Bethany Charter School, Silverton OR

Original Research by School Decision on Bethany Charter School

Bethany Charter School is a small public charter school in Silverton, Oregon, serving kindergarten through eighth grade. It is part of the Silver Falls School District but operates as its own school, offering families an alternative to the district’s larger elementary and middle schools. The school sits on Hazelgreen Road, outside the downtown core, on what is likely a campus separate from Silverton’s other schools.

The student body is small and heavily homogeneous. Most students are white, with a modest Hispanic minority and a very small number of students identifying as two or more races. No other racial or ethnic groups are represented in the reported enrollment. Data on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, special education services, and English learner status were not available, so a parent would want to ask the school directly about the level of economic diversity and the range of support services offered. The school runs a full grade span from kindergarten through eighth grade, with enrollment distributed fairly evenly across those grades, giving each class a consistent, small-group feel.

State assessment results from the most recent testing year present a mixed picture. In English language arts, Bethany Charter School’s performance is a clear strength. Proficiency rates across grades three through eight are solid, with the middle grades of sixth, seventh, and eighth showing notably strong results. In math, the picture is more uneven. Proficiency rates dip in the middle grades, with fourth, sixth, seventh, and eighth grades all showing a weaker performance compared to the earlier elementary grades. Science results are the softest spot, with both fifth and eighth grade proficiency rates markedly lower than in ELA or math. Overall, when measured across all tested subjects and grade levels, the school’s proficiency index lands in the top quartile among districts in Marion County, a solid position within its regional context. Because only one year of testing data was provided, there is no trend to examine; a parent may want to ask whether these results are typical for the school or an outlier.

The school ends at eighth grade. There is no high school program, so no graduation rate is applicable. Families who enroll here will eventually need to plan for a transition to a high school setting, most likely at Silverton High School within the same district or another area high school.

Silverton itself is a small city in the Willamette Valley with an agricultural heritage and a walkable downtown featuring cafes, a historic theater, and a small park along Silver Creek. It is known as the gateway to Silver Falls State Park, Oregon’s largest state park, and is home to the Oregon Garden. The population grew modestly over the past couple of decades but has since flattened. Housing values in the area are above the national median, with rents that are substantial, and the overall affordability picture points to a higher-cost market relative to typical household incomes. Many residents commute to Salem or other Willamette Valley centers for work.

For a family considering Bethany Charter School, the main draw is a small, charter school environment through the middle grades with notably strong reading and writing outcomes in the upper elementary and middle school years. The math and science results are weaker, and families who prioritize those subjects may want to understand how the school approaches instruction in those areas. The school’s small size means close-knit classes, but also that program depth in electives or specialized offerings may be limited compared to a larger school. The homogeneous student body is a plain demographic fact that may or may not matter to a given family. The lack of high school grades means this is a school for the elementary and middle years only, not a full K-through-12 pathway.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 353%

School 53% · District 46% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 446%

School 46% · District 42% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 553%

School 53% · District 38% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 643%

School 43% · District 34% · ▲ 9 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 41% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 843%

School 43% · District 32% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 359%

School 59% · District 47% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 30 pts above county median

Grade 454%

School 54% · District 50% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 553%

School 53% · District 60% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 679%

School 79% · District 48% · ▲ 31 pts above district

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 39 pts above county median

Grade 764%

School 64% · District 57% · ▲ 8 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 871%

School 71% · District 46% · ▲ 25 pts above district

▲ 31 pts above state median · ▲ 35 pts above county median

Science

Grade 527%

School 27% · District 36% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 821%

School 21% · District 34% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolSilver Falls SD 4J, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.