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Southside Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5

952^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,044 Wisconsin Elementary Schools

Better than 9% of Wisconsin elementary schools

Summary

Southside Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Madison, Wisconsin, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 357 students. The school is part of the Madison Metropolitan School District, which has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Southside Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom 10% of Wisconsin elementary schools over the past several years, with a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's academic performance is significantly below the district and state averages across all grade levels and subject areas. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, only 10.53% of 3rd-grade students were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 46.45% in the district and 52.14% statewide. Similarly, in mathematics, only 13.16% of 3rd-grade students were proficient or better, compared to 46.11% in the district and 55% statewide. Southside Elementary also has extremely high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 17.7% to 38.4% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the district and state averages.

When comparing Southside Elementary to other nearby schools in the Madison area, it becomes clear that the school is an outlier in terms of academic performance and other key metrics. For example, Randall Elementary, which is also part of the Madison Metropolitan School District, consistently ranks in the top 10% of Wisconsin elementary schools and outperforms Southside Elementary by a significant margin across all subject areas. Addressing the underlying issues at Southside Elementary, such as socioeconomic factors, resource allocation, and student support services, will be crucial in improving the school's performance.

336

Students ?

9.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$16,185

Per pupil spending ?

75.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

501 E Badger Rd
Madison, WI 53713

(608) 204-1056

District: Madison Metropolitan School District

Students who attend Southside Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Sennett Middle
High:	LaFollette High

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

49.1%

African American:

26.2%

White:

12.5%

See top rated Wisconsin elementary schools

Compare Southside Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 8th percentile in 2015 → 9th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Wisconsin average (19% vs 54% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (9th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (36% vs 17% Wisconsin)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school19%

District avg47%

Wisconsin avg54%

952^nd of 1,044

Wisconsin public elementary schools ?

Bottom 9%▲ up 1 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

29^th of 29Elementary Schools in the Madison Metropolitan School District

317^th of 426Madison Metropolitan School District among Wisconsin districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	7.9	952 of 1044	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.3	983 of 1061	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.9	996 of 1067	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	8.9	968 of 1067	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	8.2	961 of 1050	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	8.9	943 of 1037	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.0	934 of 1025	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	4.2	1007 of 1071	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	8.0	980 of 1075	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	6.7	994 of 1076	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	8.9	975 of 1061	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	6.6	997 of 1053	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	6.4	986 of 1045	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	17.1	954 of 1046	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	33.3	837 of 1045	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	11.2	953 of 1030	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	7.1	965 of 1021	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	25.9	573 of 689	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	27.1	589 of 712	17.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	25.1	518 of 632	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	26.6	513 of 633	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	49.4	58 of 144	59.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	37.1	80 of 137	41.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	22.4	125 of 138	9.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	26.2	104 of 133	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	29.6	108 of 141	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	36.6	92 of 161	42.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	20.1	153 of 165	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2021	34.7	50 of 106	52.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	21.2	86 of 107	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	23.6	228 of 255	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	22.5	249 of 269	7.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	25.4	220 of 249	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	55.3	90 of 248	63.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	29.9	216 of 275	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	39.6	169 of 287	41.1%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	8.0	917 of 1001	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	5.6	944 of 1011	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.5	961 of 1010	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.9	947 of 1017	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.8	904 of 1004	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	9.1	922 of 1002	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	9.6	910 of 997	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	10.7	320 of 322	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	8.5	328 of 331	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.8	279 of 290	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.9	253 of 296	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	20.9	251 of 274	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	15.5	252 of 266	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	25.8	216 of 271	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	4.8	859 of 870	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	6.2	847 of 866	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.7	866 of 871	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	7.8	839 of 859	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	10.1	821 of 847	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.6	849 of 874	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	10.6	825 of 854	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	10.7	900 of 1000	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	7.6	930 of 1012	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	8.5	918 of 1011	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	14.9	892 of 1017	12.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	9.3	914 of 1003	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	11.3	904 of 1002	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.6	899 of 997	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2023	9.8	92 of 96	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	21.4	60 of 77	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.5	64 of 85	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.7	64 of 76	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	21.4	58 of 67	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2024	14.3	738 of 790	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	25.6	610 of 770	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.4	630 of 748	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	35.2	491 of 746	34.2%	★★☆☆☆
2019	22.6	624 of 742	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	36.6	469 of 721	35.0%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	37.2	486 of 718	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	26.6	578 of 727	20.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	3.9	687 of 699	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.4	659 of 718	8.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	28.7	543 of 686	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

African American (2025)60th percentile+51 vs school

Asian (2021)53rd percentile+44 vs school

White (2025)32nd percentile+23 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)11th percentile~ school

Male (2025)10th percentile~ school

Female (2025)8th percentile~ school

Special Education (2024)7th percentile~ school

Multi-racial (2023)4th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)1st percentile-8 vs school

Hispanic (2025)1st percentile-8 vs school

By subject vs Wisconsin (2024-2025) ?

