Barron Area School District

The Barron Area School District in western Wisconsin serves about 1,043 students across five schools: three elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, with no alternative school listed. The district as a whole ranks 392 of 432 Wisconsin districts — the 9th percentile with 0 stars — but the school-level data shows wide differences between buildings, so families should weigh individual schools rather than the district rating alone.

Woodland Elementary is the largest elementary with 324 students in PK–4 and the clearest improvement story: its rank rose from the 21st percentile in 2024–2025 to the 47th percentile in 2025–2026, and its 3rd-grade ELA (63.79%) and math (70.69%) proficiency beat both district and state averages. Barron Area Montessori School, with 59 students in PK–6, has the district's lowest chronic absenteeism at 2.3% and 3rd-grade ELA of 66.67%, though its 3rd-grade math (50%) is below district and state levels. Barron High serves 310 students in grades 9–12 and graduates 98.5% with a 0.3% dropout rate, both better than state averages, even though its ACT and Forward Exam proficiency sits well below state levels.

Ridgeland-Dallas Elementary is the biggest concern: 68 students, a fall from the 40th percentile (2 stars) to the 8th percentile (0 stars), and 2025–2026 proficiency low in every reported subject, including 0% in 4th-grade math. Riverview Middle (282 students, grades 5–8) is stable but low at 1 star, with 6th- and 8th-grade math near state averages while 7th-grade ELA and math lag far behind. Notably, the highest per-student spending ($19,795 at Barron High) does not come with the highest proficiency, and every school in the district has lower chronic absenteeism than Wisconsin's 17.3%.