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Rainier Beach High School

Q: Is Rainier Beach High School a good school?

Rainier Beach High School ranks 261 st of 396 Washington high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

261^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 396 Washington High Schools

Better than 34% of Washington high schools

Summary

Rainier Beach High School is a public grades 9–12 school in Seattle serving 854 students in the Seattle School District No. 1. The school serves a relatively high-need student population, with 66.86% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–25. Its latest statewide ranking places it in the 34th percentile, a notable improvement from the 8th percentile in 2023–24.

Academic results remain below district averages, but recent progress is encouraging. In 2025–26, proficiency was 49.19% in English language arts, 34.43% in math, and 32.08% in science. Math more than doubled from 15.75% in 2023–24, while science also improved substantially; science remains the largest concern because it trails the state and district by a wide margin. Compared with nearby schools, Rainier Beach’s math rate exceeded Franklin High School, Foster Senior High School, and Renton Senior High School, though it trailed Cleveland High School STEM. Its ELA results were below Franklin and Cleveland but above Foster and Renton.

For families, graduation and persistence are important strengths: the four-year graduation rate was 83.7% in 2024–25, slightly above the statewide rate of 82.6%, while the dropout rate was 7.6%, below the state’s 9.8%. However, graduation has declined from 90.7% in 2020–21 and deserves attention. Subgroup effectiveness has improved notably, including results for English language learners, students experiencing homelessness, and students from low-income households. Overall, Rainier Beach appears to be recovering from a weak recent period, with strong momentum in math and improving science results, but it still has substantial work ahead to close gaps with the district and stronger nearby schools.

854

Students ?

19.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$26,023

Per pupil spending ?

66.9%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

8815 Seward Park Av S
Seattle, WA 98118-4743

(206) 252-6350

District: Seattle School District No. 1

Feeder schools for Rainier Beach High School:

Elementary:	Dunlap Elementary School
	Emerson Elementary School
	Graham Hill Elementary School
	Rainier View Elementary School
	More...
	Wing Luke Elementary School
Middle:	Aki Kurose Middle School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

41.2%

Asian:

23.2%

Hispanic:

19.6%

See top rated Washington high schools

Compare Rainier Beach High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 10th percentile in 2016 → 34th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 24 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Washington average (40% vs 48% meeting standards)

!Science scores 19 pts below the Washington average

!Near the bottom of Seattle School District No. 1's ranking

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school40%

District avg64%

Washington avg48%

261^st of 396

Washington public high schools ?

Bottom 34%▲ up 24 pts since 2016

From bottom 10% (2016) to bottom 34% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Washington High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

