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Coming soon: We're expecting this year's test scores from the Washington Office of Superindentent of Public Instruction any day now — new rankings will be posted the moment they're released!

Coming soon: This year's test scores are expected from the Washington Office of Superindentent of Public Instruction any day now — new rankings will follow the moment they're released!

Nisqually Middle School

Q: Is Nisqually Middle School a good school?

Nisqually Middle School ranks 381 st of 534 Washington middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

381^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 534 Washington Middle Schools

Better than 29% of Washington middle schools

Summary

Nisqually Middle School is a public school serving about 789 students in grades 6-8 within the North Thurston Public Schools district in Lacey, WA, but it has faced significant academic challenges, consistently earning low state ratings and performing below both district and state averages in core subjects for several years.

When compared to nearby schools, Nisqually's academic results are notably lower; for example, its math and English proficiency rates are roughly half those of higher-performing schools like Aspire Middle School in the same district and Washington Middle School in the Olympia School District. This gap exists despite Nisqually spending more per student than some of these higher-achieving schools, suggesting factors beyond funding are at play. The school has also seen a concerning decline in its statewide ranking over the past decade.

Despite these overall struggles, the school shows notable strengths in supporting specific student groups, such as homeless and Pacific Islander students, where its effectiveness ranks much higher. The stark contrast with Aspire Middle School, which excels with similar resources, indicates that improvement is possible, and the district may need to examine instructional strategies and support systems to help Nisqually reverse its downward trend.

789

Students ?

18.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,625

Per pupil spending ?

51.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8100 Steilacoom Rd SE
Lacey, WA 98503-1998

(360) 412-4770

District: North Thurston Public Schools

Students who attend Nisqually Middle School usually attend:

High:

River Ridge High School

Feeder schools for Nisqually Middle School:

Elementary:	Evergreen Forest Elementary
	Lydia Hawk Elementary
	Seven Oaks Elementary
	Woodland Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

40.3%

Hispanic:

28.1%

Two or more races:

14.6%

See top rated Washington middle schools

Compare Nisqually Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Rebounding — 19th percentile in 2024 → 29th in 2025

Strengths

✓Ranking is rebounding — up to 29th (2025) from a 19th-percentile low (2024)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Washington average (34% vs 48% meeting standards)

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

!Science scores 17 pts below the Washington average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school34%

District avg46%

Washington avg48%

381^st of 534

Washington public middle schools ?

Bottom 29%▼ down 12 pts since 2015

From bottom 40% (2015) to bottom 29% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Washington Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

5^th of 5Middle Schools in the North Thurston Public Schools

108^th of 247North Thurston Public Schools 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	29.0	381 of 534	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	21.8	435 of 535	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	433 of 539	19.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.9	426 of 541	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	24.0	404 of 529	23.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	37.9	324 of 512	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.5	247 of 437	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2017	44.0	243 of 435	44.1%	★★☆☆☆
2016	34.5	291 of 443	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2015	39.2	265 of 445	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2013	46.9	274 of 498	45.0%	★★☆☆☆
2012	44.5	290 of 497	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2011	41.8	312 of 492	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2010	32.9	343 of 483	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	34.7	337 of 476	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	35.3	311 of 466	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2007	54.9	193 of 463	58.3%	★★★☆☆
2006	56.5	184 of 449	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2005	39.7	280 of 425	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2004	42.0	259 of 421	38.5%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2022	31.4	70 of 104	32.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.3	79 of 106	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	54.0	38 of 111	65.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	72.1	9 of 66	86.4%	★★★★☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	28.1	111 of 147	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.0	118 of 148	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	20.1	116 of 145	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.8	135 of 161	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.9	130 of 149	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	14.5	140 of 152	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	29.9	95 of 123	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	28.3	348 of 471	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	396 of 464	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	13.9	411 of 464	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.8	377 of 479	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.8	367 of 469	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.8	293 of 452	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	45.4	203 of 376	46.0%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	30.1	243 of 347	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	28.2	253 of 344	26.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.0	271 of 336	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.1	270 of 360	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.9	242 of 353	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	35.7	220 of 344	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	46.3	135 of 259	47.9%	★★☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	75.4	6 of 22	72.7%	★★★★☆
2019	56.5	17 of 59	71.2%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	29.8	339 of 457	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.7	389 of 455	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.0	377 of 463	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.7	388 of 475	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.6	335 of 458	26.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.7	278 of 448	37.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.6	210 of 349	39.8%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	29.0	338 of 472	28.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	25.2	352 of 466	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.4	338 of 470	28.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.7	380 of 480	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	26.0	355 of 476	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.6	271 of 453	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	35.9	241 of 371	35.0%	★★☆☆☆

