How Gig Harbor Schools Rank In Their District

GIG HARBOR, WA — Several elementary and middle schools in the Peninsula School District have been ranked among the best in Washington, according to a brand-new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.

Schools are ranked at the state and district levels. The best charter schools and best magnet schools ranked as stand-alone categories.

U.S. News ranked Kopachuck Middle School as the best local middle school, according to the new list, and the 107th best middle school in Washington overall. The best elementary school was Voyager Elementary, which clocked in at 139.

Here's how U.S. News ranked Gig Harbor middle schools within their district:

1. Kopachuck Middle School
2. Key Peninsula Middle School
3. Goodman Middle School
4. Harbor Ridge Middle School

Here's how U.S. News ranked Gig Harbor elementary schools within their district:

1. Voyager Elementary
2. Discovery Elementary School
3. Artondale Elementary School
4. Evergreen Elementary
5. Purdy Elementary School
6. Harbor Heights Elementary School
7. Minter Creek Elementary
8. Vaughn Elementary School

To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:

• Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
• Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.

Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools.

California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.

See the complete list of 2021’s Best K-8 Schools.