173 (10.4%)	16.8	342^nd of 396 public high schools	13.6%		17.5	368^th of 438 public high schools	16.0%	26		14.8	14.8				45.1	45.1				19.2	19.2	$18,278	$1,345	$16,933
Kent Virtual Academy	Public, Virtual	6-12	317 4th Ave S	Kent	98032	King County	Kent School District	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(253) 373-6881	130	6	20.3	54.6%	38 (29.2%)	27 (20.8%)	26 (20.0%)	16 (12.3%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.3%)	20 (15.4%)	50.8	187^th of 396 public high schools	52.8%		20.9	352^nd of 438 public high schools	19.6%	165	33.3	44.4	40.5	21.4	35.3		57.9	38.8		16.7		32.5	20.5	$22,630	$1,740	$20,890
Auburn Opportunity Project	Public	9-12	401 West Main Street	Auburn	98001	King County	Auburn School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 931-4990	92	0		65.2%	29 (31.5%)	14 (15.2%)	38 (41.3%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.2%)	3 (3.3%)	6 (6.5%)								(n/a)														$4,357	$307	$4,050
Gateway to College	Public	9-12	2400 South 240th Street	Des Moines	98198	King County	Tukwila School District	No	No	No	No	(206) 878-3710	0	0		—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Auburn Senior High School	Public	9-12	711 E Main St	Auburn	98002	King County	Auburn School District	No	No	No	Yes	(253) 931-4880	1,918	100	19.1	63.2%	457 (23.8%)	171 (8.9%)	741 (38.6%)	208 (10.8%)	35 (1.8%)	146 (7.6%)	160 (8.3%)	27.8	294^th of 396 public high schools	25.8%		25.4	338^th of 438 public high schools	22.8%	44		39.1	39.1				45.9	45.9				17.8	17.8	$17,541	$1,007	$16,535
Kent-Meridian High School	Public	9-12	10020 SE 256th ST	Kent	98030	King County	Kent School District	No	No	No	No	(253) 373-7405	1,639	78	20.9	68.9%	223 (13.6%)	238 (14.5%)	659 (40.2%)	305 (18.6%)	5 (0.3%)	106 (6.5%)	98 (6.0%)	13.4	360^th of 396 public high schools	9.1%		12.4	401^st of 438 public high schools	8.4%	41		14.7	14.7				41.3	41.3				16.8	16.8	$19,208	$608	$18,600
Cascade Public Schools	Public, Magnet, Charter	9-12	22419 Pacific Highway South	Des Moines	98198	King County	Why Not You Academy	Yes	Yes	No	No	(253) 271-8629	126	8	15.7	20.6%	12 (9.5%)	87 (69.0%)	19 (15.1%)	3 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.6%)	3 (2.4%)								(n/a)		21.4	21.4											$24,504	$743	$23,761

Frequently Asked Questions about Thomas Jefferson High School

Is Thomas Jefferson High School a good school?

Thomas Jefferson High School ranks in the bottom 17.9% of Washington high schools.

What district is Thomas Jefferson High School in?

Federal Way School District

What is the racial makeup of Thomas Jefferson High School?

Students at Thomas Jefferson High School are 37% Hispanic, 19% White, 17% Asian, 13% African American, 9% Two or more races, 4% Pacific Islander.

What schools feed into Thomas Jefferson High School?

Thomas Jefferson High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Camelot Elementary School
Elementary : Meredith Hill Elementary School
Elementary : Star Lake Elementary School
Elementary : Sunnycrest Elementary School
Elementary : Valhalla Elementary School
Middle : Evergreen Middle School
Middle : Kilo Middle School

How many students attend Thomas Jefferson High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,810 students attended Thomas Jefferson High School.

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Latest Washington data All new data »

2016–17 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 19, 2026

2025–26 SBAC & WCAS test scoresSep 10, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 8, 2026

2022–23 through 2023–24 school spending dataJan 6, 2026

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.