Whitewater Middle, Whitewater WI

Original Research by School Decision on Whitewater Middle

Whitewater Middle is the single public middle school in the Whitewater Unified School District, serving sixth through eighth grade. It is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and it sits in the city of Whitewater, a college town dominated by the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater. The university shapes the town's character heavily: the median age skews young, the downtown has restaurants, breweries, and a small movie theater, and the surrounding landscape includes lakes and forest within the Kettle Moraine State Forest. The city has seen a modest population decline recently, and it has also experienced a notable influx of immigrants since early 2022, a change the city government has publicly engaged with.

The school's enrollment is moderate for a middle school, and a substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly white, with a large Hispanic minority and small numbers of Black, Asian, and multiracial students. Data on the share of students receiving special education services or English-learner support was not available in the provided records.

On the 2024-25 Wisconsin Forward assessments, proficiency rates across math, English language arts, science, and social studies show a clear pattern. In math, roughly two-fifths of sixth graders and eighth graders scored proficient or above, while half of seventh graders did. In English language arts, about two-fifths of sixth graders and half of seventh and eighth graders scored proficient or above. In the only tested science grade, eighth grade, roughly 45 percent were proficient. Social studies, also tested in eighth grade, was a relative strength, with about 70 percent of students scoring proficient or above. These results place the school's overall proficiency, averaged across all tested subjects and grades, in the bottom quarter when compared to other districts in Walworth County. The cohort is a set of 13 school districts, and Whitewater Middle's proficiency index is below the county median. A parent considering the school may want to look into this further with the school, particularly regarding how the school supports students who are not yet meeting proficiency benchmarks and whether targeted interventions are in place.

The school itself is a single building on South Elizabeth Street in Whitewater. No data was provided on course offerings, such as whether the school offers advanced math tracks or elective pathways, nor on staffing ratios, chronic absenteeism, or discipline rates. The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes of lasting impact.

For a family thinking about this school, the housing picture is relevant. Home values in the area are above the national median and have been rising at a modest year-over-year rate. The national 30-year fixed mortgage rate was in the mid-six percent range. This puts homeownership in Whitewater at a level that is not cheap but is broadly in line with the national market.

Whitewater Middle presents a middle school experience in a small city with a strong university presence, a racially diverse student body in a district where a significant share of families qualify for income-based meal support, and academic results that are below the county median in most subjects. A family moving to the area for the university or seeking a school with a diverse peer environment would find this school in a town with downtown amenities and nearby outdoor recreation. A family with high academic expectations may want to explore what the school does for students who are already at or above grade level and how the school frames its academic support for students who need help reaching proficiency.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 642%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 50%

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 45%

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 642%

School 42% · District 42%

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 750%

School 50% · District 50%

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

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 48%

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Science

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 45%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 870%

School 70% · District 70%

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

This schoolWhitewater Unified 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 6Lower-income36%Higher-income48%12 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income38%Higher-income66%27 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income35%Higher-income59%24 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income38%Higher-income44%6 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income35%Higher-income69%34 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income28%Higher-income59%31 pp gap