Mercer Island School District Revenue and Competitors

Mercer Island, an island community located at the southern end of Lake Washington and 10 minutes from Seattle, is joined to the city of Seattle by the Interstate 90 floating bridge and to the City of Bellevue by the east channel bridge. The City of Mercer Island serves primarily as a residential area for approximately 24,000 people, most of whom are employed in professional and managerial positions in Seattle and the surrounding areas. The Mercer Island School District, with a K-12 student population of approximately 4280, enjoys a wide-spread reputation for quality and excellence, combining academics, cultural expression, and athletic achievement. This tradition of excellence is a major reason many families make Mercer Island their home. Achievement test scores at the elementary, middle, and high school levels are consistently the highest in the state. The district maintains a graduation rate of over 95 percent. With its proximity to Seattle and Bellevue, the Island has easy access to several public and private colleges and universities including the University of Washington, Seattle University, Bellevue College, and Lake Washington Technical College. The district employs a teaching and support staff of 498 and has an annual operating budget of approximately $48.3 million. The Mercer Island Schools Foundation in partnership with the schools PTA's contributes over $1.7 million dollars to maintain teaching positions and instructional support in light of statewide reductions in funding. Quality educators and support personnel are complemented by quality school facilities. The district has one 9-12 high school and an alternative high school program, one 6-8 middle school, and three K-5 elementary schools.