Meridian Park Elementary School vs Cascade K-8 Community School

Meridian Park Elementary School and Cascade K-8 Community School sit 2.2 miles apart in Shoreline, Washington, and are statistically neck-and-neck at the top of the state: Meridian Park ranks #33 of 2,225 Washington schools and Cascade ranks #34 of 2,225, with both earning an overall rating of 9.2/10. At that level of competition, the separation between them is real but narrow — and the meaningful differences show up in specific categories rather than the headline number.

Academically, Meridian Park Elementary School holds a clear edge, scoring 9.8/10 versus Cascade K-8 Community School's 9.2/10 — a 0.6-point gap that reflects stronger current proficiency levels. Cascade K-8 flips that dynamic on growth, scoring 9.5/10 to Meridian Park's 9.2/10, meaning Cascade is pushing students further from their starting points year over year. Families prioritizing where kids land versus how fast they climb will weigh those two numbers differently.

The demographic gap between the two schools is the sharpest contrast on the page. Meridian Park Elementary School enrolls 512 students with 35% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Cascade K-8 Community School enrolls 180 students — 332 fewer — with only 18% on free or reduced lunch. Student-teacher ratios are nearly identical at 15.1:1 and 15.0:1 respectively, so class-size experience is comparable, but Cascade's smaller total enrollment produces a more intimate school-wide environment and a less economically diverse student body.

The most structurally distinct difference is grade span. Meridian Park Elementary School serves kindergarten through 5th grade, meaning families face a middle school transition at the end of elementary. Cascade K-8 Community School runs kindergarten through 8th grade, keeping students in one building through middle school. For families with multiple children or a preference for continuity, that single fact may outweigh everything else on this list.