Putnam Heights Elementary, Eau Claire WI

Original Research by School Decision on Putnam Heights Elementary

Putnam Heights Elementary sits in a residential corridor of Eau Claire on the city's near-west side, serving kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the Eau Claire Area School District. The school draws students from the surrounding neighborhood, a mid-century part of town within walking distance of the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire campus and the Chippewa River.

The student body is predominantly white, with modest shares of Asian, Hispanic, and multiracial students and a very small Black enrollment. About two in five students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate that puts the school below the district's overall poverty level and signals a mix of middle-income and lower-income families. The school is not a charter or magnet, and its Title I status was not reported.

On the Wisconsin Forward assessments, Putnam Heights posted mixed results across grades and subjects. Third graders scored above the midpoint in both math and English language arts, with roughly six in ten meeting proficiency. By fifth grade, math proficiency remained near that same level, while English language arts had dropped to about half of students proficient. Fourth-grade science landed at half proficient, while fourth-grade social studies came in higher. The school's overall proficiency index, averaging across all tested grades and subjects, placed it near the bottom quartile relative to the other districts in Eau Claire County. That comparison set includes only a small number of districts, so the range is narrow, but the position signals that Putnam Heights sits on the lower end of the county's elementary performance rankings.

No data was available on chronic absenteeism, staffing ratios, or course access. Because the school serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report.

The neighborhood around the school is built out, with older single-family homes and some rental properties near the university corridor. Housing values in the school's zip code are modestly above the state median, and rents have been rising, consistent with trends across Eau Claire. The city itself is a regional hub for healthcare, manufacturing, and education, anchored by Mayo Clinic Health System, Menards headquarters, and the university. Downtown and the Water Street district offer restaurants and entertainment, and the Chippewa River State Trail starts in the city.

The district context matters here. The Eau Claire Area School District, which includes this school, has in recent years put referendums before voters for operational and facility funding, publicly reported. A parent considering Putnam Heights should look into what those district-level funding decisions mean for class sizes, programming, and building conditions at this particular school.

For a family weighing this school, the takeaway is straightforward. Putnam Heights serves a neighborhood with a socioeconomic mix and delivers third-grade results that are a clear strength, followed by more uneven performance in upper elementary. The social studies showing in fourth grade is strong, while the science and upper-grade English scores are softer. A parent may want to ask the school directly about how it supports students in the transition from primary to intermediate grades, especially in reading. The school's high participation rates on state tests, above the state threshold, suggest good test-taking discipline. The community is stable and walkable, with the university nearby, and the housing market is moderately priced for the region. This is a school that fits a family looking for a neighborhood elementary within a larger district that has faced recent financial decisions worth understanding.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 363%

School 63% · District 60% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

Grade 446%

School 46% · District 57% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 557%

School 57% · District 53% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 358%

School 58% · District 55% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

Grade 452%

School 52% · District 58% · ▼ 6 pts below district

even with state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 51% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Science

Grade 451%

School 51% · District 55% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median · even with county median

Social studies

Grade 463%

School 63% · District 68% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 2 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolEau Claire Area 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 3Lower-income44%Higher-income65%21 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income44%Higher-income58%14 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income30%Higher-income60%31 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income48%Higher-income70%22 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income27%Higher-income59%32 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income41%Higher-income67%26 pp gap