The top reported proficiency rate is 61% in Social studies. The lowest is 55% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Washington Elementary
Washington Elementary is a regular public school in Janesville, Wisconsin, serving children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. As an elementary school within the Janesville School District, it draws its student body from a specific attendance area in the city and feeds into district middle and high schools. The school is located in a residential area of Janesville, a mid-sized city with a history of manufacturing that has seen its economic base shift in recent decades after the departure of major employers like General Motors and Parker Pen. The city maintains a downtown core centered on a Town Square and a substantial park system that includes trails connected to the Ice Age Trail, which gives local families recreational options.
The student body at Washington Elementary is fairly diverse in its composition. A majority of students are white, and the next largest groups are Hispanic and students who identify as two or more races. Black and Asian students each make up a smaller share of enrollment. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that a notable portion of families in the attendance area have lower household incomes. The school does not report special education or English learner counts in the available data, so a parent who needs information on those programs should ask the school directly.
On Wisconsin state assessments administered to students in grades three through five, Washington Elementary shows a mixed but generally competitive performance picture relative to other schools in the district and the county. The school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits above the midpoint when compared with other schools in Rock County. In math, proficiency rates ranged across grades three, four, and five in a pattern where fourth grade was a relative soft spot. In English language arts, all three tested grades posted proficiency rates that were solidly within a typical mid-range band. Fourth graders also took science and social studies assessments, and the results in both subjects were similar in range to what the school sees in math and ELA. The participation rates on all tests were very high, meaning the results reflect nearly the entire student body at those grade levels. A parent looking at these scores should see a school whose students, as a group, meet the state’s proficiency expectations at a rate that is competitive with its peers in the county, though performance is not uniformly high across every grade and subject. The school’s overall proficiency index places it above the midpoint among schools in Rock County, which suggests it is generally performing on the stronger side of the local landscape.
Because Washington Elementary serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate reported, and the school does not have metrics on chronic absenteeism in the available data. The school is not a charter or magnet school. The Janesville School District has not lately reported major changes or strategic initiatives that would be visible in public records, though parents should monitor the district website and school board meetings for budget decisions and program updates that could affect their child’s experience. Housing values in the zip code serving the school are somewhat below the state median for Wisconsin and below the national median, and home prices have seen modest year-over-year growth. This context, combined with the substantial share of students qualifying for meal assistance, suggests Washington Elementary serves a neighborhood that is not among the area’s most affluent but is also not an outlier in cost of living.
For a family considering Washington Elementary, the school offers a fairly standard elementary experience within a district that operates multiple schools at each level. The academic data gives a picture of a school that is holding its own against others in the county, with no signs of systemic struggle and with clear room for growth in certain grades. A parent concerned about the lower fourth-grade math proficiency would want to ask how the school supports students who are not yet at the proficient level and how instruction differs across grade levels. The school’s location in a city with a mix of older and newer housing stock means that families may find a range of home types and price points within the attendance zone, and the broader community offers parks and a downtown area that are features of the city’s identity.
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