12^th of 13High Schools in the Seattle School District No. 1

45^th of 238Seattle School District No. 1 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	36.9	261 of 396	34.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	21.5	347 of 438	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.7	401 of 437	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	21.3	354 of 442	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.8	399 of 434	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	12.0	428 of 455	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	16.1	370 of 417	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.5	266 of 315	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	11.2	275 of 301	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	17.4	274 of 306	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	29.9	256 of 341	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	22.1	372 of 454	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	14.0	383 of 450	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	6.6	411 of 440	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	19.6	351 of 423	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	18.1	346 of 402	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	33.5	299 of 396	24.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	29.2	311 of 399	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	16.0	339 of 395	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	10.0	353 of 394	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	13.2	342 of 390	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	51.6	38 of 77	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2025	13.8	75 of 80	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.3	69 of 70	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	6.2	78 of 78	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.4	88 of 89	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	7.3	111 of 111	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.9	83 of 86	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	22.8	47 of 54	13.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	31.5	51 of 81	37.0%	★★☆☆☆
2025	16.1	104 of 119	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.3	99 of 113	12.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.7	91 of 118	22.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.9	114 of 124	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	16.9	119 of 136	12.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	19.1	103 of 121	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.6	69 of 87	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	49.5	45 of 104	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	33.5	60 of 102	41.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	32.8	48 of 69	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	43.4	35 of 65	46.2%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	28.7	232 of 309	24.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	24.1	276 of 350	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	11.0	333 of 347	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.9	305 of 357	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.3	343 of 368	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	14.3	352 of 390	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	19.7	304 of 358	15.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.1	203 of 243	16.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	41.1	136 of 236	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	22.4	203 of 249	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	44.7	129 of 249	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.2	173 of 261	33.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	22.1	241 of 278	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	13.1	229 of 241	5.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	31.6	119 of 156	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	67.5	7 of 20	65.0%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	44.7	185 of 325	43.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.7	263 of 355	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.1	323 of 356	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	36.1	236 of 362	34.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	13.4	350 of 370	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	19.0	351 of 392	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.4	279 of 344	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.1	205 of 227	9.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2026	39.8	197 of 326	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	14.5	325 of 359	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	12.3	338 of 362	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.9	291 of 358	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	11.4	341 of 363	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.0	376 of 395	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	12.6	325 of 355	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	13.9	235 of 254	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2021	3.3	192 of 195	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	22.6	139 of 163	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2018	20.5	124 of 139	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Washington percentile	Rating
2021	17.7	367 of 413	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Homeless (2026)65th percentile+31 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)57th percentile+23 vs school

African American (2026)51st percentile+17 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)43rd percentile+9 vs school

Hispanic (2026)42nd percentile+8 vs school

Male (2026)40th percentile+5 vs school

Asian (2026)37th percentile+3 vs school

Female (2026)25th percentile-9 vs school

White (2021)11th percentile+5 vs school

Special Education (2018)11th percentile-5 vs school

Multi-racial (2021)2nd percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs Washington (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts49%-4 vs state

Math34%-9 vs state

Science32%-19 vs state

3.7

3 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★2

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a citizen
Thursday, April 21, 2022

Education is very poor, they spend to much of their finances on sports. Close Quote

by a student
Sunday, September 17, 2017

Great school! Close Quote

by a student
Monday, May 19, 2014

Rainier Beach is a Great School
Im a Freshman there right now and the teachers really care about you and wants the best for you. The education system is really great its called IB program. Its a higher class better than Franklin or Cleveland high school education system. People think the school is ghetto, but it ain't that was from the past. Right now there are nice people there and there not even one shooting i ever heard from this school the first day of school no shooting or killing. If you haven't been there don't talk shit about it. Close Quote