Military Connected

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	31.5	36 of 43	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.1	40 of 46	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	31.7	35 of 40	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	27.7	43 of 51	15.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	27.8	34 of 44	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.3	43 of 50	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	18.4	212 of 246	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.7	189 of 243	22.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.8	200 of 244	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.9	220 of 257	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.9	203 of 250	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	50.6	125 of 246	49.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	34.7	116 of 166	30.1%	★★☆☆☆

Pacific Islander

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	70.2	2 of 10	80.0%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	19.0	169 of 186	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	24.0	135 of 179	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.6	156 of 167	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	17.7	192 of 199	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	25.5	173 of 210	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	27.4	179 of 231	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	52.3	89 of 268	66.8%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2025	33.5	335 of 488	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	16.5	427 of 486	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.4	389 of 488	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.5	396 of 488	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	22.2	396 of 480	17.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.4	326 of 470	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	31.2	229 of 325	29.5%	★★☆☆☆

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 (2025)80th percentile+51 vs school

Homeless (2025)73rd percentile+44 vs school

African American (2022)33rd percentile+11 vs school

White (2025)31st percentile+3 vs school

Hispanic (2025)30th percentile~ school

Male (2025)28th percentile~ school

Female (2025)26th percentile-3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)26th percentile-3 vs school

Asian (2025)24th percentile-4 vs school

Military Connected (2025)16th percentile-12 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)14th percentile-15 vs school

Special Education (2025)9th percentile-20 vs school

By subject vs Washington (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts42%-11 vs state

