New Auburn Elementary, New Auburn WI

Original Research by School Decision on New Auburn Elementary

New Auburn Elementary serves students from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in the small rural village of New Auburn, which straddles the line between Barron and Chippewa counties in west-central Wisconsin. The school is a regular public elementary school and the only elementary campus in the New Auburn School District. Its enrollment is modest, and a substantial share of its students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. The student body is predominantly white, with a small number of Hispanic students and a slightly larger group identifying as two or more races. Data on students with disabilities and English learners was not available, so a parent may wish to ask the school directly about those programs and supports.

On the state’s Forward assessments, performance varies considerably by grade level and subject. Fourth graders turned in notably strong results, with most meeting or exceeding the bar in math and in social studies, and a strong majority doing the same in science. Those outcomes stand out as a clear strength. Third and fifth graders, by contrast, had lower proficiency rates in both math and English language arts, with the lowest showing in third-grade reading and fifth-grade math. The variation from one grade cohort to the next is large, and while single-year results for a small school can bounce around, a parent considering this school would want to understand what drives those differences — whether it is a matter of instruction, cohort composition, or something else. Overall, the school’s combined proficiency index across tested subjects and grades sits slightly below the midpoint among elementary schools in Barron County.

The village of New Auburn is a low-density place originally built around the lumber industry, later shifting to agriculture. It has a car-dependent layout centered on U.S. Highway 53 and county roads. There is no walkable commercial core of the kind found in larger towns; daily life relies on driving. The village government supports additional residential, commercial, and industrial development, but the population has grown only slowly in recent years. Housing values in the area are broadly in line with statewide norms. The school building is located right off the highway, integrated into the village footprint rather than set apart on a distant campus. Civic anchors nearby include the New Auburn Wildlife Area and a starting point for the Ice Age National Scenic Trail, both of which draw seasonal visitors for outdoor recreation.

This is a small elementary school in a rural community where the economy leans on agriculture and seasonal tourism. The academic picture is mixed: there are real bright spots in fourth grade, but the dips in other grades are wide enough that it is worth asking about. The district did not report any recent major changes or initiatives, so current school-level programming beyond the standard curriculum is not documented here. For a family that values a small, rural setting and is able to dig into the variation in student performance, New Auburn Elementary may be a fit.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 342%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 15 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 491%

School 91% · District 91%

▲ 36 pts above state median · ▲ 41 pts above county median

Grade 539%

School 39% · District 39%

▼ 12 pts below state median

English language arts

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 25%

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 43%

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

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 33%

▼ 17 pts below state median

Science

Grade 471%

School 71% · District 71%

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

Social studies

Grade 486%

School 86% · District 86%

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 15 pts above county median

This schoolNew Auburn 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-income17%Higher-income33%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income40%Higher-income46%6 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income33%Higher-income33%0 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income33%Higher-income36%3 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income50%Higher-income33%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income90%Higher-income91%1 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income17%Higher-income50%33 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income25%Higher-income46%21 pp gap