The top reported proficiency rate is 33% in Social studies. The lowest is 0% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Racine Alternative Learning
Racine Alternative Learning is an alternative school serving kindergarten through twelfth grade within the Racine Unified School District. Because it is an alternative school, it is designed for students who benefit from a setting outside the traditional comprehensive school model, and that purpose shapes nearly everything about how this school looks on paper.
The student body is modest in size for a K-12 campus, with enrollment spread unevenly across grades. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting the school’s location in a city where a notable share of households earn below the poverty line. Racially, the student population is diverse, with roughly equal portions of Black, Hispanic, and White students and a smaller group identifying as two or more races. Data on special education and English learner populations was not available, a gap a parent may want to discuss with the school directly.
State assessment results are available for only a handful of tested grades, and most of those results were suppressed due to small numbers of test-takers—a common pattern in alternative schools where students’ individual circumstances can make large-scale testing less representative. For the grade 8 results that were reported, no students scored at the proficient level in math, English language arts, or science, and the tested counts were very small. The only subject where any students reached proficiency was social studies, with a modest share of those tested meeting the bar. Participation rates in state testing were low, which again is typical for a school serving students who may be in transition or have irregular attendance. The school’s overall proficiency index, calculated across all tested subjects and grades, places it in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Racine County. A family considering this school should understand that these numbers reflect a population that likely arrived with significant academic gaps and that the school’s mission is not necessarily measured by the same standardized yardsticks.
Because the school serves a full kindergarten-through-twelfth-grade range, it includes older students who are of high school age. However, a four-year graduation rate was not reported, so it is not possible to assess completion outcomes from the available data. That absence may be related to the alternative nature of the program or to small cohort sizes.
Racine itself is a mid-sized Lake Michigan city with a strong industrial and manufacturing base. Employers such as S. C. Johnson, Case IH, and InSinkErator anchor the local economy. Housing in the area is moderately priced relative to the region, and the city has a mix of older neighborhoods and revitalizing lakefront areas. The Racine Unified district has been affected by a prolonged secession effort: voters in the communities of Caledonia and Sturtevant approved referendums to explore forming their own districts, an ongoing process that families who live in those areas should keep in mind for future enrollment decisions.
For families considering Racine Alternative Learning, the fundamental question is whether the alternative model fits their student’s needs. This is not a school chosen for its academic rankings or standardized test outcomes. It is a school for students who need a different setting, often with smaller classes, more individualized support, or a second chance at completing their education. The available metrics point to a student population that faces considerable challenge, and a parent will want to learn more about the school’s specific programs—credit recovery, behavioral support, or career-readiness pathways—by speaking with staff directly. The school’s website is a reasonable starting point, but the data here does not provide a full picture of what the day-to-day experience offers.
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