Lafayette Elementary School, Seattle WA

Original Research by School Decision on Lafayette Elementary School

Lafayette Elementary School is a regular public school in Seattle’s West Seattle neighborhood, serving students from preschool through fifth grade. It is part of Seattle Public Schools, the largest district in Washington state and one set within a major Pacific Northwest city that has long been shaped by the technology industry, aerospace manufacturing, and port activity. The school sits in a residential area of the city, with the urban core and its commercial and civic institutions a short distance away.

Academically, Lafayette’s state testing results place it in a strong position among its grade-level peers. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages performance across tested subjects and grades, ranked in the top quartile relative to districts in King County. In English language arts, students across grades three through five showed solid proficiency rates, with the strongest performance in third grade. Mathematics results followed a similar pattern: third-grade achievement was especially high, while fourth- and fifth-grade rates, though lower, remained above the median for the county. Science is assessed only in fifth grade, and those results were also strong. Because the state’s assessment system underwent changes, only a single year of data was available for this report, so no trend line could be drawn. A parent may want to look into how scores have moved in prior years by asking the school directly.

The student body is relatively small for the grade band it covers. White students make up the largest share, followed by a substantial group identifying as two or more races, then smaller shares of Hispanic, Asian, and Black students. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch is low, reflecting the economic circumstances of the surrounding neighborhood. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not included in the available records, so those dimensions of student support are not reported here. Without that information, a parent may wish to contact the school to learn about the availability of special education services and language supports.

The neighborhood around Lafayette is an expensive one to live in. Home values in the ZIP code are well above both state and national benchmarks, and rents are also high. For a family considering moving into the area, this means housing is a significant factor. The city of Seattle has seen steady population growth over the past several decades, driven largely by the tech sector, though growth has moderated more recently.

At the district level, two recent developments are relevant to families. Voters approved a substantial capital levy in 2022 that funds school construction, renovation, and technology upgrades across Seattle Public Schools. At the same time, the district has faced budget shortfalls linked to declining enrollment and the expiration of federal pandemic relief funds, leading to proposals for restructuring and school closures. Those proposals sparked community pushback and were scaled back, but the financial pressures remain.

For a family choosing a school, Lafayette offers a strong academic foundation in the elementary years, set in a relatively affluent neighborhood within a large, dynamic city. Its size is manageable, and the test results indicate that most students are meeting or exceeding grade-level expectations. The peer environment reflects the surrounding community. The main considerations are the high cost of housing and the broader uncertainty around district finances, which may affect programming or attendance boundaries in the future. A parent who values consistent academic performance and wants an elementary school in an urban but residential setting would find this a well-regarded option, while one who needs specific support services or is concerned about district-level budget pressures may want to investigate further with the school and the district.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 377%

School 77% · District 67% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Grade 463%

School 63% · District 64% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 48% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 377%

School 77% · District 31% · ▲ 46 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 461%

School 61% · District 64% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 572%

School 72% · District 24% · ▲ 49 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Science

Grade 575%

School 75% · District 32% · ▲ 44 pts above district

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

This schoolSeattle School District No. 1, 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-income80%22 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income41%Higher-income65%24 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income39%Higher-income79%40 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income58%Higher-income80%22 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income35%Higher-income70%34 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income23%Higher-income66%43 pp gap