Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Rochester Middle School

Public Grades 6-8
171st
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 514 Washington Middle Schools
Better than 67% of Washington middle schools
Summary

Rochester Middle School in Rochester, Washington, serves approximately 535 students in grades 6–8 in the Rochester School District, about eight miles from Centralia and roughly 12–18 miles from many other comparison schools. The school serves a relatively high-need community, with 60% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, and has a 19.3-to-1 student-teacher ratio.

Rochester’s recent direction is encouraging. It ranks 171st out of 514 Washington middle schools for 2025–2026, placing it in the 67th percentile—up from the 32nd percentile in 2020–2021. Its latest proficiency rates were 53.26% in English language arts, 41.44% in math, and 55.33% in science. Science is the clearest strength: the result was more than four points above the state average and rose 8.70 points in one year. ELA was nearly equal to the state rate, while math remained slightly below it despite improving. Eighth-grade ELA was especially strong at 58.28%, and Rochester was slightly above the state math rate in every grade. Seventh-grade ELA and eighth-grade math are the clearest areas to watch.

Rochester ranks about seventh among the 11 nearby comparison schools. It trails higher-performing schools such as Jefferson Middle School, Washington Middle School, and Aspire Performing Arts Academy, but its math and science results exceed those of Komachin Middle School, Chehalis Middle School, Tenino Middle School, and Centralia Middle School. The school’s subgroup effectiveness is particularly strong for Hispanic students and students from low-income households, both ranking in the 78th statewide percentile. Overall, Rochester combines notable improvement with solid science performance and promising support for several student groups, while continuing to work toward stronger math and closer results to the area’s top schools.

535
Students ?
19.3
Student/teacher ratio ?
$18,077
Per pupil spending ?
60%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 9937 Highway 12 SW
       Rochester, WA  98579-0398

(360) 273-5958

District: Rochester School District


Students who attend Rochester Middle School usually attend:

High:    Rochester High School

Feeder schools for Rochester Middle School:

Elementary:    Grand Mound Elementary
    Rochester Primary School
Racial breakdown:

White:
59.3%
Hispanic:
28.4%
Two or more races:
8.0%
more
 See top rated Washington middle schools

