Verified 2026-09-11. Mercer Island School District operates four public K–5 elementary schools. All are neighborhood schools, all feed Islander Middle and Mercer Island High, and all were closed to new nonresident enrollment for 2026–27. An exact home address, not a city name alone, determines assignment.
| School | WA rank (2025) | Projected K / total FTE (2025–26) | Distinctive feature to investigate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Island Park | #10 / 1,160 | 42 / 346 | Smallest projection; whole-child focus and weekly music, PE, art and library |
| Lakeridge | #11 / 1,160 | 42 / 391 | District site for unique Code 33 Highly Capable classrooms in grades 3–5 |
| West Mercer | #24 / 1,160 | 67 / 420 | Largest projection; broad student clubs/leadership and explicit math-growth plan |
| Northwood | #112 / 1,160 | 54 / 357 | Mindfulness, SEL, monthly character work and cross-age community practices |
The enrollment figures are district projections, not final October counts or class sizes. Rankings are third-party SchoolDigger 2025 results based primarily on grades 3–5 state tests. Lakeridge's centralized Highly Capable cohort makes schoolwide scores and enrollment composition less directly comparable. None of these figures measures kindergarten play, teacher warmth, adult support or fit.
Entry route and common programs
- Kindergarten eligibility uses Washington's August 31 age cutoff. The district requires two proofs of residency, age documentation and immunization records.
- Elementary students enroll at the school assigned by the district boundary map. Families should verify the exact address before a housing commitment.
- For 2026–27, kindergarten registration opened January 29, 2026. The district still accepts choice-transfer applications, but its board closed K–5 to new nonresident enrollment; that is not a practical admission route for the year.
- MISD universally screens kindergarten and grade 2 for advanced-learning services. Primary Enrichment Services operate in regular grades 1–2 classrooms; grade 3–5 Code 32 is in-class, while Code 33 is centralized at Lakeridge. Criteria and service models can change, so confirm for the entry year.
Best next comparison
Because all four schools have strong recent upper-elementary results, the most useful differentiators are the assigned boundary, K section count and class size, teaching-team stability, recess/play, learning-support staffing, before/after care, traffic and the feel of a live kindergarten classroom.
Sources
- MISD kindergarten registration and boundaries — accessed 2026-09-11
- MISD open enrollment / choice transfer — accessed 2026-09-11
- MISD Highly Capable services — accessed 2026-09-11
- MISD 2025–26 enrollment projection — accessed 2026-09-11
- Washington ranking table and individual ranking sources