Is Port Townsend High School a good school?

Port Townsend High School ranks 106 th of 437 Washington high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Port Townsend High School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 377 students attended Port Townsend High School.

What is the racial makeup of Port Townsend High School?

Students at Port Townsend High School are 78% White, 10% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races, 2% Asian, 1% African American, 1% American Indian.

What schools feed into Port Townsend High School?

Port Townsend High School is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Salish Coast Elementary Middle : Blue Heron Middle School

Port Townsend High School

Summary:

Port Townsend High School is a public high school serving 377 students in grades 9-12 in Port Townsend, Washington, which is part of the Chimacum School District. This high-performing school consistently outpaces the state average in academic metrics and maintains a strong graduation rate, making it a standout educational institution in the region.

Academically, Port Townsend High School shines, with 73.08% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to the state average of 52.63%, and 68.35% proficient or better in Science, well above the state's 49.73% average. The school's four-year graduation rate of 91.3% also exceeds the state's average of around 80%. While the student population is predominantly White at 77.72%, the school serves a relatively diverse student body, with 10.08% Hispanic and 7.96% two or more races. Additionally, nearly half of the students (49.34%) qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating the school's ability to support students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds.

When compared to nearby high schools, such as South Whidbey High School, Sequim Senior High, and Oak Harbor High School, Port Townsend High School consistently outperforms its regional peers in academic metrics and overall school rankings, solidifying its reputation as a high-quality educational institution that is effectively serving the diverse needs of its student population.

Detail:

Public 9-12

1500 Van Ness St
Port Townsend, WA 98368-6346

(360) 379-4520

District: Port Townsend School District

SchoolDigger Rank:
106^th of 437 Washington High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $18,699

Feeder schools for Port Townsend High School:

Elementary:	Salish Coast Elementary
Middle:	Blue Heron Middle School

Student/teacher ratio: 19.1

Number of students: 377

Racial breakdown:

White:

77.7%

Hispanic:

10.1%

Two or more races:

8.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 49.3%

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Compare Port Townsend High School to nearby high schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Port Townsend High School ranks better than 75.7% of high schools in Washington. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 70.95. (See more...)

The Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate (ACGR) measures the percentage of Port Townsend High School freshmen who graduate within four years, adjusting for students who transfer in or out.

The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: White (77.7%), Hispanic (10.1%), two or more races (8%). (See more...)

Compare Details 49.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Compare Details (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Port Townsend High School is 19.1. (See more...)

Compare Port Townsend High School employs 19.6 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Port Townsend High School is $18,699.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Port Townsend High School:

SchoolDigger ranks Port Townsend High School 106^th of 437 Washington public high schools. (See Port Townsend High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Port Townsend School District:

SchoolDigger ranks Port Townsend School District 59^th of 247 Washington school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Port Townsend High School

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Rank History for all students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile
2004	67.35	124^th	390	68.2%
2005	53.81	211^th	394	46.4%
2006	79.20	64^th	395	83.8%
2007	73.81	94^th	399	76.4%
2008	52.03	232^nd	396	41.4%
2009	64.60	160^th	402	60.2%
2010	77.95	73^rd	423	82.7%
2011	51.70	213^th	440	51.6%
2012	64.45	130^th	450	71.1%
2013	68.77	104^th	454	77.1%
2019	77.83	74^th	417	82.3%
2021	77.73	70^th	455	84.6%
2022	80.20	66^th	434	84.8%
2023	89.40	38^th	442	91.4%
2024	70.95	106^th	437	75.7%

See the entire list of Washington High School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2021	34.71	133^rd	195	31.8%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	60.88	35^th	128	72.7%
2022	52.38	50^th	130	61.5%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile
2019	82.83	32^nd	344	90.7%
2021	86.46	21^st	392	94.6%
2022	53.02	158^th	370	57.3%
2023	96.47	9^th	362	97.5%
2024	78.52	50^th	356	86.0%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile
2019	68.94	101^st	358	71.8%
2021	76.01	65^th	390	83.3%
2022	86.57	32^nd	368	91.3%
2023	88.41	34^th	357	90.5%
2024	78.09	62^nd	347	82.1%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Male students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile
2019	82.50	45^th	355	87.3%
2021	74.32	79^th	395	80.0%
2022	65.42	113^th	363	68.9%
2023	79.76	57^th	358	84.1%
2024	60.45	128^th	362	64.6%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	31.72	185^th	261	29.1%
2024	82.76	29^th	248	88.3%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Port Townsend High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	WA State Percentile
2019	73.15	89^th	382	76.7%
2021	72.18	88^th	413	78.7%
2022	78.56	62^nd	390	84.1%
2023	84.77	44^th	379	88.4%
2024	62.66	122^nd	374	67.4%

See the entire list of Best Washington High Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Washington Office of Superindentent of Public Instruction, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction

