Middle Schools in Howards Grove School District

Middle schools in Howards Grove School District include exactly one school, Howards Grove Middle, serving grades 5–8, enrolling 256 students in Howards Grove, Wisconsin. The district ranks 78 of 432 statewide, in the 82nd percentile with 4 stars. Because this is the only middle school in the district, school-level and district-level test scores are identical, so district comparisons mirror this school.

Howards Grove Middle has a strong upward trajectory. Its state middle-school rank improved from 239th of 641 in 2023–2024, to 132nd of 628 in 2024–2025, to 55th of 643 in 2025–2026. Its percentile rose from 63 to 79 to 91; stars from 3 to 5. In 2025–2026, it outperformed the state in every reported Forward Exam subject and grade. The school’s unweighted average was 78.42% proficient versus the state’s 54.95%, a difference of +23.47 points. Math was especially strong: grade 5 was 92.42% versus 51.81% statewide, and grade 6 was 83.87% versus 53.60%. Grade 8 social studies reached 92.16% versus 64.63%; science was 76.47% versus 51.86%. ELA improved in grades 5, 7, and 8, while grade 6 dipped from 77.27% to 70.97% but remained above the state’s 54.95%. Math declined by grade: 92.42% in 5, 83.87% in 6, 73.53% in 7, and 66.67% in 8.

Other indicators are positive. The school reported a 0.0 dropout rate, compared with 0.2 for the district and 1.1 for the state, and chronic absenteeism was 7.0%, less than half the state rate of 17.3%. Free/reduced lunch was 14.84%, the student-teacher ratio was 14.1, and per-student spending was $11,543; state averages for these contextual metrics were not provided. With only one middle school, district results are the school’s results. Also, year-over-year grade comparisons may not track the same students, and grade 5 inclusion may differ from traditional 6–8 middle schools. Overall, this is a high-performing school with strong state-relative results, especially in math and social studies, very low chronic absenteeism, zero reported dropout, and a clear upward trend in state rankings.