Orcas Island Elementary School, Eastsound WA

Original Research by School Decision on Orcas Island Elementary School

Orcas Island Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in the village of Eastsound, the commercial heart of Orcas Island. It is a regular public school within the Orcas Island School District, and it sits right inside the compact, walkable village center—not on a separate campus—among shops, churches, a village green, and a public dock. The setting is distinctly rural and island-based, with Moran State Park and its extensive trail network nearby and a ferry terminal a few miles south. Housing in the area is expensive, and the local economy is driven by tourism, hospitality, and small-scale retail. The school itself is small in enrollment, and a substantial share of its students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mix of community economic circumstances.

State assessment results for the most recent school year show an overall proficiency picture that places the school above the midpoint among districts in San Juan County, a meaningful strength given the small number of districts in this island county. In math, third and fourth graders met the proficiency bar at solid rates, while fifth graders did not reach that threshold by a meaningful margin. In English language arts, the pattern was similar: third and fourth graders met the bar at solid rates, and fifth graders again fell short. Science, tested only in fifth grade, showed roughly half of students meeting proficiency. The drop in both math and ELA from fourth to fifth grade is a contour a parent may want to explore directly with the school, especially since only one year of test data is available and no trend can be examined.

The student body is predominantly white, with a notable Hispanic minority and smaller shares of Asian and multiracial students. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not reported, which is a notable gap for families who need to understand the school’s capacity for specialized support. The school does not serve high school grades, so no graduation rate applies, and chronic absenteeism data was also absent from the available information. No information about course access, staffing ratios, or discipline was provided.

The broader district context shows little recent publicly reported change, and the school does not appear to operate under any special designation such as magnet or charter status. Program offerings were not listed, so it is not possible to describe what enrichment or specialized classes exist beyond the core academic program.

For a family considering this school, the core picture is of a small elementary school in an island village with a tourist-season economy, expensive real estate, and a strong outdoor-recreation environment. Academic proficiency is decent overall and compares favorably with other schools in the county, though a dip in fifth-grade performance stands out. The school’s integration into the village means a child can walk or bike to many community amenities, and the small enrollment may suit families who prefer a close-knit, low-key environment. The missing data on special populations and program offerings leaves unanswered questions that a parent would want to raise directly with the principal or district office.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 358%

School 58% · District 56% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 7 pts above state median

Grade 467%

School 67% · District 68% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 19 pts above state median

Grade 541%

School 41% · District 39% · ▲ 1 pts above district

even with state median

English language arts

Grade 362%

School 62% · District 64% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 14 pts above state median

Grade 467%

School 67% · District 68% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 18 pts above state median

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 59% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 4 pts above state median

Science

Grade 554%

School 54% · District 52% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median

This schoolOrcas Island 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 3Lower-income58%Higher-income64%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income44%Higher-income63%19 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income73%43 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income58%Higher-income57%1 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income23%Higher-income53%30 pp gap