River Ridge Middle, Patch Grove WI

Original Research by School Decision on River Ridge Middle

River Ridge Middle serves students from fifth through eighth grade in the River Ridge School District, a regular public school that sits on the main highway through Patch Grove, a very small rural village in Grant County. The school shares a campus with the district’s high school, and together they form the only public school building in this crossroads community. For a family considering this school, the immediate question is what the academic picture looks like and what the surrounding context offers.

On state assessments, the school shows a mixed but broadly solid profile. Performance varies considerably by grade and subject. In math, the share of students reaching proficiency climbs across the grade levels, with notably stronger results in seventh and eighth grade than in fifth. A similar pattern appears in English language arts: seventh graders perform at a higher level than their fifth-grade peers, whose proficiency rate is lower. Eighth graders also take state science and social studies tests; results in those subjects are moderate, with social studies slightly stronger than science. Compared with other districts in Grant County, River Ridge Middle’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits above the midpoint. That means a family moving into the area can expect academic outcomes that are competitive with those of nearby schools, though with some variability that may warrant a closer look at specific grade-level performance.

The school is small, with an enrollment that fits comfortably in a single building. The student body is overwhelmingly white, with small numbers of Black, Hispanic, and multiracial students. Roughly half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that reflects the economic circumstances of the surrounding community. Data on students with disabilities and English learners were not available; families who need information on special education supports or language services would want to ask the school directly.

Patch Grove itself is a tiny village of fewer than a few hundred residents, according to publicly reported estimates. It is predominantly residential, with single-family homes and some mobile homes, and it sits at an intersection of state highways. The population has been declining slightly in recent years, and housing is fully occupied with no reported vacancies. Median home values and rents are modest. There is no distinct downtown, no parks or library identified in available sources, and commercial activity is minimal. For families, this means the school is the central public institution in the area. The district brief turned up no recent major changes such as referendums, curriculum overhauls or property tax shifts that would affect a parent’s decision.

River Ridge Middle fits a family looking for a small, rural school where most students are white and about half come from low-income households. Academically, the school is performing above the middle of the pack among Grant County districts, though unevenness across grades means a parent with a fifth grader may want to understand how that year’s instruction compares with the stronger showing in later grades. The lack of IEP and English learner data is a gap that could matter for families with children who need those supports. The community offers limited commercial and civic amenities, but the school building along Highway 18 is the clear focal point for families living in and around Patch Grove.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 552%

School 52% · District 52%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 671%

School 71% · District 71%

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 779%

School 79% · District 79%

▲ 25 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 877%

School 77% · District 77%

▲ 26 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 548%

School 48% · District 48%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 661%

School 61% · District 61%

▲ 8 pts above state median · even with county median

Grade 779%

School 79% · District 79%

▲ 27 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 862%

School 62% · District 62%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Science

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 58%

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 865%

School 65% · District 65%

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

This schoolRiver Ridge School District, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 5Lower-income38%Higher-income67%29 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income80%Higher-income50%30 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income64%Higher-income85%22 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income50%Higher-income71%21 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 5Lower-income31%Higher-income89%58 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income80%Higher-income67%13 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income73%Higher-income82%9 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income83%Higher-income71%12 pp gap