Original Research by School Decision on Cascade High School
Cascade High School sits in the south part of Everett, the Snohomish County seat. It draws from a city that blends a working port, a Boeing assembly plant, a Navy station, and a downtown core that funnels commuters toward Seattle. The high school is one of the district’s three comprehensive high schools and serves the full range of ninth through twelfth grades.
Enrollment runs well over a thousand students, making it a large school for its grade band. The student body is racially and ethnically diverse: White students form the largest group, followed by a sizeable Hispanic population, then Asian, Black, two or more races, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, and a small number of American Indian or Alaska Native students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a community with significant economic need. Data on special education identification and English learner status was not reported in the available records.
Housing in the zip code served by the school is moderately priced for the Puget Sound region; typical home values sit in the mid-six-figure range and have been flat to slightly down over the past year. Rents are also moderate, and the overall cost of owning a home runs considerably higher than renting, which reflects the broader local market. The national unemployment rate is low, and real median household income has held steady in recent years, though this is a national figure, not specific to Everett.
State assessment data is available for a single year only, so there is no trend to evaluate. In that year, English language arts proficiency was solid, with roughly two-thirds of students meeting the bar. Science proficiency was a bit below half. Math proficiency was lower, with about a third of students scoring at the proficient level. These figures represent the baseline for a high school that faces the academic challenges typical of a large, economically diverse comprehensive school. A parent may want to ask the school about its math interventions and how it supports students who arrive below grade level.
The school is part of Everett School District, which has been through a period of fiscal and operational change. Voters approved a replacement operations levy in 2024 after an earlier attempt failed; the levy funds teachers, special education, athletics, music, and arts. A construction bond passed in 2022 after an earlier bond failure, funding safety upgrades, HVAC and roof replacements, classroom additions, and a new elementary school. The district has also adjusted high school and elementary boundaries in phases to relieve overcrowding at some schools, a sign that enrollment patterns are shifting and that capacity is tight in parts of the district.
Cascade sits in a city that is both an industrial anchor and a residential spillover from Seattle. Growth has been steady, with new neighborhoods annexed to the south and west. The downtown area around Everett Station provides commuter rail and bus connections, and the port and aerospace employers drive the local economy. Civic anchors such as Angel of the Winds Arena and Funko Field add to the community fabric.
For a family considering Cascade, the picture is one of a large, diverse high school in a district that has been actively managing growth and funding. The school’s academic profile shows a strength in English language arts and a clear area to watch in math. The community is a mix of long-standing industrial employment and newer residential development, with housing that is pricey but less so than core Seattle. The school serves a student body with substantial economic diversity, and the district has demonstrated willingness to invest in facilities and programs even as it navigates the constraints of state and local funding.
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