Manawa Middle, Manawa WI - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Manawa Middle

Manawa Middle School sits in the small, rural Wisconsin city of Manawa, serving grades six through eight as a single middle school within the Manawa School District. This is a straightforward regular public school offering the standard middle grades curriculum. The district operates an elementary school for younger students and a combined junior-senior high school for grades six through twelve, meaning this middle school is the only standalone building for those three grades. The enrollment is small for a middle school, and the student body is predominantly white, with a modest share of students who are Hispanic or identify as two or more races. A substantial portion of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the broader economic context of the community.

State testing data from the Forward assessment for the 2024-2025 school year provides a picture of academic performance. In math, the share of students scoring at proficient or above landed just below half of test-takers in sixth and seventh grades, with eighth graders performing slightly better. English language arts results followed a similar pattern, with the highest proficiency rates occurring in eighth grade. Science and social studies, tested only in eighth grade, showed a majority of students reaching the proficient level. Overall, when combining all tested subjects and grades, the school’s overall proficiency index lands in the bottom quarter among the eight districts that make up Waupaca County. This is a straightforward observation about relative standing within the county; a family may want to discuss the school’s approach to academic support with administrators to understand the context behind these results.

The community itself is compact and deeply rural in character. Manawa sits along the Little Wolf River and is known for its agricultural identity and an annual Midwestern Rodeo. Commercial and civic life is concentrated along a short downtown strip, while school buildings sit on separate campuses away from that center. Housing values in the area are below the state average, and the local economy is modest, with the school district and county facilities among the larger employers. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes such as referendums, curriculum shifts, or policy updates, suggesting a period of stability in the district’s operations.

For a parent considering this school, the key takeaway is that Manawa Middle is a small, rural middle school serving a community with moderate economic challenges. Its academic results, as measured by state assessments, fall below the midpoint of peers in Waupaca County, particularly in math and reading for sixth and seventh graders. The setting is quiet and traditional, and the school offers the level of course access typical of a small district. A family would benefit from visiting the school and asking about specific strategies for improving student performance in the early middle grades, as well as any elective or enrichment offerings that might supplement the core program.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 46%

▼ 8 pts below state median

Grade 747%

School 47% · District 47%

▼ 7 pts below state median

Grade 853%

School 53% · District 53%

▲ 2 pts above state median

English language arts

Grade 646%

School 46% · District 46%

▼ 7 pts below state median

Grade 740%

School 40% · District 40%

▼ 12 pts below state median

Grade 853%

School 53% · District 53%

▲ 1 pts above state median

Science

Grade 855%

School 55% · District 55%

▲ 4 pts above state median

Social studies

Grade 855%

School 55% · District 55%

▼ 9 pts below state median

This schoolManawa 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 6Lower-income33%Higher-income53%20 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income39%Higher-income42%4 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income43%Higher-income63%20 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income53%20 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income46%Higher-income47%1 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income36%Higher-income69%33 pp gap