Sand Point Elementary vs Stephen Decatur Elementary School

Stephen Decatur Elementary School holds a clear advantage in overall standing, rated 9.5 out of 10 compared to Sand Point Elementary's 9.0 out of 10 — a 0.5-point gap that widens considerably when viewed against state rankings. Stephen Decatur Elementary School sits at #26 of 2,225 Washington schools, placing it in the top 2 percent statewide. Sand Point Elementary ranks #113 of 2,225, still a strong result but trailing its neighbor by 87 positions on a list that spans more than two thousand schools.

The academic score difference between the two schools is the sharpest contrast in this comparison. Stephen Decatur Elementary School scores 10.0 out of 10 in academics versus Sand Point Elementary's 8.0 out of 10 — a 2-point delta that represents a significant proficiency gap. Growth tells a different story: Sand Point Elementary edges ahead with a growth score of 9.3 compared to Stephen Decatur Elementary School's 9.1, suggesting Sand Point students make slightly stronger year-over-year gains relative to academic starting points, even if their absolute proficiency ceiling is lower.

The two schools diverge sharply on student demographics and classroom structure. Sand Point Elementary enrolls 213 students across pre-K through fifth grade and has a free and reduced-price lunch rate of 55 percent, indicating it serves a substantially higher share of lower-income families. Stephen Decatur Elementary School enrolls 187 students in kindergarten through fifth grade and carries a 6 percent FRL rate. The student-teacher ratio at Sand Point Elementary is 13.3 students per teacher versus 17.0 at Stephen Decatur Elementary School — meaning Sand Point students get meaningfully more individual teacher attention despite the school's greater economic diversity.

Both schools cover the standard elementary grades, though Sand Point Elementary adds a pre-kindergarten program that Stephen Decatur Elementary School does not offer. Sitting only 1.2 miles apart in Seattle, families in the attendance overlap zone face a genuine choice between a school with higher absolute academic achievement and one that offers smaller class sizes, pre-K access, and a more economically integrated student body.