Lake Oswego School District at the top of Oregon school rankings

Everyone likes being called the best. Even the Lake Oswego School District.

On Monday, Sept. 30, Niche —, an online ranking and review company that profiles schools, school districts, colleges and universities — announced its annual rankings of Best Schools and Districts for 2025.

Lake Oswego School District was ranked first in the following categories: Best School Districts in Oregon, Best Places to Teach in Oregon and Best Teachers in Oregon.

Individual Lake Oswego schools also received their laurels. Palisades World Language School was ranked first as the Best Public Elementary School in Oregon. Every other LOSD elementary school followed Palisades, dominating the top seven places in Oregon.

“Our mission is to create a culture of belonging and educational excellence for every student. One way we know we’re on the right track is through the recognition we receive for our work,” the district said in its announcement on ParentSquare. “This week, Niche announced its annual rankings, and we’re proud to share that LOSD secured our position as the top school district in Oregon. In addition to being recognized for having the best schools and the best teachers in the state, we’ve also earned the title of the best place to teach in Oregon.”

Lake Oswego High School was ranked second for Best Public High School in Oregon and Lakeridge High School was ranked third.

LOHS and LHS lost the first-place spot to Riverdale High School, the small public school located in Portland near the Lake Oswego city boundary. Lakeridge also earned third place for Best Teachers.

Lake Oswego Middle School and Lakeridge Middle School were ranked first and third respectively for Best Public Middle School in Oregon.

Neighboring districts and private schools were also recognized for their accomplishments. The West Linn-Wilsonville School District was ranked first for Best School Districts for Athletes and third for Best School Districts in Oregon. Catlin Gabel School was ranked first as the Best Private High School in Oregon.

The methodology for determining the school rankings is “a blend of student and parent reviews alongside dependable data.” Niche weighs various factors gathered from available data and survey information solicited by the company itself. The site also incorporates its review system into the rankings and aggregates the scores based on confidence and completeness of the data for each school and district.

Nationally, LOSD was ranked 184th for Best School Districts in America.