Summary
Central High is a grades 9–12 school serving 969 students on Losey Boulevard in La Crosse, Wisconsin, and is part of the La Crosse School District. For 2025–2026 it ranks 257th of 533 Wisconsin high schools (52nd percentile, 3 stars), placing it in the middle statewide but above its district's overall 32nd-percentile, 2-star rank. Central is the second-largest high school in its local comparison group, behind Holmen High (1,242 students) and ahead of Onalaska High (925), Logan High (729), West Salem High (603), Bangor Middle/High (352), and La Crosse Polytechnic School (86).
Academically, 2025–2026 tenth-grade results are uneven. Social studies is the clearest strength at 50.98% proficient, above the district (48.45%) and state (48.25%). Math is the clearest weakness: 38.83%, above the district (36.56%) but below the state (42.93%). English Language Arts sits at 46.83%, below both the district and state, and science at 42.93% is just under the state. Nearby suburban schools generally score higher — West Salem had 63.38% ELA and 59.86% math, Onalaska 64.19% and 59.53%, Holmen 57.88% and 53.08%. Central's math did top Logan (37.96%) and Bangor (36.17%). Notably, in 2023–2024 Central scored above state levels in every subject, showing the school can reach that bar.
Graduation and dropout outcomes are strong: 96.7% graduated and 0.6% dropped out in 2024–2025, both better than state figures. Chronic absenteeism, however, is 20.8% — above the state (17.3%) and roughly double West Salem (8.9%), Holmen (10.4%), and Onalaska (11.6%) — though it has improved substantially from 35.5%. Subgroup results are split: English Language Learner students rank in the 82nd percentile and special education students in the 77th, while low-SES students are at the 35th percentile, multiracial students at the 24th, and Asian students at the 15th, signaling specific equity gaps. Central spends $17,892 per student, more than several higher-performing suburban neighbors.
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