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West Seattle High School

Public Grades 9-12
34th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 396 Washington High Schools
Better than 91% of Washington high schools
Summary

West Seattle High School is a traditional public school serving grades 9–12 in Seattle’s West Seattle neighborhood, with 1,479 students at 3000 California Avenue SW. It is part of Seattle School District No. 1, which ranks 45th of 238 Washington districts. The school ranks 34th of 396 Washington high schools, in the 91st percentile and receiving five stars—an improvement from 50th in 2024–25 and 69th in 2023–24.

Academically, English Language Arts is the school’s standout strength: 88.11% of students were proficient in 2025–26, compared with 68.13% in the district and 52.81% statewide. Math proficiency rose to 63.13%, leading nearby schools with reported results and exceeding both the district’s 60.24% and the state’s 43.11%. Science was more moderate at 57.33%—above the state’s 50.95% but below the district’s 65.01%. The school’s 93.0% graduation rate was higher than the district’s 86.1% and the state’s 82.6%, while its 3.3% dropout rate was well below both. Among larger nearby comprehensive schools, Cleveland High School STEM ranked lower overall at the 82nd percentile, while Franklin High School and Chief Sealth International High School were near the 60th percentile.

West Seattle’s results are notable because they are achieved at a larger scale than many higher-ranked alternatives. The Center School ranked slightly higher at the 93rd percentile but enrolls only 165 students, making direct comparisons less certain. West Seattle also shows strong effectiveness across several student groups, including students receiving special education services and students from low socioeconomic backgrounds. Families may want to monitor science achievement and staffing pressure: the student-teacher ratio is 22.5:1, higher than those reported for nearby comparison schools. Overall, the school combines strong and improving academic performance with consistently high graduation outcomes.

1,479
Students ?
22.5
Student/teacher ratio ?
$19,281
Per pupil spending ?
18.4%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 3000 California Av SW
       Seattle, WA  98116-3302

(206) 252-8800

District: Seattle School District No. 1


Feeder schools for West Seattle High School:

Elementary:    Alki Elementary School
    Fairmount Park Elementary School
    Gatewood Elementary School
    Genesee Hill Elementary
    More...
Middle:    Madison Middle School
Racial breakdown:

White:
64.0%
Two or more races:
12.8%
Hispanic:
12.4%
more
 See top rated Washington high schools

 Compare West Seattle High School to nearby high schools!
At a glance
▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 79th percentile in 2016 → 91st in 2026
Strengths
✓Test scores above the Washington average (70% vs 48% meeting standards)
✓Ranks in the top 9% of Washington high schools
✓93% graduate in 4 years — above the Washington average (83%)
Worth a look
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
!Large classes — about 22 students per teacher
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school70%
District avg64%
Washington avg48%
34th of 396
Washington public high schools ?
Top 9%▲ up 13 pts since 2016
From top 21% (2016) to top 9% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Washington High Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
4th of 13High Schools in the Seattle School District No. 1
45th 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202690.334 of 39691.4%★★★★★
202585.150 of 43888.6%★★★★☆
202481.169 of 43784.2%★★★★☆
202388.541 of 44290.7%★★★★★
202287.840 of 43490.8%★★★★★
202178.669 of 45584.8%★★★★☆
201980.858 of 41786.1%★★★★☆
201866.6103 of 31567.3%★★★☆☆
201774.271 of 30176.4%★★★★☆
201673.565 of 30678.8%★★★★☆
201518.7301 of 34111.7%★☆☆☆☆
201360.3182 of 45459.9%★★★☆☆
201252.7227 of 45049.6%★★☆☆☆
201136.5292 of 44033.6%★★☆☆☆
201045.1259 of 42338.8%★★☆☆☆
200957.7200 of 40250.2%★★★☆☆
200856.7200 of 39649.5%★★★☆☆
200756.9193 of 39951.6%★★★☆☆
200654.7206 of 39547.8%★★☆☆☆
200548.0236 of 39440.1%★★☆☆☆
200444.2244 of 39037.4%★★☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202588.86 of 8092.5%★★★★★
202246.947 of 8947.2%★★☆☆☆
202140.566 of 11140.5%★★☆☆☆
201945.041 of 8652.3%★★★☆☆
201844.728 of 5448.1%★★★☆☆

