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What's something Graham Elementary does better than most schools?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
428
Elementary
DISTRICT 409 · STATE 380
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·BETHEL SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 530048002203
Graham Elementary
10026 204th Street East, Graham, WA 98338 · (253) 800-8500 · Pierce County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL428 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
28 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.8:1 · STATE 17.3:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
52%
223 students
DISTRICT 59% · STATE 51%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Kindergarten | 62 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 68 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 72 | 17% |
| Grade 3 | 72 | 17% |
| Grade 4 | 80 | 19% |
| Grade 5 | 74 | 17% |
This year's kindergarten class (62) is 16% smaller than its 5th grade class (74).
Student demographics
69%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 75% · STATE 68% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
Smarter Balanced + WCAS 2024-25 . % Met or Exceeded StandardEnglish Language Arts
58.5%
WA avg 58.4% . +5.0pp since 2014
Math
57.2%
WA avg 51.2% . +7.1pp since 2014
What this means: On the Smarter Balanced + WCAS, Washington's statewide test, about 59 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 57 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Washington schools, those numbers are about 58 and 51. Reading and writing scores are up about 5 points since 2014, while math scores are up about 7 points.
Smarter Balanced + WCAS results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 58.5% | 57.2% |
| 2023-24 | 57.3% | 52.7% |
| 2022-23 | 59.7% | 59.7% |
| 2021-22 | 57.4% | 52.7% |
| 2018-19 | 62.8% | 58.4% |
| 2017-18 | 57.6% | 58.9% |
| 2016-17 | 62.3% | 60.0% |
| 2015-16 | 54.3% | 53.6% |
| 2014-15 | 53.6% | 50.1% |
% Met or Exceeded Standard, all students and all tested grades.
Source: Smarter Balanced + WCAS. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
55.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
45.3%
based on WA schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+10.2pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 55% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 45% typical for Washington schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Washington's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Graham Elementary
Graham Elementary's state test result (55.4% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graham Elementary this school | 428 | 52.1% | 55.4% |
| Julia Butler Hansen Elementary OLYMPIA | 412 | 53.6% | 44.1% |
| Oak Harbor Elementary Oak Harbor | 411 | 50.4% | 62.5% |
| Dwight D Eisenhower Elementary VANCOUVER | 386 | 50.0% | N/A |
| Lake View Elementary School AUBURN | 413 | 49.9% | 47.9% |
| Ridgecrest Elementary Puyallup | 456 | 52.9% | 60.8% |
Matched among Washington elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Graham Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Washington | In Pierce County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 55.4% | #337 of 936 | #54 of 142 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 57.2% | #307 of 1,103 ▲ 80 | #38 of 142 ▲ 20 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 58.5% | #331 of 1,102 ▲ 16 | #45 of 142 ▲ 2 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest gain first | +2.8pp | #383 of 928 | #56 of 141 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 428 | #522 of 1,268 | #78 of 155 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.2:1 | #398 of 1,085 | #44 of 145 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 68.9% | #313 of 1,088 | #78 of 145 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 52.1% | #598 of 1,169 | #75 of 148 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -39.4% | #35 of 778 | #1 of 91 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
428
-130 (-23%) vs 2020
-38% since 1990-91, when it was 687
Student : Teacher
15.2:1
was 13.0:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 428 | 28.1 | 15.2:1 | 52% (223) |
| 2023-24 | 596 | 35.1 | 17.0:1 | 52% (308) |
| 2022-23 | 533 | 33.9 | 15.7:1 | 51% (274) |
| 2020-21 | 558 | 43 | 13.0:1 | 34% (192) |
| 2017-18 | 706 | 39.2 | 18.0:1 | 36% (257) |
| 2015-16 | 733 | 37 | 19.8:1 | 30% (217) |
| 2010-11 | 601 | 30 | 20.0:1 | 24% (144) |
| 2000-01 | 746 | 36 | 20.7:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 687 | 32 | 21.5:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Graham Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 39% (706 to 428); teachers down 28% (39.2 to 28.1).
