Best Public Schools in Wabeno, WI

Wabeno, Wisconsin is a small community served by two schools — Wabeno Elementary for grades PK–5 and Wabeno High for grades 6–12 — both part of the Wabeno Area School District. Enrollment is nearly even, with 196 students in the elementary school and 193 in the combined middle/high school, for a total of 389. There is no separate middle school and no alternative school. The district as a whole is rated 399th of 432 districts in Wisconsin — 8th percentile, 0 stars.

Comparing the two, Wabeno Elementary is the relatively stronger school. It holds 2 stars in each recent year, with rank percentiles in the 30s–40s, while Wabeno High holds 1 star with percentiles in the 11–28 range. The elementary school has posted above-state results, including 5th grade math at 70.83% versus 52.58% statewide and 5th grade ELA at 58.33% versus 51.26% in 2024–2025. Its results are uneven, though — 3rd grade math fell to 32% in 2025–2026 against a state rate of 54.75%. At the high school, 6th grade was a bright spot in 2025–2026, with ELA at 59.09% versus 54.95% and math at 54.55% versus 53.6%, but 7th and 8th grade fell well below state, and 10th grade social studies was 16.67% versus 48.25%.

Families should note that Wabeno High faces the more serious challenges: graduation is 86.2% versus 92.0% statewide, the dropout rate is 3.3% versus 1.1%, and chronic absenteeism is 20.3% versus 17.3%. The elementary school's absenteeism of 17.4% is close to the state rate. Poverty indicators are high in both, with free/reduced lunch at 56.12% in the elementary school and 61.66% in the high school. The high school also has a slightly larger student-teacher ratio (11.5 versus 10.6) and lower per-student spending ($11,425 versus $12,023). Overall, neither school is consistently above state, but the elementary school is the stronger of the two.