Fort Stevens Elementary, Yelm WA

Original Research by School Decision on Fort Stevens Elementary

Fort Stevens Elementary serves the elementary grades from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Yelm, a rapidly growing bedroom community in Thurston County. The school is part of the Yelm School District, which draws many families connected to Joint Base Lewis-McChord and commuters who work in Olympia, Tacoma, or Centralia. Yelm itself has seen substantial population growth over the past several decades, including a major annexation in early 2026, and the school sits within a suburban, car-oriented landscape rather than a dense downtown. Civic life in the city centers on City Hall and Yelm City Park, while the elementary schools, including this one, occupy their own separate campuses.

Academically, Fort Stevens Elementary posted results that stand out within the county. On state assessments administered in the 2024-25 school year, the school’s overall proficiency across math, English language arts, and science placed it in the top quartile when compared with district-level performance across Thurston County. This is a notably strong showing for a single elementary school against a countywide set of districts. The strongest grade-level performance was in third-grade math, where a large majority of students met the proficiency bar. In English language arts, results were more mixed but still above the county median overall, with a modest gap between third and fourth grades. Fifth-grade science results were broadly consistent with the school’s overall pattern. It is worth noting that only one year of test data is available for this school, so these results represent a snapshot rather than a trend. Parents interested in seeing how the school sustains or builds on this performance over time may want to ask the school about more recent or longitudinal data.

The student body reflects the community’s economic and demographic mix. A majority of students come from households that qualify for free or reduced-price meals, indicating a substantial share of families with lower incomes. Racially, the school is majority white, with a notable Hispanic population and smaller shares of students who are Black, Asian, Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, or of two or more races. Enrollment includes a small pre-kindergarten program, which can be a helpful entry point for families seeking early learning options within the public school system. The school does not report data on students with disabilities or English learners in the available records, so a family with specific support needs should reach out to the school directly.

Housing in the Yelm area has become more expensive in recent years, though it remains more affordable than many parts of western Washington. Home values and rents have risen, and the area’s continued growth means new families are arriving steadily. The district itself did not have any major recent changes that were publicly documented at the time of this report, so the school’s programming and leadership appear to have been stable in the near term.

For a family weighing elementary options in the Yelm area, Fort Stevens Elementary offers a strong academic starting point based on the available testing data, with proficiency levels that are competitive even when measured against the broader county. Its setting in a fast-growing suburban community means the school likely sees a mix of military-connected families, long-term residents, and newcomers. The school does not appear to operate specialized magnet or charter programs, and no data on course access or enrichment offerings was provided, so parents seeking a particular programmatic focus should verify what is available directly. Overall, Fort Stevens presents as a solid neighborhood elementary school with a clear record of above-average academic performance in its first observed year.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 381%

School 81% · District 59% · ▲ 22 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 456%

School 56% · District 50% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 553%

School 53% · District 38% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 359%

School 59% · District 46% · ▲ 13 pts above district

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

Grade 451%

School 51% · District 46% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 558%

School 58% · District 52% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 556%

School 56% · District 52% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · even with county median

This schoolYelm 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-income57%Higher-income61%4 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income43%Higher-income67%24 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income52%Higher-income69%17 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income39%Higher-income65%26 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income78%Higher-income84%6 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income49%Higher-income71%22 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income48%Higher-income62%14 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income28%Higher-income68%41 pp gap