The top reported proficiency rate is 71% in Social studies. The lowest is 51% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on De Soto Middle
De Soto Middle sits at 615 Main Street in the village of De Soto, a very small rural community on the Mississippi River where most residents own their homes. The school serves grades six through eight and is the middle school for the De Soto Area School District. It shares a building with the high school, and the whole campus is within the village’s compact core, not on a separated campus. The village is quiet, with limited street life, bars and restaurants, and outdoor recreation access along the river. Scenic Mississippi Regional Transit connects De Soto to La Crosse and Prairie du Chien three times daily. The village population has been stable, with modest growth in the most recent census after a prior decade of decline. No major development boom is underway.
The school enrollment is small for a middle school. The student body is almost entirely white. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Data on students with Individualized Education Programs and English learners was not available.
State testing results are available for the most recent school year, with participation at full rate. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or above increased across grades six, seven, and eight, with the strongest performance in eighth grade. In English language arts, proficiency rates were similar across grades, with the highest share in sixth grade and the lowest in eighth grade. In science, tested at grade eight, just over half of students met the proficient bar. Social studies, also tested at grade eight, showed a higher share of students proficient than any other subject. The school’s overall proficiency index across all tested subjects and grades fell above the midpoint relative to other districts in Vernon County.
The middle school does not serve grades that produce a graduation rate, so that measure does not apply here. No chronic absenteeism data was available. No program offerings such as extracurriculars, electives, or course access were reported, so the range of experiences beyond the core academic day is not known from the available data.
In April 2024, voters approved a referendum that allows the district to exceed its state revenue limit by a set amount each year through the 2028-2029 school year. The funds are directed toward sustaining educational programming, maintaining class sizes, and attracting and retaining staff. This approval affects the resources the middle school has to work with for the next several years and is a relevant point for families trying to understand the district’s financial stability.
House values in the area are below the state benchmark and also below the national benchmark, reflecting the village’s rural character and limited housing pressure. A smaller share of families here rents compared to the national pattern. The local unemployment rate has been near the national figure.
For a family considering this school, the academic picture shows a middle school whose proficiency rates sit above the middle of the pack among Vernon County districts, with its strongest single result in eighth grade social studies and more mixed results in English language arts and science. The school is small, rural, and predominantly white, and its district recently secured voter-approved funding that is meant to maintain current programming through the end of the decade. The community is quiet, with no significant growth or new development. Families looking for a larger range of courses or activities, or for data on special education support and English learner services, would need to ask the school directly, as those details were not available in the public record.
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