Rolling Hills Elementary, Mukwonago WI

Original Research by School Decision on Rolling Hills Elementary

Rolling Hills Elementary serves students from four-year-old kindergarten through sixth grade in the Mukwonago Area School District, a regular public school situated in a predominantly residential Waukesha County village that has grown steadily since the interstate made it a Milwaukee commuter community. The school draws from a suburban setting that retains a small-town character, with historic downtown shops near the Mukwonago River and Phantom Lakes, while the broader village is car-dependent outside that core. Housing values in the area run above both state and national benchmarks, and the district has not seen major referendums, curriculum overhauls, or facility changes in recent years, according to publicly reported information.

Academically, Rolling Hills presents consistently strong results. On Wisconsin’s Forward assessments, large majorities of students scored proficient or advanced in every tested subject and grade. In mathematics, the share meeting the bar rose steadily from third through sixth grade, and in English language arts it remained solid across all tested grades. Social studies, tested in fourth grade, also showed a high proficiency rate. The one area where the picture softens is fourth-grade science, where a smaller majority reached proficiency than in other subjects. A parent curious about science instruction may want to ask the school how that subject is structured and whether any changes are plannedcommonly, elementary schools place less emphasis on science than on literacy and math, so it is worth a conversation. Overall, however, the school’s composite proficiency index ranks above the midpoint among the districts in Waukesha County, a group of two dozen districts that includes some of the state’s strongest performers. Participation rates on the assessments were very high, meaning the results reflect nearly all enrolled students.

The student body is relatively homogeneous: the large majority of children are white, with smaller shares identifying as Hispanic, two or more races, Black, Asian, American Indian, or Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander. A modest share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, and the school supports a small number of English learners and students with disabilities, though exact counts were not available for those groups. Enrollment is what most families would consider a typical size for a suburban elementary school, with a handful of pre-kindergarten children and roughly even numbers in kindergarten through sixth grade.

Because Rolling Hills serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report, nor are there data on chronic absenteeism or discipline. No course access or staffing ratios were provided. The school is not a charter or magnet, and Title I status was not indicated.

The feeling a parent gets is of a straightforward, well-performing neighborhood elementary in a growing but stable suburban area. The village itself has seen sustained residential expansion since the 1950s, with population continuing to climb at a modest annual pace, and there is room for further annexation toward Vernon. Home values reflect that demand, and the district appears to have made no abrupt changes that would unsettle families. For a family moving to the area or choosing among Mukwonago’s several elementary schools, Rolling Hills offers a clear record of strong basic-skills outcomes, a small-town suburban setting, and a student body with relatively little economic diversitya choice that suits families who prioritize academic consistency and a familiar community feel.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 378%

School 78% · District 80% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 481%

School 81% · District 81%

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

Grade 584%

School 84% · District 75% · ▲ 9 pts above district

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

Grade 691%

School 91% · District 80% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 377%

School 77% · District 80% · ▼ 3 pts below district

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

Grade 477%

School 77% · District 75% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

Grade 581%

School 81% · District 76% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 682%

School 82% · District 75% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 466%

School 66% · District 71% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 481%

School 81% · District 84% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

This schoolMukwonago 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-income60%Higher-income80%20 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income29%Higher-income82%53 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income67%Higher-income83%16 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income60%Higher-income86%26 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income70%Higher-income80%10 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income71%Higher-income82%11 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income67%Higher-income86%20 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income60%Higher-income95%35 pp gap