Williams Bay Middle, Williams Bay WI

Original Research by School Decision on Williams Bay Middle

Williams Bay Middle serves sixth through eighth graders in the village of Williams Bay, a small lakefront community on Geneva Lake in Walworth County. The village has a mix of year-round residents and a strong seasonal tourism economy, with a population that roughly doubles in summer. Wisconsin Highway 67 runs through the central business district, and the village is compact, with parks, a lakefront path, and the historic Yerkes Observatory woven into the community. The school is integrated into the village rather than set apart on a campus. No public transportation serves the village.

The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet. The student body is predominantly white, with a small Hispanic population and a very small multiracial group. A substantial share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. Student counts by grade are similar across the three middle school years.

State testing data from the Wisconsin Forward assessment shows a mixed academic picture. In English language arts, sixth and eighth graders performed at markedly higher levels than seventh graders, with eighth grade results the strongest across the school. In math, the pattern was flatter, with sixth and eighth graders performing similarly and seventh graders at a lower level. Science achievement for eighth graders was at a moderate level. Social studies, tested only in eighth grade, showed a comparatively strong result. The school’s overall proficiency index, a composite of all tested subjects and grades, sits below the midpoint among districts in Walworth County.

Several data points that are common for a full K-12 profile are absent for this middle school. No information on chronic absenteeism was available, so that comparison with other county districts could not be made. The school’s civil rights data, including discipline and access to courses, was not reported. Staffing numbers, class sizes, and program offerings such as arts, music, or extracurriculars were also absent. A parent may want to ask the school directly about these areas.

The Williams Bay School District recently passed an operational referendum. According to publicly reported district materials, the funding is intended to maintain low class sizes, protect programs, and support a staff compensation model to attract and retain teachers. This referendum affects property taxes and is a recent financial context for families in the district.

Housing values in the Williams Bay ZIP code are above the state benchmark, reflecting the desirability of lakefront property. The village is growing slowly, and a recent EF-1 tornado caused damage in some areas with no injuries. For a family considering this school, the village offers a small-town, lake-oriented setting with limited commercial services and no public transit. The school itself is a mid-sized middle school where academic performance varies by grade and subject, and where voters have recently approved additional funding for the district’s operations.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 650%

School 50% · District 50%

▼ 4 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 732%

School 32% · District 32%

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 842%

School 42% · District 42%

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

English language arts

Grade 660%

School 60% · District 60%

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 43%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 872%

School 72% · District 72%

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Science

Grade 842%

School 42% · District 42%

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

Social studies

Grade 878%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

This schoolWilliams Bay 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-income68%31 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income80%Higher-income24%56 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income75%Higher-income71%4 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income27%Higher-income57%30 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income53%Higher-income21%33 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income42%Higher-income42%0 pp gap