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Fifty-Third Street Elementary

Q: Is Fifty-Third Street Elementary a good school?

Fifty-Third Street Elementary ranks in the bottom 1.8% of Wisconsin elementary schools.

Q: How many students attend Fifty-Third Street Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 308 students attended Fifty-Third Street Elementary.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Fifty-Third Street Elementary?

Students at Fifty-Third Street Elementary are 85% African American, 9% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 1% White.

Q: What schools do graduates of Fifty-Third Street Elementary attend?

Students who attend Fifty-Third Street Elementary usually go on to attend: Middle : King International Baccalaureate Middle Middle : Lincoln Middle Middle : Morse Mid Middle : Roosevelt Middle High : Audubon Technology and Communication High High : Bradley Technology High High : King International High : Milwaukee High School of the Arts High : Milwaukee School of Languages High : Reagan College Preparatory High

Public Grades PK, KG-8

1025^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,044 Wisconsin Elementary Schools

Better than 2% of Wisconsin elementary schools

Summary

Fifty-Third Street Elementary is a public elementary school in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, serving 330 students in grades PK-8. The school is part of the Milwaukee School District, which is ranked 415 out of 426 districts in the state and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Fifty-Third Street Elementary has consistently ranked among the lowest-performing elementary schools in Wisconsin over the past decade, with a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger for the past 10 school years. The school's proficiency rates on the Forward Exam, Wisconsin's statewide assessment, are extremely low, with only 5.71% of 3rd graders proficient or better in English Language Arts and 2.86% proficient or better in math, compared to district and state averages. The school also struggles with high rates of chronic absenteeism and dropout.

While the school's funding levels are comparable to nearby traditional public schools, such as Carson Academy, Townsend Street Elementary, and Sherman Elementary, which also perform poorly, some local charter schools, like Milwaukee College Preparatory School -- 36th Street Campus and Milwaukee College Preparatory School -- 38th Street, have significantly higher academic performance, suggesting that school choice and alternative educational models may be beneficial for students in this community.

308

Students ?

16.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,146

Per pupil spending ?

89.3%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3618 N 53rd St
Milwaukee, WI 53216-2952

(414) 874-5300

District: Milwaukee School District

Students who attend Fifty-Third Street Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	King International Baccalaureate Middle
	Lincoln Middle
	Morse Mid
	Roosevelt Middle
High:	Audubon Technology and Communication High
	Bradley Technology High
	King International
	Milwaukee High School of the Arts
	More...
	Milwaukee School of Languages
	Reagan College Preparatory High

Racial breakdown:

African American:

84.7%

Hispanic:

9.1%

Two or more races:

3.9%

See top rated Wisconsin elementary schools

Compare Fifty-Third Street Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 2nd percentile in 2015 → 2nd in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Wisconsin average (8% vs 54% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (2nd percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (58% vs 17% Wisconsin)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school8%

District avg23%

Wisconsin avg54%

Elementary school

1,025^th of 1,044

Wisconsin public elementary schools ?

Bottom 2%▬ steady since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

601^st of 628

Wisconsin public middle schools ?

