Contact: Chris Cargill
509-570-2384
ccargill@washingtonpolicy.org

Spokane – The new Washington Policy Center Public School Accountability Index reveals mixed results for Spokane-area schools. According to the Index, less than 10% of schools in the five major districts in and around Spokane are providing children with an Exemplary education. The Index is based on data from the Washington State Board of Education for the 2010-2011 school year. The index ranks schools as Exemplary, Very Good, Good, Fair or Struggling.  Overall, Spokane-area schools fair better than the statewide results, where 42% of schools are only Fair or Struggling. Still, a quarter of schools in the Spokane area are ranked in the bottom two categories.

The best and worst scores from each district are listed below.

Spokane School District
Best: Libby Center
Worst: Excelsior Youth Center

Mead School District
Best: Prairie View Elementary
Worst: Mead Alternative High

Central Valley School District
Best: Chester Elementary
Worst: I-Tracc

West Valley School District
Best: Seth Woodard Elementary
Worst: Spokane Valley Transition

East Valley School District
Best: Continuous Curriculum
Worst: Washington Academy

All of the Struggling schools in these five districts in Spokane are considered alternative schools, meaning they serve especially challenging student populations. Some alternative schools in other districts in the state have received higher rankings, including Exemplary and Very Good.

The WPC Public School Accountability Index is a ranking of the 2,075 schools in Washington state. The Policy Center’s Index is based on data compiled by the State Board of Education’s 2011 Achievement Index, conducted to determine whether school officials are fulfilling their paramount duty under the state constitution to provide a quality education for every child.  A close study of the index shows many school rankings are reduced as a result of student performance on math and science tests.

The full WPC School Accountability Index is available online here.  Local schools are listed alphabetically, by district, or by score. WPC’s two-page Policy Note explaining the Accountability Index is available here.

Key Findings:

• Less than 10% of schools in the Spokane-area and across the state of Washington are ranked Exemplary
• 42% of Washington public schools are considered only Fair or Struggling 
• 26% of Spokane-area schools are considered Fair or Struggling
• Public schools in Washington state receive $10,326 per student, per year in operating funds
• Since 1980 education spending, adjusted for inflation, has more than doubled, while the number of students, due to smaller families, has increased by only a third
• There are fewer students today in relation to the total population than in the past, and spending per student is the highest ever

Governor Gregoire says “I put a lot more money into K-12.  But then you sit there and say, ‘Why have I not been able to get the result I set out to achieve?’” Policy changes that would improve learning for children are described in Washington Policy Center’s education reform plan, Eight Practical Ways to Reverse the Decline in Public Schools.