Sparta Area School District

Sparta Area School District serves 2,749 students across 7 schools—3 elementary, 2 middle, and 2 high schools—in Sparta, Wisconsin, and its overall 1-star, 17th-percentile rating masks wide differences among campuses. The district is ranked 360 out of 432 in Wisconsin, but school-level performance ranges from 0 stars at Sparta Alternative Independent Learning School to 3 stars at Innovations STEM Academy.

For parents comparing options, Innovations STEM Academy is the clearest standout: it ranked 226/643 (65th percentile, 3 stars), had the district’s lowest chronic absenteeism at 2.2%, and posted 2025–2026 proficiency above state in ELA 7th (69.70%), Math 8th (57.69%), Science 8th (61.54%), and Social Studies 8th (69.23%). Sparta High has strong climate indicators—96.8% graduation, 0.2% dropout, 4.4% chronic absenteeism—but its 2025–2026 test proficiency was below state in Social Studies, ELA, Math, and Science. Sparta Alternative Independent Learning School is the most challenged: 0 stars, 6th percentile, 69.64% free/reduced lunch, 27.7 student-teacher ratio, $9,505 spending, 4.5% dropout, and very low ACT proficiency; yet its 97.4% graduation rate is the district’s highest. Sparta Montessori School has a stark split: Social Studies 4th (68%) and Science 4th (58.33%) are above state, while Math 4th (25%), Math 5th (15%), and Math 6th (16.67%) are far below.

Sparta Meadowview Middle showed an 8th grade Social Studies bright spot at 63.53%, near the state’s 64.63%, but 8th grade Science fell to 36.84%, well below state. Herrman Elementary had a notable 3rd grade math strength at 59.84%, above district and state, and improved to the 40th percentile. Southside Early Learning Center, a PK–K school, has no test scores but the highest spending at $17,512 and 17.2% chronic absenteeism. Across the district, absenteeism varies dramatically—from 2.2% at Innovations STEM Academy to 17.1% at Sparta Alternative Independent Learning School and 17.2% at Southside Early Learning Center—while poverty, spending, and outcomes do not move in a simple pattern. Small enrollments at Innovations STEM Academy (90), Sparta Alternative Independent Learning School (56), and Sparta Montessori School (161) mean percentages can swing year to year, so parents should look at multiple years and subjects.