Firwood

Firwood is a combined-grade school of very small scale in Steilacoom, Washington, part of Clover Park School District, serveing 45 students in grades 4 through 12. Compared to the state average of about 204 students per school, that is 78% smaller than typical.

Within Clover Park School District, which oversees 32 schools and 12,345 students, Firwood is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Firwood lists that the largest single group is White, at 64% of enrollment. Other groups include 20% Hispanic, 9% multiracial, 7% Black. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

In terms of school funding signals, Firwood shows 7 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 6.9:1. The state averages around 33.2:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. An estimated 31% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. By comparison, Pierce County runs at roughly 50%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully below the surrounding baseline.

With demographic context factored in, Firwood falls in the UNDERPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations residual. Given its student profile, a typical campus would land near 59.3%; this one comes in at 21.1%, -38.2 points off the demographic line.

In the broader community, the surrounding county (Pierce County) shows that the typical household earns roughly $99,564 per year, about 31% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 6%. Firwood is one of 287 public schools in Pierce County (combined enrollment of about 138,462 students).

Nearest neighbor: Transition Day Students, around 0.0 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 5 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Firwood ranks 4th on composite proficiency, behind the local average of 38.9%.

Firwood operates from an inner-city location.

Looking at the recent track record. Firwood's enrollment has ticked up 10% since 2018, when it stood at 41 (now 45). The Hispanic share of enrollment increased from 10% to 20% over that span. Class-load math has fell: from 8.2:1 in 2018 to 6.9:1 in 2025.

Inside the community feed, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Members of the school community can share what they know.