Bottom 4%▲ up 3 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

89^th of 106Elementary Schools in the Milwaukee School District

415^th of 426Milwaukee 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	2.1	1025 of 1044	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.8	1044 of 1061	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.0	1026 of 1067	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	2.6	1049 of 1067	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	4.0	1017 of 1050	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.8	1024 of 1037	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	2.6	994 of 1025	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	2.5	1042 of 1071	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	3.0	1043 of 1075	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	2.2	1052 of 1076	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	1.5	1049 of 1061	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	1.9	1037 of 1053	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	2.7	1009 of 1045	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	3.2	1016 of 1046	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	4.3	1011 of 1045	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	4.9	990 of 1030	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	0.2	1019 of 1021	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	1.0	683 of 689	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	3.9	679 of 712	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2005	3.2	606 of 632	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2004	5.5	597 of 633	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	23.1	123 of 144	14.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.2	134 of 137	2.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	2.4	987 of 1001	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.8	1001 of 1011	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.5	936 of 1010	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.0	1006 of 1017	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	6.8	945 of 1004	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	3.0	975 of 1002	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	4.8	951 of 997	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2019	3.4	872 of 874	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	3.1	971 of 1000	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.9	983 of 1012	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.8	983 of 1011	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.7	987 of 1017	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	3.5	997 of 1003	0.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	2.3	994 of 1002	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	3.7	961 of 997	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	11.7	782 of 802	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	10.6	781 of 790	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	13.8	744 of 770	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	18.3	673 of 748	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.6	710 of 746	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.6	720 of 742	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	18.0	650 of 721	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	3.0	601 of 628	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	1.9	625 of 641	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.8	625 of 640	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	4.2	592 of 617	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	3.8	595 of 613	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	2.1	588 of 594	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	1.6	574 of 579	0.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2017	3.5	579 of 612	5.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2016	2.4	596 of 609	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2015	1.4	604 of 612	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	3.5	554 of 585	5.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	2.7	542 of 569	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	2.2	538 of 559	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	1.4	538 of 549	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	2.7	523 of 539	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	1.7	510 of 521	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	2.2	504 of 519	2.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	2.8	351 of 366	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2024	24.1	96 of 118	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.8	127 of 134	5.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	5.4	541 of 573	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.7	562 of 580	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	5.9	551 of 579	4.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.2	544 of 576	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	4.8	555 of 574	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	2.1	551 of 557	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	2.1	544 of 551	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2023	9.1	508 of 525	3.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	2.2	567 of 577	1.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.5	569 of 585	2.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	3.4	590 of 591	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	3.9	568 of 577	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	5.0	554 of 572	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	3.4	543 of 557	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	2.3	544 of 551	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	12.2	406 of 414	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	14.1	400 of 425	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	19.1	408 of 439	7.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	22.7	358 of 421	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	19.2	426 of 437	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	21.6	362 of 414	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	19.0	376 of 417	9.8%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

African American (2025)15th percentile+13 vs school

Male (2025)3rd percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)2nd percentile~ school

Female (2025)1st percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2019)<1st percentile~ school

Middle school

African American (2024)19th percentile+16 vs school

Female (2025)6th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2023)3rd percentile~ school

Special Education (2025)2nd percentile~ school

Male (2025)2nd percentile-3 vs school

By subject vs Wisconsin (2024-2025) ?

Social Studies24%-39 vs state

Science9%-42 vs state

English Language Arts8%-45 vs state

Mathematics3%-50 vs state

★

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Schools Near Fifty-Third Street Elementary

