Alki Elementary School vs Dearborn Park International School

Dearborn Park International School holds a 9.5/10 overall rating against Alki Elementary School's 9.0/10 — a half-point gap that reflects a dramatic difference in state standing. Dearborn Park International School ranks #7 of 2,225 schools in Washington, placing it in the top 0.3% statewide, while Alki Elementary School ranks #66 of 2,225 — a strong result in its own right, but 59 positions back. Both schools sit 5.5 miles apart in Seattle, serving PK–05, yet produce meaningfully different outcomes.

Academically, the two schools are nearly even: Alki Elementary School scores 9.1/10 versus Dearborn Park International School's 9.0/10 — a difference of just 0.1 points that is functionally a tie. Where Dearborn Park pulls ahead is growth: Dearborn Park International School holds a 9.9/10 growth score compared to Alki Elementary School's already-strong 9.6/10. That 0.3-point gap in growth is significant — it means students at Dearborn Park are advancing at a faster pace relative to their starting points, suggesting highly effective instructional practice.

The demographic and structural differences between the two schools are substantial. Dearborn Park International School enrolls 326 students with 61% qualifying for free or reduced lunch, compared to Alki Elementary School's 270 students and 14% FRL rate. This 47-percentage-point gap in economic diversity reflects two distinct community profiles. Equally important is the classroom dynamic: Dearborn Park International School's student-teacher ratio of 14.2:1 means meaningfully more individual attention per student than Alki Elementary School's 18.0:1 — a nearly 4-student-per-teacher difference that compounds across a school year.

Both schools are PK–05 and carry the "International School" designation at Dearborn Park, signaling a curriculum with global and multilingual components. Dearborn Park International School's combination of near-top state ranking, superior student-teacher ratio of 14.2:1, and a high-growth environment serving a majority low-income population marks it as an exceptional equity achievement. Alki Elementary School, with its 9.1/10 academic score and tightly resourced community at 14% FRL, reflects a high-performing school anchored in a more affluent, lower-enrollment setting.