The top reported proficiency rate is 36% in English language arts. The lowest is 28% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Frederickson Elementary
Frederickson Elementary serves students from kindergarten through fifth grade and is part of the Bethel School District. The school sits within the Puyallup address area, though the Frederickson area itself is a growing suburban zone on the South Hill side of the city. Puyallup as a whole has transformed from an agricultural valley into a mid-sized city with a walkable historic downtown along Pioneer Avenue and a more auto-oriented suburban expanse on South Hill, where this school is located. The city hosts the Washington State Fairgrounds, a major year-round events venue, and is served by Pierce Transit buses and Sounder commuter rail at the Puyallup station.
Frederickson Elementary is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet school. Data on its Title I status was not provided, nor were figures on its special education and English learner populations. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school in a moderate-to-high poverty context among elementary schools in the area.
The student body is racially and ethnically diverse. White students make up the largest single group, followed by students who identify as two or more races, Hispanic students, Black students, Asian students, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students, and American Indian or Alaska Native students. None of these groups forms a majority.
State assessment results from the most recent testing year show a pattern of declining performance as students move up through the grades. In third grade, roughly two-fifths of students met the English language arts bar, and close to half met it in math. By fourth grade, those shares fell to about one-third in English language arts and just over one-third in math. In fifth grade, about one-third met the English language arts standard, while the share reaching proficiency in math dropped to roughly one in six. On the fifth-grade science assessment, just over one-quarter of students scored proficient. Across all tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quartile relative to other school districts in Pierce County. A parent exploring this school should consider these results carefully and may want to ask the school about its approach to supporting students who arrive below grade level, particularly in upper elementary math.
No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to say whether these patterns are stable, improving, or declining. The single year of reported results provides a snapshot but not a trajectory.
The Bethel School District has faced recent financial and operational headwinds that may affect Frederickson Elementary. In early 2024, voters rejected a capital bond that would have funded a new elementary school and district-wide HVAC and safety upgrades, leaving capacity issues unresolved in growing areas like Frederickson. In 2023, voters did approve an Educational Programs & Operations Levy and a Technology Levy, reversing rejections in 2022. For the 2024-25 school year, the district reduced staffing by a substantial number of positions due to declining enrollment and the expiration of federal COVID-relief funding, which could affect class sizes and program availability at the school level.
Housing in the area is priced at a level that is a significant share of household income. The typical home value and rent both sit above national benchmarks, and the estimated cost of owning a home relative to renting is unfavorable for prospective buyers. This context matters for families deciding where to live, as the school draws from a broad suburban area where new development has been steady but infrastructure funding remains uncertain.
Frederickson Elementary is a school where the student body reflects the area's growing diversity and where a majority of families qualify for economic support. The academic results, particularly in upper elementary math and science, are below the county median. A family considering this school should look closely at the instructional supports available, the stability of staffing given the district's recent reductions, and how the school addresses the slide in math proficiency between third and fifth grade. The school's mix of backgrounds and its suburban setting may appeal to families seeking a neighborhood school in a growing part of Pierce County, but the assessment record indicates that students will need strong foundational support to meet grade-level expectations.
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