Elementary Schools in Appleton Area School District

The Appleton Area School District serves roughly 5,981 elementary students across 20 schools, mostly PK-5 neighborhood schools, with some variation in grade spans: Classical School and Fox River Academy are K-8, Appleton Public Montessori is PK-6, Appleton Bilingual School is K-5, and The Omolade Academy is K-3. The district ranks 253rd of 432 districts in Wisconsin — about the 41st percentile with a 2-star rating — and most of these elementary schools post test averages below state levels, though a small group clearly outperforms.

Four schools stand out. Classical School ranks in the 93rd percentile with 5 stars and has the lowest chronic absenteeism (5.1%) and lowest free/reduced lunch rate (16.22%) in the group, at a relatively modest $12,191 per student. Fox River Academy is next at the 91st percentile with 5 stars and spends the least of any school ($10,807). Appleton Public Montessori sits at the 76th percentile with 4 stars, and Berry Elementary, at the 55th percentile with 3 stars, is the strongest traditional PK-5 school — though its rank has slipped from the 82nd percentile in 2023-24. Achievement here tracks poverty closely: schools with free/reduced lunch rates below 50% average near the 54th percentile, while those above 50% average near the 25th.

Several schools face steeper challenges. Badger Elementary has the highest free/reduced lunch rate among ranked schools (69.38%) and the lowest math average (31.1%), while Highlands Elementary spends the most per student ($21,507) yet ranks in the 17th percentile. The Omolade Academy, with only 23 students, has 29.2% chronic absenteeism and no rank, so its results should be read with caution. District-wide, math averages fell about 4.7 percentage points year over year, and Huntley Elementary dropped from the 73rd percentile in 2023-24 to the 34th.