The top reported proficiency rate is 55% in Social studies. The lowest is 31% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Valders Elementary
Valders Elementary is a regular public school serving children from pre-kindergarten through fourth grade in the village of Valders, part of the Valders Area School District. The school enrolls a moderate-sized student body for an elementary, with most students coming from Valders itself and the surrounding rural communities the district covers. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a meaningful proportion of families with lower household incomes. Racially and ethnically, the student population is predominantly white, with a smaller share identifying as Hispanic and very small numbers from other backgrounds.
Because Valders Elementary only serves grades PK through 4, there is no graduation rate to report. State testing is administered in grades 3 and 4. Across the tested subjects of math, English language arts, science, and social studies, proficiency rates vary by grade and subject, falling in a broad middle range. In grade 3, less than a third of students scored proficient or above in math. In grade 4, that figure was somewhat higher. English language arts results were similar: about a third of third-graders were proficient, and closer to half of fourth-graders reached that level. In science, just over a third of fourth-graders met the proficiency bar, while social studies – also tested only in fourth grade – showed a higher share of students performing at the proficient level, about half. The school posted a 100 percent participation rate on every assessment, meaning nearly every enrolled student in the tested grades took the tests. Taken together, Valders Elementary’s overall proficiency across subjects and grades places the school in the bottom quartile relative to districts in Manitowoc County. That comparison is at the district level, not school to school, but it gives a sense of where the school sits among the broader area. A parent exploring the school may want to discuss with staff how the school supports students who are not yet meeting proficiency targets and what the curriculum looks like in the early primary years beyond state test results.
The village of Valders is a small, compact community with a Norwegian immigrant heritage and an economy anchored by a concrete factory, a limestone quarry, and the surrounding dairy and grain farming region. The population has been stable to very slightly declining in recent years, and no major new housing developments or construction projects were publicly reported. Housing values in the area are broadly in line with the state median, and the village has a mix of single-family homes and agricultural land. The school district draws from multiple small communities including Cato, St. Nazianz, and Whitelaw, so families living outside the village itself are part of the same elementary attendance zone.
No recent district-level changes or strategic initiatives surfaced in the research, so the district appears to be operating without major disruption. The school environment and staffing data, including class sizes and teacher experience, were not available in the data we reviewed. Civil rights data, such as discipline rates or access to advanced coursework, also was not present. These are gaps a parent may want to explore by contacting the school directly.
Overall, Valders Elementary provides a neighborhood-focused early education experience in a small-town setting. The student body is fairly homogeneous, and the community is stable with limited growth. For a family looking for a close-knit elementary environment in a rural area with a modest cost of housing relative to Wisconsin as a whole, Valders Elementary is a straightforward option. The academic results suggest room for improvement, particularly in math and early literacy, and prospective families should consider asking about intervention programs and how the school monitors student progress in the years before state testing begins.
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