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Decatur High School (Federal Way, Washington)

1973 establishments in Washington (state)Educational institutions established in 1973Federal Way, WashingtonHigh schools in King County, WashingtonPublic high schools in Washington (state)
South Puget Sound League

Decatur High School is an American secondary school teaching grades nine through twelve. A part of the Federal Way Public Schools, it was founded in 1971 in Federal Way, Washington.The graduating classes of 1973-1976 were schooled in the Illahee Middle School building. The school was built in 1976, renovated in 1987, then again remodeled in 2002. Although sometimes assumed to have been named after Commodore Stephen Decatur, a War of 1812 and the First Barbary War and the Second Barbary War naval hero, the school is in fact named after the USS Decatur, a ship named for Stephen Decatur that assisted settlers during the 1856 Battle of Seattle. Decatur was originally built as an "open concept" high school, where students were encouraged to study at their own pace in an open environment. Within the framework of this concept, there were few permanent walls built in the school's original structure. However, this experimental approach was scrapped after the 1976-77 school year when it was discovered that not all high school students were self-motivated enough to meet the district's education standards.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Decatur High School (Federal Way, Washington) (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Decatur High School (Federal Way, Washington)
Southwest 320th Street,

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N 47.317222222222 ° E -122.36777777778 °
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Southwest 320th Street 2800
98023
Washington, United States
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Northeast Tacoma, Tacoma, Washington

Northeast Tacoma is a neighborhood in Tacoma, Washington. The generally accepted borders of Northeast Tacoma are the Port of Tacoma to the southwest, the unincorporated Fife Heights area to the southeast, the end of incorporated Tacoma at the Browns Point border to the northwest, and the King County border to the northeast. Its nearly 17,000 residents — roughly one in 12 Tacomans — are severed from the rest of the city by the shipyards, container cranes and grit of the Port of Tacoma. Due to the separation from the main part of the city by the Port of Tacoma area, Northeast Tacoma is the most suburban and isolated neighborhood of Tacoma. Many homes in the area have views, partially owing to the hilly terrain. Indian Hill is, at 530 feet above sea level, the highest point in incorporated Tacoma. On city maps, Northeast Tacoma is everything within city limits on the east side of Commencement Bay above the Tideflats. Farther north, Browns Point and its historic lighthouse, and Dash Point and its park and pier, are both distinct places with distinct characters, indistinctly identified as unincorporated Pierce County. The children that live in Northeast Tacoma generally attend one of the three public elementary schools (Northeast Elementary, Browns Point Elementary, or Crescent Heights Elementary). All three of the elementary schools feed into Northeast Tacoma's Jerry Meeker Middle School. With the completion of middle school, Northeast Tacoma residents typically attend Stadium High School. Some students choose to attend Federal Way schools, such as Decatur High School. The median Northeast Tacoma household income is about $83,000, just over the North End, at $77,000, and well above Tacoma average, at $51,000. Both areas have much higher housing prices than the Tacoma average, lower poverty, and are more ethnically homogeneous.

Federal Way Public Schools

Federal Way Public Schools is a school district in King County, Washington covering all of Federal Way and portions of Kent, Des Moines, Auburn, and unincorporated census-designated places Lakeland North and Lakeland South, encompassing 35 square miles (91 km2). There are 37 schools in the district, consisting of 21 elementary schools, 2 K-8 schools, 6 middle schools, 4 high schools, 3 specialized schools, and one online school. Federal Way Public Schools is the most diverse school district in Washington state, and the 5th most diverse in the nation. The class of 2018 continued a six-year trend of increasing graduation rates, reaching 86.2 percent. The classes of 2017 and 2018 had the highest graduate rate in the Road Map region. 71 percent of high school students in the district have taken an advanced course. This is higher than average, and third highest in the Road Map region. 92 percent of students taking an advanced course are earning a passing grade. The class of 2021 and beyond is required to earn 24 hours of community service as a graduation requirement. Since 2017, Federal Way Public Schools has hosted an annual STEM Exploration Night, with thousands of students and their families in attendance. In 2018, Federal Way Public Schools launched Scholar Art in the City, an initiative that displays student art and writing in businesses and organizations across the city of Federal Way. 63 percent of students enrolled in a two or four year college program. 81 percent of scholars who attended a four-year postsecondary institution were continuously enrolled.The current Superintendent is Dr. Danielle Pfeiffer.Between the 2002–2003 and 2003–2004 the school district transitioned from Junior High Schools to Middle Schools.

Federal Way Public Academy
Federal Way Public Academy

Federal Way Public Academy (FWPA) is a co-educational college preparatory school for students in grades 6–10 in Federal Way, Washington. It is part of the Federal Way School District. Charles "Ray" Griffin conceived of Federal Way Public Academy when he was a doctoral candidate at the University of Washington. After he became an administrator at the Annie Wright School, he approached the Federal Way School District to consider his idea to start a public academy for gifted education. In 1998, the school was approved by the board to open in a 3–2 vote. The main arguments against the school were that it was snobbish and that the school district should improve its current honors curriculum in its existing six junior high schools. The school opened on September 1, 1999, with 120 seventh and eighth graders. The school was located in the Illahee Middle School parking lot in three double portables (six classrooms) from its founding until October 2003 when it moved to a warehouse building formerly owned by Deluxe Check Printing Co. The school admits students through a lottery. About 60% of applicants are turned away owing to the demand. In 2013, the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and the Washington State Board of Education gave Federal Way Public Academy an award that honored them for having an "overall two-year test score average puts them in the top 5 percent of schools statewide". After graduation from FWPA, roughly 50% of the students enroll in Thomas Jefferson High School's International Baccalaureate program and 30% participate in Running Start.