Summary:
McFarland School District in Wisconsin serves roughly 5,783 students across 8 schools — 3 elementary, 1 middle, and 4 high, spanning grades PK–12 — and its enrollment is unusually concentrated: four virtual or nontraditional schools share one address and together account for about 62% of all students, including about 75% of high schoolers. The district as a whole ranks 329th of 432 (24th percentile, 1 star), but that single number hides a sharp split between two very different groups of schools.
The brick-and-mortar schools are the district's strong performers. McFarland High ranks 48th of 533 high schools (91st percentile, 5 stars), with a 96.6% graduation rate, a 0.1% dropout rate, and 10th-grade proficiency of 72.83 in Social Studies, 54.97 in ELA, 63.74 in Mathematics, and 63.74 in Science — all above Wisconsin's averages. Indian Mound Middle (138th of 643, 79th percentile, 4 stars) and Waubesa Intermediate (204th of 1,039, 80th percentile, 4 stars) also score well above district and state norms in most subjects. McFarland Primary School, which serves PK–2, has no test scores but the district's lowest free/reduced lunch rate (12.69%) and highest per-student spending ($22,595).
The virtual schools tell a different story. Wisconsin Virtual Academy High (WIVA) (482nd of 533, 10th percentile, 0 stars) has a 73.8% graduation rate and 7.8% dropout rate, while Insight School of Wisconsin High (492nd of 533, 8th percentile, 0 stars) graduates only 49.4% with a 21.9% dropout rate. Wisconsin Virtual Academy K-8 (WIVA) and Destinations Career Academy of Wisconsin High also rank in the bottom fifth of the state; math proficiency is especially low at WIVA High (7.69%) and Destinations (7.09%). These four schools serve far higher shares of low-income students (50.35% to 68.13% free/reduced lunch) and generally spend less per student ($3,671 to $14,456). Because they enroll most of the district's students, district-wide averages largely reflect them — so parents should weigh individual school results, not the district score alone.
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