United Way of King CountyUnited Way of King County Community Assessment - King County review of health and human services

Education


Public and Private School Enrollment

King County includes 19 public school districts and approximately 202 private schools. The combined public and private school enrollment for the 2007-2008academic year was reported at 299,975.

Key Facts
  • Private schools account for 13.7% of school enrollment with a total student body of 41,161.

  • 2006 On-time graduation rates for public high school students in King County was 71.0%.

Download Data | Source: OSPI (The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction)

Enrollment by Grade and Subregion
North
  • Includes the Shoreline and Northshore public school districts.

  • Total public and private school enrollment: 34,633 students

  • 83.7% in public schools

East
  • The East King County subregion is served by seven public school districts: Bellevue, Issaquah, Lake Washington, Mercer Island, Riverview, Skykomish
    and Snoqualmie Valley.
  • Total public and private school enrollment: 82,142 students
  • 71,179 (86.7%) attend public school districts.
South
  • The South King County subregion is served by nine public school districts: Auburn, Enumclaw, Federal Way, Highline, Kent, Renton, Tahoma, Tukwila
    and Vashon.
  • Total public and private school enrollment: 120,639
  • 112,681students (93.4%) attend public school districts.
Seattle
  • Seattle School District is the sole public district serving the Seattle region.
  • Total public and private school enrollment: 62,561, representing the largest single district in King County.
  • Public enrollment is 73.5%, representing the lowest regional percentage in public schools.
  • The remaining 26.5% (16,593) are served by private schools.

 

Free and Reduced Lunch
  • 78,973 School age children participate in the Free and Reduced Lunch Program accounting for 31.2% of public school enrollment.
  • South King County and the Seattle region have over 40% participation.  

2008 Free and Reduced Lunch Program Participation

           
Public School District Total Enrollment Free Reduced Total Program Participation Total As Percent of Enrollment
           
Northshore School District 19,514 1,759 748 2,507 12.8%
Shoreline School District 8,850 1,390 525 1,915 21.6%
North King County Total 28,364 3,149 1,273 4,422 15.6%
           
Bellevue School District 17,408 2,191 866 3,057 17.6%
Issaquah School District 16,439 756 333 1,089 6.6%
Lake Washington School District 21,721 1,973 775 2,748 12.7%
Mercer Island School District 2,671 30 5 35 1.3%
Riverview School District 3,266 298 141 439 13.4%
Skykomish School District 57 28 14 42 73.7%
Snoqualmie Valley School District 6,080 459 242 701 11.5%
East King County Total 67,642 5,735 2,376 8,111 12.0%
           
Auburn School District 14,811 4,651 1,479 6,130 41.4%
Enumclaw School District 4,658 877 329 1,206 25.9%
Federal Way School District 21,360 6,936 2,963 9,899 46.3%
Highline School District 17,899 8,487 2,218 10,705 59.8%
Kent School District 27,570 8,253 2,716 10,969 39.8%
Renton School District 13,796 4,539 1,567 6,106 44.3%
Tahoma School District 7,721 659 319 978 12.7%
Tukwila School District 2,838 1,629 360 1,989 70.1%
Vashon Island School District 1,459 123 61 184 12.6%
South King County Total 112,112 36,154 12,012 48,166 43.0%
           
Seattle School District 45,120 14,237 4,037 18,274 40.5%
Seattle Total 45,120 14,237 4,037 18,274 40.5%
           
King County Total 253,238 59,275 19,698 78,973 31.2%

 Download Data | Source: OSPI (The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction)

High School Graduation

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The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) now calculates graduation rates using the 9th grade cumulative cohort methodology where student enrollment is calculated beginning with 9th grade attendance. Because many schools are unable to provide historic data on the students who would have been in the current 12th grade cohort but no longer are, the OSPI uses current year drop out data for each of the 4 grade levels to estimate the cohort graduation rate. This method meets federal reporting requirements.

The on-time graduation rate for high school students in King County in 2008 was 77.4%. In other words, 22.6% of students who entered the 9th grade in September of 2004 failed to graduate as scheduled in June of 2008.

