The top reported proficiency rate is 31% in Math. The lowest is 11% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Rocketship Transformation Prep
Rocketship Transformation Prep is a charter school in Milwaukee serving preschool through fifth grade. It is part of the Rocketship Education Wisconsin Inc. network, a small district of two schools. The school sits on the city's North Side, in a neighborhood shaped by Milwaukee's broader context: a historically industrial and segregated city that has seen population decline but also pockets of investment and revitalization.
The student body is predominantly Black, with a modest Hispanic share and a small number of multiracial students and white students. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, giving the school a moderate-to-high level of economic need compared to a typical public school. Data on special education and English learner populations were not available, so a parent may want to ask the school directly about those supports.
Academically, the picture is mixed but with a notable pattern. The state's Forward assessment results for the most recent school year show proficiency rates that are low in an absolute sense. In third-grade math, roughly a quarter of students met the proficient or above benchmark. In fourth-grade math, the share was higher, approaching half. Fifth-grade math dropped back to roughly a quarter. In English language arts, performance was lower across all tested grades, with the highest share in third grade at around a quarter and the lowest in fifth grade, where fewer than one in five students scored proficient. Science and social studies results for fourth grade also show low proficiency, especially in science.
When compared to other districts in Milwaukee County, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile. This is a soft spot that a parent considering this school should weigh carefully. The district itself, however, publicly reports strong growth metrics on the NWEA MAP assessment, describing above-average growth in both math and reading. Because the school's own state-tested proficiency numbers are on the lower side, the district's claim about high growth may reflect a trajectory of improvement from a low starting point, which is a different story than high absolute performance.
The school serves only elementary grades, so there is no high school graduation rate to report. That is expected for a PK–5 campus.
The school's facilities are relatively new. The district completed its full grade-span build-out by 2021 and added a gym, a cafeteria, and a family laundry room, which are practical amenities that may matter to families with young children. The district has also seen enrollment growth recently, an indicator of increasing demand.
Rocketship is a charter network with a specific instructional model that emphasizes personalized learning, often with technology rotations and a longer school day. The school is located in a large, dense city with a rich set of cultural institutions, a major lakefront, and a significant healthcare and financial services economy, but also with deep racial and economic disparities. Housing in the school's zip code is well below the state median home value, and rents have been rising.
For a family considering this school, the key questions are about the fit between the low proficiency rates and the stated high-growth trajectory. If a child is already performing at grade level, the school may not have a high concentration of similarly situated peers. If a child needs significant academic catch-up, the growth data could be encouraging, but a parent would want to understand how the school addresses that gap in practice. The school offers a full elementary program in a newly built setting, which is a concrete plus. The absence of special population data is a gap worth filling with a direct conversation.
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