Daybreak Middle, Battle Ground WA

Original Research by School Decision on Daybreak Middle

Daybreak Middle School serves grades five through eight in Battle Ground, a growing suburban city in Clark County, Washington. The school is a regular public middle school within the Battle Ground School District. Its enrollment is mid-sized for its grade band, with classes distributed across the four grade levels in roughly equal numbers. The student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic minority and smaller shares of students identifying as multiracial, Asian, Black, and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. Just over half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that a significant portion of families have lower household income.

State testing results from the 2024-2025 school year show a clear pattern. In English language arts, proficiency rates vary by grade level, with the highest share of students meeting standard in eighth grade and the lowest in sixth grade; overall, roughly half of students across all grades scored proficient. In math, the picture is weaker. Proficiency rates are lower across every grade, with the highest share in seventh grade and the lowest in eighth grade; overall, about three out of ten students met the math standard. Science is tested in grades five and eight. In fifth grade, just over half of students scored proficient, while in eighth grade the share is somewhat lower, with about half also proficient. Compared to other districts in Clark County, Daybreak’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades falls in the bottom quartile. State testing data covers only a single year, so there is no trend to report, and no graduation rate is provided because the school does not serve the grade levels where that metric applies.

The school operates in a community that has seen steady suburban growth. Battle Ground doubled its population in the past two decades and is now the second-largest city in Clark County. It functions as a commercial and social hub for north Clark County, with a downtown core, twenty-two parks, a community center, a public library, and C-Tran bus connections to Vancouver and other points. The housing market is relatively expensive, with home values and rents above national medians, though home values have dipped slightly in the past year.

A parent or resident considering Daybreak Middle School will want to be aware of the district’s recent financial situation. In 2025, voters rejected the district’s attempt to replace an expiring Educational Programs & Operations levy. As a result, Battle Ground Public Schools is the only district in southwest Washington currently without an EP&O levy, and it enacted a substantial budget cut for the 2025-2026 school year. This means families may see reduced programs and staffing compared to neighboring districts.

Several types of data that can help families understand a school’s environment are not available here. There is no information on the share of students receiving special education services or English learner support. Discipline rates, chronic absenteeism, staffing ratios, and course access data are also absent. The school’s website or the district office would be the place to ask about these directly.

Daybreak Middle School offers a standard public middle school experience in a growing suburban district that is currently managing a budget reduction. Academically, the school performs below the county median, particularly in mathematics, where proficiency levels are low. For a family weighing this school, the combination of modest test scores and district-level funding constraints are the main factors to investigate further.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 531%

School 31% · District 36% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 634%

School 34% · District 42% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 736%

School 36% · District 43% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

Grade 827%

School 27% · District 37% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 554%

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

even with state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 641%

School 41% · District 49% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 747%

School 47% · District 51% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 856%

School 56% · District 48% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Science

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 51% · ▲ 3 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 42% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

This schoolBattle Ground School District, 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 4Lower-income26%Higher-income47%20 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income33%Higher-income71%38 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income49%16 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income38%Higher-income54%16 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income45%Higher-income66%22 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 4Lower-income20%Higher-income35%15 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income14%Higher-income45%32 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income27%Higher-income41%14 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income32%Higher-income38%6 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income20%Higher-income33%13 pp gap