About Graham Elementary
Located in Graham, Washington, Graham Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school. Classes run from kindergarten through 5, and the school has 428 students.
Bethel School District oversees Graham Elementary and 38 other schools, with 21,732 students in total.
White students are the largest group at Graham Elementary, with 49% of enrollment. The next largest groups are 18% multiracial, 17% Hispanic, 5% Black, and 5% Pacific Islander. The school's White share is 15 points below the 64% share among Pierce County residents. Graham Elementary has a diversity index of 69%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
Graham Elementary counts 28.1 full-time-equivalent teachers, about 15.2 students for each one. Among elementary schools in Washington, the typical ratio is 17.3:1. About 52% of enrolled students meet the income rules for free or reduced-price lunch. Across public schools in Pierce County, the average is about the same, 50%.
Graham Elementary's actual average proficiency rate on state tests (55.4%) and its predicted rate (45.3%) put it outside the top and bottom 10% of Washington schools.
In Pierce County (population about 930,319), median household income is about $99,564, roughly 31% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 6% of residents live below the federal poverty line. A total of 287 public schools operate in Pierce County, serving about 138,462 students.
The closest other public school is Graham Kapowsin High School, about 1.0 miles away. There are at least 8 other public schools within five miles. Ranking the closest schools with test data puts Graham Elementary at 3rd of 7.
For locale, NCES codes Graham Elementary as Suburb: Large.
Graham Elementary had 558 students in 2020-21 and 428 in 2024-25, a 23% decrease. The student-to-teacher ratio rose from 13.0:1 in 2020-21 to 15.2:1 in 2024-25.
Questions about sports schedules, lunch menus, and spirit week can be posted here. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Pierce County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
930,319
Census ACS
Median income
$99,564
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
31%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
287
138,462 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Bethel School District
- Graham Kapowsin High SchoolHigh · 2,087 students
- Spanaway Lake High SchoolHigh · 1,787 students
- Bethel High SchoolHigh · 1,688 students
- Liberty Middle SchoolMiddle · 857 students
- Spanaway Middle SchoolMiddle · 766 students
- Cedarcrest Middle SchoolMiddle · 765 students
Other schools in Graham
- Graham Kapowsin High SchoolHigh · 2,087 students
- Frontier Middle SchoolMiddle · 620 students
- Cougar Mountain Middle SchoolMiddle · 605 students
- Centennial ElementaryElementary · 540 students
- Nelson Elementary SchoolElementary · 497 students
- North Star ElementaryElementary · 446 students
Other Graham Elementary schools
5 other US public schools in 5 states are named Graham Elementary. Graham Elementary is the 4th largest of the 6.
- Graham Elementary SchoolGRAHAM, TX · 979 students
- Graham Elementary SchoolSaint Paris, OH · 735 students
- Graham ElementaryLos Angeles, CA · 522 students
- Graham Elementary SchoolAUSTIN, TX · 412 students
- GRAHAM ELEMENTARY SCHOOLTAMPA, FL · 162 students
Nearby schools
- Graham Kapowsin High School1.0 mi · 2,087
- Frontier Middle School1.1 mi · 620
- Nelson Elementary School1.2 mi · 497
- Expedition Elementary1.2 mi · 530
- Liberty Middle School1.5 mi · 857
- Bethel Virtual Academy1.5 mi · 482
Frequently asked questions
About Graham ElementaryHow many students attend Graham Elementary?
Graham Elementary enrolls approximately 428 students in grades KG-05.
What grades does Graham Elementary serve?
Graham Elementary serves grades KG-05.
How many students per teacher at Graham Elementary?
Approximately 15.2:1 students per teacher at Graham Elementary.
How diverse is Graham Elementary?
Graham Elementary reports a student body of 49% White, 17% Hispanic, 5% Black, 4% Asian, 18% Two or more.
Who oversees Graham Elementary?
Graham Elementary is overseen by Bethel School District in Pierce County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.