Summary:
The South Milwaukee School District in Wisconsin serves roughly 2,686 students across six schools: four elementary schools (PK–5), one middle school (6–8), and one high school (9–12). The district as a whole ranks 341 of 432 Wisconsin districts, at the 21st percentile with 1 star, but that single label hides wide differences among its schools.
E W Luther Elementary is the standout: 277 of 1,039 elementary schools, 73rd percentile, 4 stars, the district's lowest chronic absenteeism at 14.0% and lowest free/reduced lunch at 43.15%, with 2025–26 test scores above both district and state in every reported subject and grade. Blakewood Elementary follows at 53rd percentile with 3 stars, strong in ELA, Social Studies, and Science but weaker in math. South Milwaukee High improved from 0 stars to 2 stars (30th percentile), with ACT proficiency rising in ELA (19.23% to 40.09%), Math (20.94% to 32.72%), and Science (27.04% to 35.48%), though it still trails state averages in every subject.
Rawson Elementary, Lakeview Elementary, and South Milwaukee Middle are all 1-star schools near the 20th percentile. Rawson has the highest free/reduced lunch (61.46%); Lakeview has the highest per-student spending ($16,872) and lowest student-teacher ratio (11.7) yet weak upper-grade scores; the middle school is consistently below state, especially in math. Chronic absenteeism is the district-wide concern — 39.4% at the high school, more than double the state's 17.3%, versus 14.0% at E W Luther and 15.9% at Lakeview. Graduation is 87.6% against the state's 92.0%. The pattern: strong elementaries, a high school improving from a low base, and three schools needing targeted support.
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