Elm Dale Elementary, Greenfield WI

Original Research by School Decision on Elm Dale Elementary

Elm Dale Elementary serves students from four-year-old kindergarten through fifth grade in Greenfield, a suburban city within the Milwaukee metropolitan area. The school is part of the Greenfield School District, which operates four elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school across separate campuses.

The student body is racially and economically mixed. White students make up the largest share, followed by a substantial Hispanic population, a smaller Asian group, and modest numbers of Black, multiracial, and Native American or Pacific Islander students. Just under half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a share that suggests the school serves a broad range of household incomes. Data on students with individualized education plans and English learners was not available.

On Wisconsin’s Forward assessments, Elm Dale’s proficiency rates rise across tested grades, with the highest performance in math. In third grade, roughly two-thirds of students scored proficient or above in math, and that rate increased through fourth and fifth grades, where it reached above seven in ten. In English language arts, the picture is more mixed. Third grade saw just over half of students proficient, dipping slightly in fourth grade before recovering to above six in ten by fifth grade. Science, tested only in fourth grade, fell close to the midpoint of those two ranges. Social studies, also tested in fourth grade, produced the school’s strongest showing, with over three-quarters of students proficient or above. Overall proficiency across all tested subjects and grades places Elm Dale above the midpoint relative to districts within Milwaukee County.

Because Elm Dale serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and chronic absenteeism data was not available. A parent may want to ask the district about both.

Greenfield is primarily residential, with commercial corridors along major roads and an auto-oriented layout served by Interstate 41 and Interstate 43. The city’s population has been relatively stable, with a slight decline from its peak in recent years. The city describes itself as a destination for families. Civic life revolves around Konkel Park, which hosts a Sunday farmers market and community events, and a public library and community center are also active. The Powerline Trail, opened in recent years, provides a recreational walking and cycling route. Public transit is available through several Milwaukee County bus routes. The housing market in the school’s area shows prices modestly above the national median, with a mix of single-family homes and rentals; the market has been active with a moderate pace of sales.

There were no major district-level changes reported recently, such as referendum-approved facility work or curriculum shifts. The district’s elementary schools, including Elm Dale, provide the foundation for students who will later attend a single middle and high school. For families looking for a suburban Milwaukee setting with a reasonably stable community and a school whose academic performance is above the county midpoint, particularly in math and social studies, Elm Dale fits that profile. The English language arts results, while strongest by fifth grade, show more variation, and a parent may want to discuss literacy programming with the school. The student body is diverse, both ethnically and by income level, which shapes the peer environment.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 365%

School 65% · District 52% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▲ 36 pts above county median

Grade 467%

School 67% · District 55% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 43 pts above county median

Grade 571%

School 71% · District 55% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 48 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 353%

School 53% · District 49% · ▲ 4 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 48% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Grade 562%

School 62% · District 52% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▲ 34 pts above county median

Science

Grade 454%

School 54% · District 49% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Social studies

Grade 477%

School 77% · District 60% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 38 pts above county median

This schoolGreenfield 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-income42%Higher-income60%18 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income36%Higher-income58%22 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income54%Higher-income68%14 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income48%Higher-income76%27 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income56%Higher-income75%19 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income54%Higher-income84%30 pp gap