Original Research by School Decision on La Crescent Senior High
La Crescent Senior High is a regular public high school serving grades nine through twelve in the small Mississippi River town of La Crescent, Minnesota. The school is part of the La Crescent-Hokah School District, which also draws students from the neighboring community of Hokah. The town itself is known as the “Apple Capital of Minnesota” for its many orchards, sits on bluffs above the river, and has a population that has been essentially flat in recent years. It is a short drive from La Crosse, Wisconsin, where many residents commute for work and city amenities. The school’s enrollment is modest for a high school. The student body is predominantly white, with small shares of Hispanic, two-or-more-race, Black, Asian, and American Indian students. About one in five students qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that is on the lower side for a rural Minnesota high school.
Academically, the picture is mixed. The most recent state testing data, from the 2024–25 school year, shows that roughly half of students met or exceeded expectations in English language arts. That is a solid result, suggesting that a majority of students are gaining grade-level reading and writing skills. In mathematics, however, the proficiency rate was much lower, with only about one in six students reaching the benchmark. This is a significant soft spot, and a parent may want to ask the school how it supports math learning, whether through intervention programs, tutoring, or curriculum adjustments. Only one year of testing data was available, so there is no way to see whether this is a recent change or a longer-term pattern. The school’s graduation rate was not reported in the data we reviewed, so a parent should check with the district for that figure.
Several other pieces of information that families often look for were not available. We found no data on chronic absenteeism, discipline incidents, course offerings (such as Advanced Placement, dual credit, or career and technical education programs), staffing ratios, or the shares of students with disabilities or English learners. Without these, it is hard to assess the breadth of the academic pathway or the level of student support. The school’s website or the district office may provide this information directly. The district’s recent changes were also not documented in publicly available sources, so we cannot report on any new initiatives, building projects, or policy shifts.
The housing market in La Crescent reflects the town’s stable, small-town character. Home values are roughly in line with the statewide median, and the national mortgage rate at the time of this writing was in the mid-six percent range. The town offers limited walkability, with a downtown core around Main Street, a pedestrian and bike trail connecting to La Crosse, and bus service across the river. Civic anchors include a public library, an aquatic center, parks, and the annual Applefest celebration. The area is not seeing rapid growth, and the school district is a major local employer.
For a family considering La Crescent Senior High, the school offers a small, close-knit environment in a town with a strong sense of place. The academic record shows a clear strength in English language arts and a clear weakness in math. Without more data on programs, postsecondary readiness, and student support services, it is difficult to fully judge the range of opportunities available. A parent who values a small high school in a river town with a quiet, scenic setting and is willing to look into the math performance and missing metrics will find this a school worth investigating further.
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