About our Tahoma Family

Welcome to our website! Whether you’re a longtime member of our Tahoma Family, brand new to the Greater Maple Valley area, or anywhere in between, we’re glad you’re here. The Tahoma School District provides a comprehensive set of educational and support services for students, families and staff, which means our website has a lot of pages to explore. We hope you’ll navigate the site and find everything you need, and we always encourage you to reach out to our schools or our district office with any questions.

Before you dive into the rest of the site, here’s a bit of background about who we are, and where we’ve been throughout our nearly 100-year history:

Who we are

Our District vision is to deliver quality learning EVERY day, in EVERY classroom, for EVERY child. The Tahoma School Board partnered with thousands of parents, students, staff and community stakeholders to adopt a 5-year strategic plan that moves us toward our vision. If you’re familiar with our district, then you’ve probably heard about Tahoma CARES. This is our strategic plan and includes 5 goals to drive our work in supporting every student’s individual, viable and valued path to lifelong personal success. Our goal areas include: High Expectations, Climate & Culture, Partnerships, Equity, and Wellness.

We have over 1,160 total personnel, including roughly 500 classroom teachers. As of 2023-24, 78% of our teachers hold a Master’s Degree or higher, and approximately 90 teachers have National Board Certification. The average teaching experience of our teachers is 14.6 years. Tahoma employs over 570 highly-qualified, caring support staff who ensure our students are healthy, fed, warm, safe, dry and prepared to learn each school day.

Who we serve 

Tahoma School District serves approximately 9,000 total students from birth to age 22 in and around Maple Valley, WA, a suburban community with about 26,000 residents in Southeast King County, about 30 miles southeast of Seattle. Tahoma’s boundaries cover nearly 60 square miles and stretch to the communities of Ravensdale, Hobart, Black Diamond, Covington and Renton.

Tahoma High School is a comprehensive facility opened in 2017 for students in grades 9-12, plus a transition program for young adults receiving special education services. The district has two middle schools and six elementary schools. Check out our district boundaries and school attendance map here.

Academics

Tahoma School District hosts a wide array of academic programs and special services to serve the learning needs of all students.

Tahoma High School operates one of the largest Career & Technical Education (CTE) programs in Washington state, with over 50 CTE course offerings. Each year, hundreds of students earn Industry-Recognized Credentials (IRC), positioning students for both college and career pathways following high school graduation. Some students also attend the Puget Sound Skills Center (PSSC) at Highline Public Schools to provide additional vocational opportunities. At no cost to students, they can earn college credits in some of our CTE courses.

There are advanced academic programs for students at all grade levels in our system, including elementary and middle school Highly Capable programs that serve over 700 students, as well as a wide array of Advanced Placement (AP) course offerings and College in the High School courses at the high school level.

Special Services

Our team of highly-qualified special education instructors and support staff are here to be a partner and helpful resource for our students receiving services and their families. Tahoma provides special education and related services to eligible children and youth with disabilities, ages 3-21. Families with students identified as needing special education services are partnered with a team of professionals to develop and implement an Individualized Education Program (IEP). Students are then placed in programs best suited to deliver their IEP services. We believe in educating students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment.

Health & Wellness

Tahoma School District is committed to supporting both children and adults in their physical, mental, and emotional wellness. Every school in our district has at least one full-time nurse and at least one full-time counselor. We ensure that students have access to highly-qualified, caring adults who can provide immediate support or help students and their families find out-of-district resources that meet their needs. Tahoma's licensed nurses provide critical in-school care to all students, including those with life-threatening and medically fragile conditions, to ensure that all students are healthy, safe and prepared to learn. Our nurses also bring professional expertise to our school administration teams to support the health and safety of every person in our schools. As part of their support for our schools, our highly-qualified counselors provide social-emotional support for students and families. In many instances, our counselors connect students and their families to helpful community resources, including professional counseling, addiction and prevention resources, and food and housing security.

Equity

We believe that Tahoma Schools must be welcoming, supportive, safe and inclusive for every student and every adult. Students, staff and leaders honor diversity and are committed to creating a culture of respect that is inclusive and committed to equitable practices. Understanding and empathy are valued and expected. Equity is about treating all children as the individuals that they are, not treating all children the same. In order to thrive, students need to be treated with kindness and respect by adults and other students. We are deeply committed to ensuring that all students receive what they personally need to develop to their full potential and succeed. To that end, we commit to examining the disparities in our system and to implementing equitable practices to eliminate those disparities. Equity ensures all students have what they need to learn and thrive.

Athletics, Clubs & Activities

Tahoma High School is a Class AAAA school and is a member of the North Puget Sound League for sports and other activities. There are approximately 60 total athletics programs across Tahoma High School, Maple View Middle School and Summit Trail Middle School. Over 2,000 student-athletes compete annually, and many of our athletic programs consistently qualify for postseason play. 

Tahoma also has nationally- and globally-recognized extracurricular programs, including drama, robotics, DECA, speech and debate, and other competitive clubs who have a long history of excellence. There are also a wide variety of social and affinity clubs that create safe and welcoming environments for peers to connect and share their passions.

Community Partnerships

Tahoma School District is fortunate to have dedicated, caring community partners who support our students, staff and families in and outside our school walls. Our local elected officials and state legislators partner frequently with the school board and superintendent on important issues facing our district and community. The Greater Maple Valley area also has a range of services for families facing food and housing insecurity, in need of mental and physical health support, and more. Our district also benefits from committed parent-teacher organizations at every school, who partner together and with the district to greatly enrich our learning and working environment.

History

Land Acknowledgement: The Native Lushootseed word "təqʷubəʔ" (pronounced "teh-KWOH-beh,") means "mother of waters," and is believed to be where "Tahoma," one of Mt. Rainier's original names, derives from. The Tahoma School District would like to acknowledge the Federally Recognized Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, the descendants of the Duwamish, and the ancestral keepers of the land we are gathered on today. We thank them for their immense contributions to our state and local history, culture, economy and identity as Washingtonians.

The name "TaHoMa" was selected by students in 1926 for the newly built collaborative high school that served three independent school districts: Taylor, Hobart and Maple Valley. In addition to the Native origin of Tahoma, the name combines the first two letters of each of the three community names, and the original high school building still serves students today as Tahoma Elementary.

Updated: July 2024