Summary:
The Menomonie Area School District includes four elementary schools serving grades PK–5 — River Heights Elementary, Oaklawn Elementary, Wakanda Elementary, and Knapp Elementary — enrolling 1,227 students in total, and while the Menomonie Area School District overall is rated 2 stars at the 47th percentile statewide, the individual schools differ widely.
Oaklawn and Knapp are the academic standouts. Oaklawn ranks 417 of 1,039 (60th percentile, 3 stars), has the lowest chronic absenteeism at 5.3% and the lowest free/reduced lunch rate at 31.94%, and posts strong averages in ELA (57.3%), math (60.1%), and grade 4 social studies (75.68%). Knapp is much smaller with 91 students, ranks 367 of 1,039 (65th percentile, 3 stars), has the lowest student-teacher ratio at 9.2, and the highest proficiency averages — including grade 3 ELA at 80.0%, grade 5 math at 71.43%, and grade 4 science at 65.0%.
Wakanda sits in the middle but has slipped from 61st percentile and 3 stars in 2023–24 to 35th percentile and 2 stars now, with a weak 2025–26 grade 4 cohort at 37.74% proficient in both ELA and math. River Heights faces the toughest profile: largest enrollment (403 students), highest free/reduced lunch (62.28%), highest per-student spending ($15,562), highest chronic absenteeism (14.6%), and lowest proficiency (47.3%). Notably, all four schools keep absenteeism below the district's 15.3% and the state's 17.3%, and the highest-spending school shows the weakest outcomes — so spending alone does not explain results here.
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