Prairie Elementary, Waukesha WI - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Prairie Elementary

Prairie Elementary is a regular public school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Waukesha, a mid-sized city about fifteen miles west of Milwaukee that serves as the manufacturing hub of Waukesha County. The school sits within the Waukesha School District, which has been undergoing notable shifts in its elementary and middle school landscape. Publicly reported district changes include the closure of Whittier Elementary in 2022, the planned closure of Bethesda and Hawthorne elementaries in 2026, and the repurposing of two middle schools by the end of the 2025–2026 academic year, with Horning Middle becoming a STEM school and Saratoga STEM Middle being sold. These changes mean attendance boundaries and program pathways for elementary families are in flux, something to keep in mind when considering Prairie Elementary in the context of the district's evolution.

Academically, Prairie Elementary shows a mixed profile. On the Wisconsin Forward assessments, majorities of students in tested grades performed at levels considered proficient or above in math and English language arts across grades three through five. In science, which is tested in grade four, about two-thirds of students met the proficiency benchmark, and in grade four social studies, roughly four-fifths did. These are solid outcomes at the building level. However, when placed against other districts in Waukesha County, the school's overall proficiency index sits below the midpoint of the county's districts. This suggests that while Prairie's own results are respectable, the competitive academic context of the county is strong and includes many higher-performing peers.

The school enrolls a moderate-sized student body for an elementary serving grades PK through five. The student population is predominantly white, with Hispanic students making up a significant share, followed by smaller shares of students who identify as two or more races, Asian, and Black. About a quarter of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a moderate level of economic diversity. Data on students with Individualized Education Programs (IEP) and English learners was not available in the source materials, so a parent may want to ask the school about special education services and language supports directly.

The surrounding community offers a mix of residential neighborhoods, a historic downtown with a riverwalk and regular festivals, and a strong employment base anchored by healthcare and manufacturing employers such as GE Healthcare and Waukesha Memorial Hospital. The housing market in the area is relatively expensive, with home values having risen in recent years, and the local economy has shown steady conditions. Waukesha's population has grown modestly since the 2020 census, and the city recently completed a major water infrastructure project switching from groundwater to Lake Michigan water, reflecting ongoing civic investment.

Prairie Elementary is a neighborhood school in a mid-sized city whose district is actively consolidating elementary buildings and rethinking middle school programming. Its academic results are above the majority-proficient mark but trail the county median, which is set by some of Wisconsin's highest-performing suburban districts. For a family looking at a stable elementary option within a larger district that is in a period of change, Prairie's solid core proficiency scores and normal-sized student body make it a reasonable fit for students who benefit from a standard elementary setting, though the planned school closures in the district mean that feeder patterns to middle school may shift in the coming years.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 71% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▲ 11 pts above state median · ▼ 11 pts below county median

Grade 480%

School 80% · District 67% · ▲ 13 pts above district

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

Grade 577%

School 77% · District 61% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 366%

School 66% · District 61% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 471%

School 71% · District 62% · ▲ 8 pts above district

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

Grade 575%

School 75% · District 59% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 24 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Science

Grade 464%

School 64% · District 56% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 482%

School 82% · District 72% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · even with county median

This schoolWaukesha 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-income39%Higher-income86%48 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income40%Higher-income79%39 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income83%37 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income54%Higher-income78%24 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income70%Higher-income82%12 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income46%Higher-income85%40 pp gap