 Compare Rochester Middle School to nearby middle schools!
At a glance
▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 54th percentile in 2016 → 67th in 2026
Strengths
✓Ranking is trending up — up 13 percentile points since 2016
✓Above the Washington median (67th percentile)
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school48%
District avg48%
Washington avg48%
171st of 514
Washington public middle schools ?
Top 33%▲ up 13 pts since 2016
From top 46% (2016) to top 33% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Washington Middle Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
67th of 238Rochester 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202661.9171 of 51466.7%★★★☆☆
202549.9243 of 53454.5%★★★☆☆
202455.5213 of 53560.2%★★★☆☆
202347.3250 of 53953.6%★★★☆☆
202241.6293 of 54145.8%★★☆☆☆
202132.1358 of 52932.3%★★☆☆☆
201957.4208 of 51259.4%★★★☆☆
201855.6187 of 43757.2%★★★☆☆
201752.7214 of 43550.8%★★★☆☆
201652.3205 of 44353.7%★★★☆☆
201559.4166 of 44562.7%★★★☆☆
201358.5200 of 49859.8%★★★☆☆
201263.3163 of 49767.2%★★★☆☆
201158.2189 of 49261.6%★★★☆☆
201057.0203 of 48358.0%★★★☆☆
200937.4317 of 47633.4%★★☆☆☆
200837.1302 of 46635.2%★★☆☆☆
200745.8265 of 46342.8%★★☆☆☆
200623.0372 of 44917.1%★☆☆☆☆
200514.1385 of 4259.4%☆☆☆☆☆
200426.3332 of 42121.1%★☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202658.5165 of 44362.8%★★★☆☆
202552.3207 of 47156.1%★★★☆☆
202461.2165 of 46464.4%★★★☆☆
202355.4191 of 46458.8%★★★☆☆
202256.4177 of 47963.0%★★★☆☆
202144.0250 of 46946.7%★★☆☆☆
201968.4122 of 45273.0%★★★★☆
201856.0154 of 37659.0%★★★☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202673.075 of 34778.4%★★★★☆
202554.3134 of 34761.4%★★★☆☆
202462.2102 of 34470.3%★★★★☆
202358.5108 of 33667.9%★★★☆☆
202248.0162 of 36055.0%★★★☆☆
202136.1215 of 35339.1%★★☆☆☆
201956.1133 of 34461.3%★★★☆☆
201861.485 of 25967.2%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202670.6101 of 45377.7%★★★★☆
202562.8139 of 45769.6%★★★☆☆
202472.381 of 45582.2%★★★★☆
202361.1147 of 46368.3%★★★☆☆
202247.6222 of 47553.3%★★★☆☆
202136.2300 of 45834.5%★★☆☆☆
201965.6112 of 44875.0%★★★★☆
201859.8104 of 34970.2%★★★★☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202661.6148 of 45467.4%★★★☆☆
202547.6232 of 47250.8%★★★☆☆
202449.1218 of 46653.2%★★★☆☆
202338.7282 of 47040.0%★★☆☆☆
202229.1341 of 48029.0%★☆☆☆☆
202124.6361 of 47624.2%★☆☆☆☆
201946.2239 of 45347.2%★★☆☆☆
201851.0165 of 37155.5%★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202561.781 of 24667.1%★★★☆☆
202466.272 of 24370.4%★★★★☆
202341.2140 of 24442.6%★★☆☆☆
202227.5193 of 25724.9%★☆☆☆☆
202138.6152 of 25039.2%★★☆☆☆
201960.598 of 24660.2%★★★☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202645.1102 of 22654.9%★★★☆☆
201934.1145 of 23137.2%★★☆☆☆
201826.2216 of 26819.4%★☆☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202658.7179 of 45360.5%★★★☆☆
202545.6255 of 48847.7%★★☆☆☆
202451.7224 of 48653.9%★★★☆☆
202342.6270 of 48844.7%★★☆☆☆
202240.2292 of 48840.2%★★☆☆☆
202126.5361 of 48024.8%★☆☆☆☆
201955.5196 of 47058.3%★★★☆☆
201844.0181 of 32544.3%★★☆☆☆
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)
Hispanic (2026)78th percentile+12 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)78th percentile+11 vs school
Male (2026)67th percentile~ school
Multi-racial (2025)67th percentile+13 vs school
Female (2026)63rd percentile-4 vs school
White (2026)60th percentile-6 vs school
Special Education (2026)55th percentile-12 vs school
By subject vs Washington (2025-2026) ?
Science55%+4 vs state
English Language Arts53%~ state avg
Math41%~ state avg

1.0
2 ratings · 2 written reviews
5★0
4★0
3★0
2★0
1★2
Rate Rochester Middle School
Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.
Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.
Tap a star to rate
What people are saying
by a parent
Thursday, January 18, 2018

Open Quote Disproportionate in the way disapline is administered. Arbitrary at best. Too much bullying. Staff make it feel like the kids are a prision population needing to be intimidated to control Close Quote


by a parent
Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Open Quote Lot of bulling. Stuff looks other way, safety concerns in this school Close Quote





Schools Near Rochester Middle School

Ranking:
Map legend
E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private






Frequently Asked Questions about Rochester Middle School

Students who attend Rochester Middle School usually go on to attend Rochester High School

In the 2024-25 school year, 535 students attended Rochester Middle School.

Rochester Middle School ranks 171st of 514 Washington middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Students at Rochester Middle School are 59% White, 28% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races, 3% American Indian.

Rate Rochester Middle School!



Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Rochester Middle School!


Latest Washington data All new data »
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
2024–25 SBAC & WCAS test scoresSep 10, 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.

Diagnostics