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Enrollment information for Port Townsend High School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	622	3	10	2	6	n/a	n/a	0	643
1989	587	4	14	5	6	n/a	n/a	0	616
1990	602	8	12	11	13	n/a	n/a	0	646
1991	642	10	10	9	7	n/a	n/a	0	678
1992	722	10	13	9	9	n/a	n/a	0	763
1993	755	8	20	11	10	n/a	n/a	0	804
1994	845	7	12	14	17	n/a	n/a	0	895
1995	603	7	16	10	9	n/a	n/a	0	645
1996	603	7	16	10	9	n/a	n/a	0	645
1997	546	9	18	11	17	n/a	n/a	0	601
1998	556	7	18	12	14	n/a	n/a	0	607
1999	548	5	19	9	12	n/a	n/a	0	593
2000	621	5	15	4	15	n/a	n/a	0	660
2001	577	8	15	6	19	n/a	n/a	0	625
2002	587	9	14	11	15	n/a	n/a	0	636
2003	587	9	14	11	15	n/a	n/a	0	636
2004	538	10	18	12	14	n/a	n/a	0	592
2005	513	9	23	14	16	n/a	n/a	2	577
2006	536	10	27	14	19	n/a	n/a	1	607
2007	509	15	28	15	25	n/a	n/a	7	599
2008	460	11	31	16	25	n/a	n/a	7	550
2009	473	9	29	15	20	n/a	n/a	6	552
2010	431	8	27	21	22	n/a	n/a	7	516
2011	433	8	27	23	14	2	7	0	514
2012	428	12	22	22	10	2	11	0	507
2013	407	13	19	22	6	1	20	0	488
2014	363	8	14	25	3	1	23	0	437
2015	347	3	8	28	0	1	29	0	416
2016	296	4	9	28	5	2	24	0	368
2017	274	6	10	30	5	2	23	0	350
2018	273	4	10	29	3	1	20	0	340
2019	288	5	8	25	4	1	16	2	349
2020	318	5	9	26	3	0	17	1	379
2021	302	3	4	33	3	0	28	3	376
2022	290	3	6	36	7	1	33	5	381
2023	293	4	7	38	4	1	30	0	377

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Port Townsend High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	643	32.0	20.0	0
1989	616	33.0	18.6	n/a
1990	646	34.0	19.0	0
1991	678	39.8	17.0	n/a
1992	763	38.6	19.7	n/a
1993	804	43.8	18.4	n/a
1994	895	41.9	21.4	n/a
1995	645	45.7	14.1	n/a
1996	645	45.7	14.1	n/a
1997	601	50.1	12.0	n/a
1998	607	31.2	19.5	n/a
1999	593	31.0	19.1	n/a
2000	660	28.2	23.4	n/a
2001	625	27.5	22.7	n/a
2002	636	25.9	24.6	29.9
2003	636	25.9	24.6	29.9
2004	592	26.0	22.8	32.1
2005	577	25.7	22.5	28.9
2006	607	25.6	23.7	28.9
2007	599	24.9	24.1	33.8
2008	550	26.5	20.8	34.6
2009	552	28.5	19.4	26.7
2010	516	25.4	20.3	35.6
2011	514	24.7	20.8	34.2
2012	507	22.6	22.4	38.9
2013	488	21.3	22.8	38.7
2014	437	n/a	n/a	41.6
2015	416	20.0	20.8	41.3
2016	368	20.0	18.4	44.3
2017	350	18.7	18.6	44.3
2018	340	18.5	18.2	45.9
2019	349	18.5	18.8	45.8
2020	379	19.8	19.1	46.7
2021	376	19.0	19.7	43.1
2022	381	19.2	19.7	40.2
2023	377	19.6	19.1	49.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Port Townsend High School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	643	32.0	20.0	0
1989	616	33.0	18.6	n/a
1990	646	34.0	19.0	0
1991	678	39.8	17.0	n/a
1992	763	38.6	19.7	n/a
1993	804	43.8	18.4	n/a
1994	895	41.9	21.4	n/a
1995	645	45.7	14.1	n/a
1996	645	45.7	14.1	n/a
1997	601	50.1	12.0	n/a
1998	607	31.2	19.5	n/a
1999	593	31.0	19.1	n/a
2000	660	28.2	23.4	n/a
2001	625	27.5	22.7	n/a
2002	636	25.9	24.6	29.9
2003	636	25.9	24.6	29.9
2004	592	26.0	22.8	32.1
2005	577	25.7	22.5	28.9
2006	607	25.6	23.7	28.9
2007	599	24.9	24.1	33.8
2008	550	26.5	20.8	34.6
2009	552	28.5	19.4	26.7
2010	516	25.4	20.3	35.6
2011	514	24.7	20.8	34.2
2012	507	22.6	22.4	38.9
2013	488	21.3	22.8	38.7
2014	437	n/a	n/a	41.6
2015	416	20.0	20.8	41.3
2016	368	20.0	18.4	44.3
2017	350	18.7	18.6	44.3
2018	340	18.5	18.2	45.9
2019	349	18.5	18.8	45.8
2020	379	19.8	19.1	46.7
2021	376	19.0	19.7	43.1
2022	381	19.2	19.7	40.2
2023	377	19.6	19.1	49.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

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