Summit VIrtual Academy

Summit Virtual Academy is a K–12 alternative school in Lacey, Washington, serving 355 students through North Thurston Public Schools. The school serves a relatively large alternative-school population, with 56.34% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, a 19.5:1 student–teacher ratio, and $15,356 in per-student spending. Its district ranks 100th among 238 Washington districts and has a three-star rating. For families considering a virtual or alternative setting, Summit offers broad grade coverage, but its latest completion and academic results show several areas that need attention.

The most urgent concern is student persistence. Summit’s graduation rate fell from 82.0% in 2023–24 to 65.3% in 2024–25, compared with 86.8% in the district and 82.6% statewide. Its 20.0% dropout rate was also substantially higher than the district’s 8.9% and the state’s 9.8%. Academically, mathematics is the clearest weakness: only 13.74% of students were proficient in 2025–26, compared with 38.63% in the district and 43.11% statewide. English language arts proficiency was 33.88%, while science was stronger at 40.86%. Summit’s 5th-grade science result, 55.56%, slightly exceeded both district and state results. State-suppressed values, including Summit’s 5th- and 6th-grade math results, should be treated as unknown rather than zero.

Among nearby alternative schools, Summit performed better than Gravelly Lake K-12 Academy and Firwood in available subject results and was fairly close to Washington Connections Academy Goldendale. However, Olympia Regional Learning Academy was far ahead in ELA, math, and science, though its graduation and dropout results were broadly similar. Overall, parents should weigh Summit’s K–12 flexibility and pockets of success against the need for stronger math instruction, improved credit completion, and more intensive support for students at risk of dropping out.