Social Studies34%-30 vs state

Science27%-24 vs state

Mathematics17%-37 vs state

English Language Arts14%-38 vs state

★

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Schools Near Southside Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				Forward Exam English Language Arts (2025)				Forward Exam Mathematics (2025)				Forward Exam Social Studies (2025)	Forward Exam Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2021)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Forward Exam English Language Arts 3rd Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 4th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 5th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 6th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 3rd Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 4th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 5th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 6th Grade	Forward Exam Social Studies 4th Grade	Forward Exam Science 4th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Southside Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	501 E Badger Rd	Madison	53713	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	Yes	(608) 204-1056	336	35	9.6	75.6%	42 (12.5%)	88 (26.2%)	165 (49.1%)	13 (3.9%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	27 (8.0%)	7.9	952^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	8.8%		5.3	983^rd of 1061 public elementary schools	7.4%	31	10.5	25.6	6.1		13.2	29.6	7.8		34.1	27.3	$16,185	$1,316	$14,870
Lincoln Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	909 Sequoia Trl	Madison	53713	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	Yes	(608) 204-4900	393	36	10.8	46.8%	150 (38.2%)	39 (9.9%)	152 (38.7%)	26 (6.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (6.1%)	38.4	742^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	28.9%		42.3	703^rd of 1061 public elementary schools	33.7%	39	35.9	47.7	50.4		36.5	45.3	39.6		53.1	50.0	$15,911	$747	$15,164
Franklin Elementary	Public	PK, KG-2	305 W Lakeside St	Madison	53715	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	No	(608) 204-2292	308	23	13.3	29.9%	190 (61.7%)	45 (14.6%)	43 (14.0%)	14 (4.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (4.9%)								(n/a)											$14,061	$401	$13,661
Forest Edge Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-6	4848 Brassica Rd	Fitchburg	53711	Dane County	Oregon School District	No	No	No	No	(608) 835-4600	446	40	11.1	16.8%	320 (71.7%)	18 (4.0%)	39 (8.7%)	18 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	51 (11.4%)	86.9	61^st of 1044 public elementary schools	94.2%		84.3	97^th of 1061 public elementary schools	90.9%	36	65.6	82.3	74.6	70.5	75.8	82.0	67.8	77.1	93.6	83.9	$13,432	$268	$13,164
One City Elementary School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	1707 W Broadway	Monona	53713	Dane County	One City Schools Inc	Yes	No	No	Yes	(608) 531-2128	328	26	12.5	68.0%	30 (9.1%)	212 (64.6%)	38 (11.6%)	6 (1.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (12.8%)	14.2	913^th of 1044 public elementary schools	12.5%		15.6	919^th of 1061 public elementary schools	13.4%	6	39.1	22.0	38.1		26.1	26.8	7.3		36.6	14.6	$28,249	$1,002	$27,247
Leopold Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	2602 Post Rd	Madison	53713	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	Yes	(608) 204-4240	626	62	10.1	56.2%	127 (20.3%)	128 (20.4%)	301 (48.1%)	16 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	52 (8.3%)	15	907^th of 1044 public elementary schools	13.1%		13.4	930^th of 1061 public elementary schools	12.3%	23	18.9	40.0	24.7		17.4	30.1	14.7		40.2	38.6	$15,747	$1,146	$14,602
Nuestro Mundo	Public, Charter	PK, KG-5	902 Nichols Rd	Monona	53716	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(608) 204-1076	311	28	11.1	40.8%	80 (25.7%)	10 (3.2%)	199 (64.0%)	1 (0.3%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (5.8%)	46.7	634^th of 1044 public elementary schools	39.3%		42.2	705^th of 1061 public elementary schools	33.6%	71	42.0	51.1	53.5		48.0	38.3	44.2		66.0	57.5	$15,110	$923	$14,187
Winnequah School	Public	PK, KG-5	800 Greenway Rd	Monona	53716	Dane County	Monona Grove School District	No	No	No	Yes	(608) 221-7677	602	51	11.8	20.3%	455 (75.6%)	21 (3.5%)	53 (8.8%)	8 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	65 (10.8%)	78.1	189^th of 1044 public elementary schools	81.9%		78.1	185^th of 1061 public elementary schools	82.6%	4	70.2	67.6	63.0		72.3	66.7	64.2		76.9	70.4
Randall Elementary School	Public	3-5	1802 Regent St	Madison	53726	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	No	(608) 204-3300	320	22	14.8	25.3%	196 (61.3%)	38 (11.9%)	38 (11.9%)	18 (5.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (9.4%)	79.9	158^th of 1044 public elementary schools	84.9%		85.8	76^th of 1061 public elementary schools	92.8%	82	72.6	70.1	71.1		68.4	68.4	63.9		80.4	68.0	$13,876	$564	$13,313
Thoreau Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3870 Nakoma Rd	Madison	53711	Dane County	Madison Metropolitan School District	No	No	No	No	(608) 204-6940	403	37	10.9	43.4%	206 (51.1%)	56 (13.9%)	103 (25.6%)	5 (1.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.2%)	64.3	395^th of 1044 public elementary schools	62.2%		61.5	460^th of 1061 public elementary schools	56.6%	65	60.7	57.1	60.9		60.7	53.6	54.7		69.6	62.5	$15,078	$470	$14,609

Frequently Asked Questions about Southside Elementary School

Is Southside Elementary School a good school?

Southside Elementary School ranks in the bottom 8.8% of Wisconsin elementary schools.

How many students attend Southside Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 336 students attended Southside Elementary School.

What schools do graduates of Southside Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Southside Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Sennett Middle
High : LaFollette High

What district is Southside Elementary School in?

Madison Metropolitan School District

What is the racial makeup of Southside Elementary School?

Students at Southside Elementary School are 49% Hispanic, 26% African American, 13% White, 8% Two or more races, 4% Asian.

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.