Of the total 9th grade cohort, 4.3% planned to continue in high school the subsequent year, and 18.3% had already dropped out in June of 2008.

For further reading on High School Graduation Rates refer to the section titled Cross-Cutting Issues, Racial Issues and Equity. 

On-Time Graduation Rates by District

  2007-2008 Academic Year   2006-2007 Academic Year  
  Annual Drop-Out Rate On-Time Graduation Rate Extended Graduation Rate   Annual Drop-Out Rate On-Time Graduation Rate Extended Graduation Rate  
North King County                
Northshore 2.7% 86.6% 89.2%   2.6% 86.3% 89.2%  
Shoreline 4.0% 81.2% 85.7%   3.7% 84.5% 90.3%  
                 
East King County                
Bellevue 1.1% 88.4% 91.1%   1.3% 89.2% 92.6%  
Issaquah 1.4% 93.1% 95.4%   1.6% 92.6% 95.0%  
Lake Washington 1.7% 92.5% 96.4%   2.9% 84.3% 87.1%  
Mercer Island 0.9% 90.9% 91.9%   1.2% 92.6% 94.6%  
Riverview 1.6% 88.2% 90.5%   2.5% 86.9% 92.3%  
Skykomish 13.3% 55.6% 55.6%   13.8% 38.9% 48.6%  
Snoqualmie Valley 1.4% 92.7% 102.9%   1.9% 87.1% 92.6%  
                 
South King County                
Auburn 4.3% 82.4% 87.2%   3.6% 85.2% 89.6%  
Enumclaw 4.3% 82.4% 87.2%   3.5% 84.8% 87.4%  
Federal Way 4.3% 70.0% 76.4%   5.1% 71.4% 76.3%  
Highline 6.5% 72.2% 80.0%   6.0% 70.2% 79.4%  
Kent 7.1% 73.7% 78.1%   8.4% 70.8% 74.3%  
Renton 6.3% 70.2% 80.9%   5.5% 72.4% 80.8%  
Tahoma 3.1% 83.2% 87.6%   3.8% 82.0% 86.4%  
Tukwila 5.9% 77.1% 89.2%   7.2% 74.4% 82.5%  
Vashon 2.7% 86.2% 86.9%   2.2% 90.4% 91.8%  
                 
Seattle                
Seattle 9.8% 63.4% 71.6%   8.2% 63.2% 70.3%  

The download below includes several additional years of graduation data

Download Data | Source: OSPI (The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction)

Education Level of Adults over 25

The results of historic patterns related to graduation and dropouts among the adult population in King County are reflected in levels of educational attainment for persons age 25 and over. Migration of people into the county for high tech jobs may also have an influence on education levels of the adult population. The Census Bureau collects data on the level of educational attainment for this adult population. These rates are self-reported.

  • 90% of adults age 25 or over in King County have at least a high school diploma or equivalent.
  • 39.9% of adults 25 and over in King County have at least a Bachelor’s Degree. This makes King County one of the most highly educated regions in the Nation.
2008 Population Age 25 or Over by Education Attainment by Sub-region
  North East South Seattle TOTAL
< 9TH Grade 2.2% 1.5% 4.2% 4.5% 3.5%
some High School 5.2% 3.5% 8.7% 6.4% 6.4%
High School (includes equivalency) 17.7% 14.1% 27.0% 15.3% 19.1%
Some College, No Degree 24.2% 22.5% 27.5% 20.6% 23.6%
Associates Degree 8.2% 7.4% 8.6% 6.5% 7.5%
Bachelor's Degree 28.8% 33.7% 17.8% 29.7% 26.6%
Master's Degree 9.0% 12.0% 4.6% 10.7% 8.9%
Professional School Degree 2.7% 3.4% 1.2% 3.9% 2.8%
Doctorate Degree 1.9% 1.8% 0.5% 2.3% 1.6%

Download Data| Source: OSPI (The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction)

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