Original Research by School Decision on Robert Ellsworth Correctional Center
Robert Ellsworth Correctional Center is an alternative school serving grade 12 only, located in Union Grove, Wisconsin, and operated by the Wisconsin Department of Corrections. Because this is a correctional facility school, it operates outside nearly all of the metrics typically used to evaluate a standard public or private school. There are no state assessment results, no graduation rate, no chronic absenteeism data, and no civil rights or discipline data reported. These gaps are not a sign of weak performance; they are a direct consequence of the school’s nature and population. A reader evaluating this school as a conventional educational option will find almost nothing to compare.
The enrollment data shows a total enrollment of zero, a figure that likely reflects how the student population is recorded, not that the school is empty. No data on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, special education status, or English learner status is available. The student demographic breakdown reports zero students in every racial and ethnic category. Again, these numbers are administrative artifacts, not an accurate picture of the young people who may be served here. The school’s grade span is a single year, 12th grade, which is typical for a facility focused on completing a diploma or equivalency for students approaching the end of their compulsory education.
Union Grove, the village where the school is located, is a small community in central Racine County with a mix of residential neighborhoods and over a hundred businesses. It has a traditional downtown along Main Street, sits at the intersection of two major highways, and has easy access to the I-94 corridor to Milwaukee and Chicago. The area has grown steadily in population over recent decades and has a median household income and home values that are above the national benchmark for housing. Major employers include manufacturing, care facilities, and Shepherds Ministries. The village is also home to the Racine County Fairgrounds and is near the Wisconsin Veterans Home. For a family or resident, the village itself offers a low-density, auto-oriented setting with a small-town downtown.
The school is part of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections district, which is fundamentally different from a typical school district. It has no comparison data relative to other districts in Racine County because the standard metrics of proficiency, graduation, and chronic absenteeism do not apply. A parent or resident looking for information about educational outcomes, program offerings, or student support at this facility will find none of that in the available data. The school’s purpose is correctional education, not community enrollment, and that is the single most important thing to understand. If you are trying to understand what academic pathway or environment this school provides, the answer is that it serves a specific, court-involved population at the end of their high school years in a highly structured setting, but the data does not allow any judgment about the quality or character of that education.
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