What happens when you compare Washington charter school students not only to statewide averages, but to students with similar academic, racial, ethnic, and economic backgrounds?
Charter students come out ahead.
A recent independent analysis highlighted in the Washington State Board of Education’s 2026 Public Charter Schools Report found that students in grades 4–8 attending Washington charter public schools performed significantly better overall in both Math and English Language Arts than comparable students attending other public schools.
For families at Impact Public Schools, the findings reinforce something we see every day: when scholars are known, supported and challenged to reach their full potential, extraordinary growth is possible.
Significant Results
- Math: 46.2% of charter students met the state standard, compared with 40.1% of their matched public school peers – a 6.1 percentage-point advantage.
- English Language Arts: 53.1% of charter students met the state standard, compared with 47.9% of matched peers – a 5.2 percentage-point advantage.
5th Graders Show What’s Possible
The results for fifth graders were particularly striking. 56% of charter fifth graders met the Math standard, compared with just 41% of matched peers – a 15% difference. In ELA, 63.3% of charter fifth graders met the standard compared with 52.4% of matched peers.
That is especially meaningful at Impact, where our elementary schools are designed to give scholars the strong academic foundation they need before they make the transition into middle school. And now, as Impact expands into the middle grades, scholars have the opportunity to continue building on that foundation within the Impact community.
Strong Results for Students Historically Underserved
The broader picture across Washington’s charter sector is just as important. Charter schools serve a disproportionately high percentage of students who have historically been underserved. In the 2024–25 school year, for example, 25.7% of Washington charter students were Black/African American, compared with 9.1% of students in the local districts where charter schools operate. Charter schools also served a higher proportion of students from low-income families: 57.7% compared with 50.6% in local districts.
And additional analysis of statewide assessment results shows especially strong outcomes for Black and Hispanic/Latino charter students. Compared with students in the districts where charter schools are located, Black charter students had proficiency rates 15 percentage points higher in ELA, 22 points higher in Math, and 22 points higher in Science. Hispanic/Latino charter students were 17 points higher in ELA, 19 points higher in Math, and more than 32 points higher in Science.
Those results matter because expanding access to an excellent education for students and communities historically underserved by traditional systems is at the heart of why Washington’s charter public schools exist.
Impact Scholars are Part of This Success
These statewide results reflect the work happening every day in charter school classrooms across Washington – including at Impact. Impact | Puget Sound Elementary and Impact | Salish Sea Elementary were both included in the State Board’s analysis, meaning Impact scholars were among the students whose academic outcomes contributed to these broader findings.
Impact | Puget Sound Elementary has also been recognized through the Washington School Recognition Program for exceptional student growth – another reflection of the strong academic outcomes happening within Impact classrooms.
For Impact, the results reinforce our belief that high expectations paired with individualized support can lead to strong academic outcomes for every scholar. Across our schools, rigorous instruction, responsive use of student data, and a whole-child approach work together to help scholars build the skills and confidence they need to thrive.
The statewide data is also powerful validation of what can happen when public schools have the flexibility to build intentionally around the students and communities they serve. Washington’s charter public schools are still a relatively small part of the state’s public education system, but their scholars are demonstrating that different approaches can produce meaningful results.
At Impact, we’re proud to be part of that story, and even more excited about what our scholars will accomplish next.
Sources: Washington State Board of Education, 2026 Public Charter Schools Report; Excellent Schools Washington & Washington State Charter Schools Association, Game Changers. Academic results reflect 2023–24 assessment data. Math and ELA matched-peer findings use an independent WSAC analysis; Science and demographic comparisons are charter-sector vs. local-district proficiency comparisons.