Howe Elementary, Wisconsin Rapids WI

Original Research by School Decision on Howe Elementary

Howe Elementary sits in Wisconsin Rapids, a small city along the Wisconsin River that has been working through economic restructuring since the 2020 closure of its largest paper mill. The city faces population decline, but the remaining major employers include a mix of healthcare systems, food processors, and the educational software company Renaissance Learning, which is headquartered here. A new aquatic center opened in 2020, and the community retains riverfront parks and a library, giving the town a modest set of civic anchors.

Howe serves kindergarten through fifth grade and is a regular public school within the Wisconsin Rapids School District. The school has a relatively high share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a measure reported just shy of the majority-plus mark, which means it serves a population with considerable economic need. The student body is predominantly white, with smaller shares of Hispanic, Asian, and multiracial students, and very small numbers of Black students.

On the Wisconsin Forward assessments, the school posted participation at full rates, meaning nearly every enrolled student took the tests. In math, proficiency rates across grades three, four, and five clustered in the range where roughly half of students met the state standard, with fourth grade landing a little higher than the other two grades. In English language arts, the pattern was similar: about half of students scored proficient or above in each grade, with third grade a bit stronger and fourth and fifth grades somewhat lower. Fourth graders also take science and social studies tests. In science, about half of students reached proficiency, while in social studies, the share was a little higher. The school’s overall proficiency index, which averages results across all tested subjects and grades, sits above the midpoint when compared to other districts in Wood County. That places Howe’s academic performance in the upper half of the county, though not at the very top.

Because this is an elementary school serving only up to fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report, and no high-school-level data on chronic absenteeism or course access. The district brief turned up no recent major changes or initiatives announced by the Wisconsin Rapids School District that would affect a family’s decision about Howe Elementary.

For a parent or resident looking at Howe, the picture is one of a mid-sized elementary school in a city experiencing economic headwinds, with a student body that is economically diverse in a working-class sense. The academic results are solidly in the middle of the county’s range, with the majority of students not yet reaching the state proficiency bar in most subjects, though a substantial minority does. Families who value high participation rates and a school that tests nearly all its students may appreciate the accountability orientation. Those considering a move into the area should weigh the community’s population loss and the uncertain future of its former industrial anchor, balanced against a stable set of local employers in healthcare, food processing, and educational technology.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 352%

School 52% · District 47% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 458%

School 58% · District 53% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 552%

School 52% · District 47% · ▲ 5 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 356%

School 56% · District 46% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Grade 453%

School 53% · District 46% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

Grade 552%

School 52% · District 48% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 56% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

Social studies

Grade 456%

School 56% · District 63% · ▼ 7 pts below district

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

This schoolWisconsin Rapids 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-income54%Higher-income64%10 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income58%Higher-income41%17 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income47%Higher-income59%12 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income44%Higher-income82%38 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income53%Higher-income71%18 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income47%Higher-income59%12 pp gap