Summary:
ZIP code 99208 includes three middle schools serving grades 6–8: Northwood Middle School, Highland Middle School, and Salk Middle School, with a combined enrollment of 2,158 students across the Mead and Spokane school districts.
Highland Middle School is the clear academic leader in the area, ranking 97th of 514 Washington middle schools and placing in the 81st percentile. It has the highest 2025–26 proficiency in both ELA, at 66.57%, and math, at 54.53%, and outperforms the Mead School District in both subjects. Its main weakness is science, where proficiency was 45.65%, below both the district and state averages. Northwood Middle School ranks 166th, in the 68th percentile, and offers a more mixed profile: its science proficiency was the highest locally at 55.70%, while ELA was above the state average and math was slightly below it. Northwood’s recent science improvement was especially strong, though ELA and math declined from the prior year.
Salk Middle School ranks below the other two schools, at 339th of 514 and in the 34th percentile, with the largest challenges in ELA and especially math. Its 2025–26 proficiency rates were 40.45% in ELA, 24.72% in math, and 46.94% in science. However, Salk’s ranking improved substantially over three years, and science and math both improved recently. Across the area, math shows the widest gap between schools, while science results are more closely grouped. Families comparing options will likely see Highland as the strongest overall performer, Northwood as a solid choice with notable science strength, and Salk as a school showing progress but needing continued support in core academic areas.
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