The top reported proficiency rate is 55% in Social studies. The lowest is 47% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Herrman Elementary
Herrman Elementary is a regular public school in Sparta, Wisconsin, serving grades one through four as part of the Sparta Area School District. With an enrollment typical of a mid-sized elementary school for its grade band, it is the kind of school where students spend the early elementary years before moving on to a separate upper elementary or middle school. The school’s grade configuration means it does not administer high school exit exams, and it has no graduation rate. That is expected for a school that ends at fourth grade.
On state assessments, Herrman Elementary’s results place it above the midpoint among districts in Monroe County. The school’s overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades sits in the top quartile when compared with the other three districts in the county. In third grade, a little more than half of students met proficiency in both math and English language arts. Fourth-grade results show a wider spread: in English language arts and social studies, roughly half of students were proficient, while in math just over two-fifths were proficient, and in science nearly half were proficient. These are not standout numbers, but they are solidly within the range of typical performance for the county. A parent looking closely at fourth-grade math may want to ask the school about support strategies, as that area is the softest spot in the data.
Demographically, the student body is predominantly white, with a substantial Hispanic share approaching a fifth of enrollment. Smaller numbers of students identify as two or more races, Black, Asian, or American Indian or Alaska Native. The data does not report the share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, nor the share receiving special education services or English learner support. That is a meaningful gap; families trying to understand the level of economic diversity or the scale of specialized instruction at the school will not find it here. The district or school office can fill that in.
Sparta itself is a small city and the county seat of Monroe County, situated in the driftless region’s rolling hills along the La Crosse River. It brands itself as the Bicycling Capital of America, with the Elroy-Sparta and La Crosse River state trails converging in town. The historic downtown centers on the county courthouse, and street life is modest, typical of a small Wisconsin county seat. Major employers include Fort McCoy, a U.S. Army installation, and a number of manufacturing and food-processing companies headquartered locally, along with a Mayo Clinic Health System hospital. The population has been slowly declining in recent years, and housing values, while below state and national benchmarks, have been rising. No major new housing developments were identified in publicly available sources.
The Sparta Area School District, which operates Herrman Elementary, recently secured additional local funding. In April 2024, voters approved a non-recurring referendum that allows the district to exceed state revenue limits for a set period, with the funds designated for maintaining educational programming, retaining staff, and managing operational costs. That vote has a direct impact on property taxes and signals that the community is willing to invest in keeping current school offerings in place.
Because Herrman serves only the earliest elementary grades, it does not offer high school-level programs such as Advanced Placement or career and technical education pathways. The school’s academic mission is building foundational skills in literacy, math, science, and social studies. Based on the available testing data, students are generally performing around the county average, with room for growth in fourth-grade math. A family considering Herrman will want to pair this school-level picture with an understanding of the full K-12 pathway in the Sparta Area district, as the elementary years are only the first step in a longer academic journey.
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