Summary:
Neillsville School District is a small rural district in Wisconsin serving 825 students across three public schools — Neillsville Elementary (PK–5, 399 students), Neillsville Middle (6–8, 180 students), and Neillsville High (9–12, 246 students). Overall the district ranks 347th of 432 Wisconsin districts — the 20th percentile, with a 1-star rating — but the individual schools rank higher than that district number suggests, so it is worth looking at each school separately.
Neillsville Elementary is the strongest-rated school at the 44th percentile (2 stars), and it has the best attendance in the district, with 9.3% chronic absenteeism versus 13.1% districtwide and 17.3% statewide. Its standout result is 3rd grade English language arts at 69.09% proficient, well above the state's 52.08%, and 5th grade math is also strong at 60.34%. Grade 4 is the weak spot, with math at 40.32% and science at 43.55%, both below state averages. Neillsville High has improved the most, moving from the 25th percentile to the 37th percentile (2 stars), and posts a 93.3% graduation rate and a 0.0% dropout rate. Its 10th grade math ACT score of 50.94% beats the state's 42.93%, though 10th grade ELA ACT is only 30.19%.
Neillsville Middle is the lowest-ranked school at the 28th percentile (1 star). Its clearest strength is 8th grade science at 54.72%, above the state's 51.86%, but 7th grade is the district's biggest concern: ELA is 31.34% and math 26.87%, far below state averages. The High school also has the highest chronic absenteeism at 19.7%, worse than the state. Poverty rates are similar across all three schools, with free/reduced lunch between 44.31% and 47.87%, so poverty differences do not explain the gaps. Per-student spending also does not track with results: Middle spends the most at $17,670, about 45% more than Elementary's $12,183, yet Elementary has the better overall rating and attendance.
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