Schools Near Rainier Beach 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 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
Rainier Beach High School	Public	9-12	8815 Seward Park Av S	Seattle	98118	King County	Seattle School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(206) 252-6350	854	43	19.8	66.9%	36 (4.2%)	352 (41.2%)	167 (19.6%)	198 (23.2%)	1 (0.1%)	28 (3.3%)	70 (8.2%)	36.9	261^st of 396 public high schools	34.1%		21.5	347^th of 438 public high schools	20.8%	86	32.1	32.1	49.2	49.2	34.4	34.4	$26,023	$1,080	$24,943
Alan T. Sugiyama High School	Public	9-12	8601 Rainier Ave S	Seattle	98118	King County	Seattle School District No. 1	No	No	No	Yes	(206) 252-6600	48	5	8.8	70.8%	8 (16.7%)	19 (39.6%)	8 (16.7%)	1 (2.1%)	2 (4.2%)	2 (4.2%)	7 (14.6%)								(n/a)							$49,916	$1,772	$48,144
Raisbeck Aviation High School	Public	9-12	9229 East Marginal Way S	Tukwila	98108	King County	Highline School District	No	No	No	No	(206) 631-7200	400	20	20.2	32.5%	143 (35.8%)	56 (14.0%)	53 (13.3%)	100 (25.0%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	40 (10.0%)	98.7	4^th of 396 public high schools	99.0%		98.7	5^th of 438 public high schools	98.9%	1	82.8	82.8			68.0	68.0	$18,925	$1,144	$17,780
Interagency Open Doors	Public	9-12	3528 S. Ferdinand Street	Seattle	98118	King County	Seattle School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(206) 252-0010	132	0		50.8%	46 (34.8%)	13 (9.8%)	32 (24.2%)	13 (9.8%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	13 (9.8%)								(n/a)							$13,838	$579	$13,259
Innovation Heights Academy	Public	9-12	11427 3rd Ave S	Burien	98168	King County	Highline School District	No	No	No	Yes	(206) 631-7750	142	9	15.4	79.6%	24 (16.9%)	15 (10.6%)	82 (57.7%)	1 (0.7%)	3 (2.1%)	2 (1.4%)	10 (7.0%)								(n/a)			25.0	25.0			$29,560	$2,513	$27,047
Cleveland High School STEM	Public	9-12	5511 15 Ave S	Seattle	98108	King County	Seattle School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(206) 252-7800	875	45	19.6	50.1%	120 (13.7%)	144 (16.5%)	100 (11.4%)	420 (48.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	81 (9.3%)	77.5	72^nd of 396 public high schools	81.8%		66	125^th of 438 public high schools	71.5%	53	48.9	48.9	78.3	78.3	48.5	48.5	$23,287	$782	$22,505
Talley High School	Public, Magnet	6-12	7800 S 132nd St	Seattle	98178	King County	Renton School District	No	Yes	No	No	(425) 204-2100	248	17	14.2	64.5%	60 (24.2%)	57 (23.0%)	68 (27.4%)	33 (13.3%)	4 (1.6%)	5 (2.0%)	21 (8.5%)	13.2	361^st of 396 public high schools	8.8%		6	426^th of 438 public high schools	2.7%	65	32.3	32.3	25.0	25.0			$29,935	$1,037	$28,898
Tukwila Online Learning	Public, Virtual	6-12	4640 S 144th Street	Tukwila	98168	King County	Tukwila School District	No	No	Yes	No	(206) 901-8018	0	0		—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Foster Senior High School	Public	9-12	4242 S 144th St	Tukwila	98168	King County	Tukwila School District	No	No	No	Yes	(206) 901-7900	910	38	23.9	68.8%	76 (8.4%)	225 (24.7%)	337 (37.0%)	186 (20.4%)	1 (0.1%)	32 (3.5%)	51 (5.6%)	16.9	341^st of 396 public high schools	13.9%		16.7	375^th of 438 public high schools	14.4%	34	20.2	20.2	43.5	43.5	18.9	18.9	$21,394	$2,411	$18,983
Franklin High School	Public	9-12	3013 S Mt Baker Bv	Seattle	98144	King County	Seattle School District No. 1	No	No	No	No	(206) 252-6150	1,277	65	19.6	57.2%	205 (16.1%)	336 (26.3%)	308 (24.1%)	310 (24.3%)	3 (0.2%)	9 (0.7%)	97 (7.6%)	56.9	158^th of 396 public high schools	60.1%		43.7	244^th of 438 public high schools	44.3%	86	43.5	43.5	71.4	71.4	29.6	29.6	$22,081	$746	$21,335

Frequently Asked Questions about Rainier Beach High School

What schools feed into Rainier Beach High School?

Rainier Beach High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Dunlap Elementary School
Elementary : Emerson Elementary School
Elementary : Graham Hill Elementary School
Elementary : Rainier View Elementary School
Elementary : Wing Luke Elementary School
Middle : Aki Kurose Middle School

What is the racial makeup of Rainier Beach High School?

Students at Rainier Beach High School are 41% African American, 23% Asian, 20% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races, 4% White, 3% Pacific Islander.

Is Rainier Beach High School a good school?

Rainier Beach High School ranks 261^st of 396 Washington high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Rainier Beach High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 854 students attended Rainier Beach High School.

What district is Rainier Beach High School in?

Seattle School District No. 1

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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.