Roosevelt Elementary vs Whitman Elementary

Roosevelt Elementary and Whitman Elementary land nearly identically in Washington's statewide rankings — Roosevelt at #160 and Whitman at #162 out of 2,225 schools — and both carry an overall rating of 8.8/10. That two-rank gap is functionally a tie at the top tier of the state, meaning parents choosing between these two Spokane schools are not choosing between a strong school and a weak one. The real differences emerge when you look inside the numbers.

Academically, Roosevelt Elementary holds a meaningful edge: its academic score is 8.9/10 versus Whitman Elementary's 7.8/10, a 1.1-point gap that reflects stronger tested proficiency outcomes. Both schools, however, post identical growth scores of 9.4/10, meaning students at each campus are advancing at an equally exceptional pace relative to their starting points. Whitman's lower academic score combined with its elite growth score suggests it is moving students with greater gains from a lower baseline — a meaningful signal for families whose children are behind grade level.

The demographic profiles of these two schools differ sharply. Whitman Elementary's free and reduced lunch rate is 88%, compared to 56% at Roosevelt Elementary — a 32-percentage-point gap that reflects substantially higher concentrations of economic disadvantage. Whitman also runs smaller: 377 students versus Roosevelt's 431, and a student-teacher ratio of 11.4:1 versus Roosevelt's 13.5:1. That tighter ratio means Whitman students get roughly two additional minutes of direct teacher time per class hour — a real structural advantage in a high-needs environment.

Roosevelt Elementary serves grades PK through 6, while Whitman Elementary tops out at grade 5, meaning Roosevelt families avoid a school transition one year later. Both campuses sit 4.7 miles apart within Spokane, so proximity alone rarely decides the choice.