Asian

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202543.465 of 11945.4%★★☆☆☆
202455.047 of 11358.4%★★★☆☆
202361.441 of 11865.3%★★★☆☆
202259.246 of 12462.9%★★★☆☆
202161.747 of 13665.4%★★★☆☆
201963.440 of 12166.9%★★★☆☆
201853.845 of 8748.3%★★★☆☆

English Language Learner

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202290.85 of 7092.9%★★★★★
201838.941 of 6536.9%★★☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202693.220 of 30993.5%★★★★★
202585.636 of 35089.7%★★★★☆
202477.264 of 34781.6%★★★★☆
202385.642 of 35788.2%★★★★☆
202285.933 of 36891.0%★★★★★
202180.846 of 39088.2%★★★★☆
201983.241 of 35888.5%★★★★☆
201858.7110 of 24354.7%★★★☆☆

Hispanic

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202686.224 of 23689.8%★★★★★
202580.533 of 24986.7%★★★★☆
202467.461 of 24875.4%★★★★☆
202375.641 of 24983.5%★★★★☆
202285.530 of 26188.5%★★★★☆
202150.3129 of 27853.6%★★★☆☆
201973.748 of 24180.1%★★★★☆
201851.774 of 15652.6%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202668.182 of 32574.8%★★★★☆
202569.575 of 35578.9%★★★★☆
202450.3170 of 35652.2%★★★☆☆
202374.056 of 36284.5%★★★★☆
202270.484 of 37077.3%★★★★☆
202149.2179 of 39254.3%★★★☆☆
201971.672 of 34479.1%★★★★☆
201853.6116 of 22748.9%★★☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202684.939 of 32688.0%★★★★☆
202581.945 of 35987.5%★★★★☆
202479.763 of 36282.6%★★★★☆
202388.134 of 35890.5%★★★★★
202286.540 of 36389.0%★★★★☆
202175.175 of 39581.0%★★★★☆
201977.366 of 35581.4%★★★★☆
201869.373 of 25471.3%★★★★☆

Multi-racial

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202668.830 of 12175.2%★★★★☆
202556.068 of 17060.0%★★★☆☆
202475.235 of 16178.3%★★★★☆
202381.725 of 16684.9%★★★★☆
202281.129 of 17983.8%★★★★☆
202165.654 of 19572.3%★★★★☆
201960.856 of 16365.6%★★★☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202691.08 of 14494.4%★★★★★
202573.425 of 12780.3%★★★★☆
202478.415 of 11086.4%★★★★☆
202394.88 of 11092.7%★★★★★
202291.65 of 13096.2%★★★★★
202163.739 of 21281.6%★★★★☆
201854.751 of 13963.3%★★★☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWashington percentileRating
202687.331 of 31990.3%★★★★★
202584.748 of 37387.1%★★★★☆
202477.365 of 37482.6%★★★★☆
202386.037 of 37990.2%★★★★★
202286.631 of 39092.1%★★★★★
202179.265 of 41384.3%★★★★☆
201981.850 of 38286.9%★★★★☆
201872.056 of 22274.8%★★★★☆
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)
Special Education (2026)94th percentile+3 vs school
Female (2026)94th percentile~ school
English Language Learner (2022)93rd percentile~ school
African American (2025)92nd percentile+4 vs school
White (2026)90th percentile~ school
Hispanic (2026)90th percentile~ school
Male (2026)88th percentile-3 vs school
Multi-racial (2026)75th percentile-16 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)75th percentile-17 vs school
Asian (2025)45th percentile-43 vs school
By subject vs Washington (2025-2026) ?
English Language Arts88%+35 vs state
Math63%+20 vs state
Science57%+6 vs state

3.5
2 ratings · 2 written reviews
5★1
4★0
3★0
2★1
1★0
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What people are saying
by a parent
Monday, March 11, 2019

Open Quote Vibrant school. Lots to offer for academics, theater, music, athletics. Close Quote


by a parent
Monday, May 2, 2011

Open Quote It appears that the teachers are handing out A's like candy to low performing students to up the overall stats so they regain all of their cut funding. Incomplete homework, late assignments, and one paragraph essays will get you an easy A in almost any class. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about West Seattle High School

Students at West Seattle High School are 64% White, 13% Two or more races, 12% Hispanic, 5% African American, 4% Asian, 1% Not Specified.

Yes. West Seattle High School ranks in the top 8.6% of Washington high schools.

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,479 students attended West Seattle High School.

Rate West Seattle High School!



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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.

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