Science33%-17 vs state

Math27%-15 vs state

★

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Schools Near Nisqually Middle 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 (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 8th 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 All Grades	SBAC Math 6th Grade	SBAC Math 7th Grade	SBAC Math 8th Grade	SBAC Math All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Nisqually Middle School	Public	6-8	8100 Steilacoom Rd SE	Lacey	98503	Thurston County	North Thurston Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(360) 412-4770	789	44	18.0	51.3%	318 (40.3%)	35 (4.4%)	222 (28.1%)	51 (6.5%)	16 (2.0%)	29 (3.7%)	115 (14.6%)	29	381^st of 534 public middle schools	28.7%		21.8	435^th of 535 public middle schools	18.7%	54	32.6	32.6	36.6	46.9	42.9	42.0	24.6	33.6	24.3	27.3	$16,625	$719	$15,905
Salish Middle School	Public	6-8	8605 Campus Glen Dr NE	Lacey	98516	Thurston County	North Thurston Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(360) 412-4780	745	40	18.8	48.3%	302 (40.5%)	35 (4.7%)	187 (25.1%)	62 (8.3%)	7 (0.9%)	25 (3.4%)	126 (16.9%)	39	312^th of 534 public middle schools	41.6%		32.3	357^th of 535 public middle schools	33.3%	45	39.6	39.6	46.2	46.6	48.2	47.0	38.4	32.5	24.7	32.1	$16,105	$704	$15,401
Chinook Middle School	Public	6-8	4301 6th Ave NE	Lacey	98516	Thurston County	North Thurston Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(360) 412-4760	746	38	19.6	55.5%	287 (38.5%)	42 (5.6%)	216 (29.0%)	64 (8.6%)	5 (0.7%)	31 (4.2%)	99 (13.3%)	44.6	278^th of 534 public middle schools	47.9%		40.2	309^th of 535 public middle schools	42.2%	31	44.0	44.0	52.5	53.4	54.1	53.4	30.9	33.5	24.5	29.6	$17,789	$517	$17,273
Komachin Middle School	Public	6-8	3650 College St SE	Lacey	98503	Thurston County	North Thurston Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(360) 412-4740	640	34	18.8	48.8%	259 (40.5%)	44 (6.9%)	145 (22.7%)	40 (6.3%)	1 (0.2%)	25 (3.9%)	124 (19.4%)	49.1	252^nd of 534 public middle schools	52.8%		49.8	248^th of 535 public middle schools	53.6%	4	42.4	42.4	45.9	63.6	48.3	52.6	36.6	36.0	36.9	36.5	$16,840	$719	$16,121
Aspire Middle School	Public, Magnet	6-8	5900 54th Ave SE	Lacey	98513	Thurston County	North Thurston Public Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(360) 412-4400	323	14	22.7	35.3%	166 (51.4%)	19 (5.9%)	54 (16.7%)	20 (6.2%)	2 (0.6%)	5 (1.5%)	55 (17.0%)	89	55^th of 534 public middle schools	89.7%		85.3	71^st of 535 public middle schools	86.7%	16	69.4	69.4	81.4	63.8	71.3	72.1	54.9	66.7	69.4	63.8	$15,572	$521	$15,051
Washington Middle School	Public	6-8	3100 Cain Rd SE	Olympia	98501	Thurston County	Olympia School District	No	No	No	No	(360) 596-3000	702	36	19.3	21.7%	441 (62.8%)	24 (3.4%)	94 (13.4%)	52 (7.4%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	83 (11.8%)	87.9	59^th of 534 public middle schools	89.0%		84.4	77^th of 535 public middle schools	85.6%	18	63.7	63.7	69.1	72.7	70.0	70.7	66.0	62.5	54.6	60.7	$14,672	$606	$14,066
Reeves Middle School	Public	6-8	2200 Quince St NE	Olympia	98506	Thurston County	Olympia School District	No	No	No	No	(360) 596-3400	394	22	18.1	35.8%	250 (63.5%)	8 (2.0%)	64 (16.2%)	17 (4.3%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.5%)	42 (10.7%)	68.2	147^th of 534 public middle schools	72.5%		71	128^th of 535 public middle schools	76.1%	19	58.8	58.8	54.3	59.4	65.6	59.8	46.2	36.6	53.0	45.7	$17,630	$1,126	$16,504
Pioneer Middle	Public	6-8	1750 Bob's Hollow Lane	Dupont	98327	Pierce County	Steilacoom Hist. School District	No	No	No	Yes	(253) 583-7200	758	37	20.5	30.6%	353 (46.6%)	48 (6.3%)	163 (21.5%)	54 (7.1%)	5 (0.7%)	17 (2.2%)	118 (15.6%)	65.8	160^th of 534 public middle schools	70.0%		71	127^th of 535 public middle schools	76.3%	33	51.9	51.9	58.7	62.3	63.6	61.5	48.4	33.5	45.6	42.6	$15,411	$63	$15,347
Jefferson Middle School	Public	6-8	2200 Conger Ave NW	Olympia	98502	Thurston County	Olympia School District	No	No	No	Yes	(360) 596-3200	462	25	18.2	42.9%	228 (49.4%)	22 (4.8%)	64 (13.9%)	60 (13.0%)	2 (0.4%)	11 (2.4%)	63 (13.6%)	84.6	72^nd of 534 public middle schools	86.5%		85.9	68^th of 535 public middle schools	87.3%	4	61.0	61.0	62.8	75.2	70.4	69.4	53.8	64.4	53.7	57.4	$16,806	$693	$16,113
Tumwater Middle School	Public	6-8	6335 Littlerock Road SW	Tumwater	98512	Thurston County	Tumwater School District	No	No	No	No	(360) 709-7500	665	34	19.5	35.6%	409 (61.5%)	19 (2.9%)	118 (17.7%)	26 (3.9%)	7 (1.1%)	8 (1.2%)	77 (11.6%)	70.2	137^th of 534 public middle schools	74.3%		68.1	148^th of 535 public middle schools	72.3%	11	56.0	56.0	65.1	57.7	61.4	61.3	48.4	46.1	44.3	46.2	$16,737	$470	$16,267

Frequently Asked Questions about Nisqually Middle School

Is Nisqually Middle School a good school?

Nisqually Middle School ranks 381^st of 534 Washington middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What high school do graduates of Nisqually Middle School attend?

Students who attend Nisqually Middle School usually go on to attend River Ridge High School

How many students attend Nisqually Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 789 students attended Nisqually Middle School.

What district is Nisqually Middle School in?

North Thurston Public Schools

What is the racial makeup of Nisqually Middle School?

Students at Nisqually Middle School are 40% White, 28% Hispanic, 15% Two or more races, 6% Asian, 4% African American, 4% Pacific Islander, 2% American Indian.

Rate Nisqually Middle School!

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Latest Washington data All new data »

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 8, 2026

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

2024–25 SBAC & WCAS test scoresSep 10, 2025

2023–24 dropout rates & graduation ratesJan 16, 2025

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.