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 English Language Arts 7th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 8th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 3rd Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 4th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 5th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 6th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 7th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 8th Grade	Forward Exam Social Studies 4th Grade	Forward Exam Social Studies 8th Grade	Forward Exam Science 4th Grade	Forward Exam Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Fifty-Third Street Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	3618 N 53rd St	Milwaukee	53216	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 874-5300	308	19	16.1	89.3%	4 (1.3%)	261 (84.7%)	28 (9.1%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (3.9%)	2.1	1025^th of 1044 public elementary schools	1.8%		1.8	1044^th of 1061 public elementary schools	1.6%	19	5.7	3.1	3.3	14.3	7.7	16.0	2.9	0.0	10.0	3.6	4.0	0.0	18.8	30.8	9.4	7.7	$15,146	$2,243	$12,903
Carson Academy	Public	PK, KG-8	4920 W Capitol Dr	Milwaukee	53216	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 393-4800	326	20	16.0	94.5%	3 (0.9%)	298 (91.4%)	14 (4.3%)	2 (0.6%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (2.1%)	1.8	1031^st of 1044 public elementary schools	1.2%		1.7	1045^th of 1061 public elementary schools	1.5%	14	3.3	10.7	4.0	6.7	22.2	18.5	3.3	3.6	8.0	0.0	22.2	7.4	10.7	11.1	7.1	3.7	$15,492	$3,446	$12,046
Townsend Street Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	3360 N Sherman Blvd	Milwaukee	53216	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 874-5900	257	16	16.0	93.8%	4 (1.6%)	222 (86.4%)	9 (3.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.0%)	1.1	1043^rd of 1044 public elementary schools	0.1%		0.9	1061^st of 1061 public elementary schools	0.0%	18	6.7	3.5	0.0	4.8	3.7	5.6	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3.7	0.0	0.0	11.1	0.0	5.6	$15,752	$3,237	$12,515
Sherman Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	5110 W Locust St	Milwaukee	53210	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 874-5800	147	17	8.6	90.5%	1 (0.7%)	133 (90.5%)	5 (3.4%)	1 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (4.8%)	1.2	1042^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	0.2%		1.9	1043^rd of 1061 public elementary schools	1.7%	1	7.1	0.0	7.7	0.0	14.3	14.3	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	7.7	0.0	0.0	7.1	0.0	7.1	$19,435	$4,910	$14,525
Milwaukee Environmental Science Academy	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	6600 W Melvina St	Milwaukee	53216	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(414) 353-3830	274	14	19.5	94.9%	1 (0.4%)	247 (90.1%)	17 (6.2%)	3 (1.1%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.8%)	1.7	1032^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	1.1%		1.2	1055^th of 1061 public elementary schools	0.6%	23	3.9	5.3	3.9	4.0	3.5	6.5	0.0	5.3	0.0	4.0	6.9	3.2	5.6	19.4	15.8	12.9	$16,077	$2,993	$13,084
Congress Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	5225 W Lincoln Creek Dr	Milwaukee	53218	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 616-5300	607	38	16.0	89.3%	4 (0.7%)	554 (91.3%)	23 (3.8%)	10 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (2.6%)	2.2	1022^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	2.1%		2	1041^st of 1061 public elementary schools	1.9%	19	11.4	11.8	8.7	12.5	12.0	20.7	9.1	0.0	0.0	6.3	6.0	12.1	13.7	32.8	3.9	19.3	$14,545	$3,195	$11,350
Milwaukee Math and Science Academy	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	2703 N Sherman Blvd	Milwaukee	53210	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee Math and Science Academy Inc	Yes	No	No	Yes	(414) 263-6400	241	14	17.2	90.5%	0 (0.0%)	230 (95.4%)	6 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (2.1%)	6.4	961^st of 1044 public elementary schools	8.0%		2.8	1019^th of 1061 public elementary schools	4.0%	58	14.3	12.0	8.0	12.5	9.1	4.6	23.8	4.0	0.0	50.0	4.6	4.8	16.0	22.7	8.0	9.1	$11,760	$2,797	$8,963
Clemens Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3600 W Hope Ave	Milwaukee	53216	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 875-6300	321	23	14.0	97.5%	3 (0.9%)	284 (88.5%)	23 (7.2%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.8%)	2.7	1011^th of 1044 public elementary schools	3.2%		1.6	1048^th of 1061 public elementary schools	1.2%	37	1.8	10.9	13.5				0.0	17.4	2.7				21.7		6.4		$16,877	$2,494	$14,383
Milwaukee College Preparatory School -- 38th Street	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	2623 N 38th St	Milwaukee	53210	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	Yes	No	No	Yes	(414) 445-1000	474	16	29.6	87.8%	0 (0.0%)	429 (90.5%)	21 (4.4%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.6%)	13.8	918^th of 1044 public elementary schools	12.1%		13.4	931^st of 1061 public elementary schools	12.3%	13	29.8	23.3	27.8	31.8	27.3	39.1	31.9	37.2	30.6	18.2	25.0	21.7	18.6	29.6	18.6	8.9	$16,128	$2,815	$13,313
Milwaukee French Immersion	Public	PK, KG-5	2360 N 52nd St	Milwaukee	53210	Milwaukee County	Milwaukee School District	No	No	No	Yes	(414) 874-8400	426	21	19.9	68.1%	81 (19.0%)	256 (60.1%)	28 (6.6%)	10 (2.3%)	1 (0.2%)	3 (0.7%)	47 (11.0%)	29.9	809^th of 1044 public elementary schools	22.5%		31	805^th of 1061 public elementary schools	24.1%	4	30.7	52.3	47.9				40.3	27.3	33.3				50.0		38.6		$12,532	$2,137	$10,395

Frequently Asked Questions about Fifty-Third Street Elementary

What schools do graduates of Fifty-Third Street Elementary attend?

Students who attend Fifty-Third Street Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : King International Baccalaureate Middle
Middle : Lincoln Middle
Middle : Morse Mid
Middle : Roosevelt Middle
High : Audubon Technology and Communication High
High : Bradley Technology High
High : King International
High : Milwaukee High School of the Arts
High : Milwaukee School of Languages
High : Reagan College Preparatory High

What district is Fifty-Third Street Elementary in?

Milwaukee School District

How many students attend Fifty-Third Street Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 308 students attended Fifty-Third Street Elementary.

Is Fifty-Third Street Elementary a good school?

Fifty-Third Street Elementary ranks in the bottom 1.8% of Wisconsin elementary schools.

What is the racial makeup of Fifty-Third Street Elementary?

Students at Fifty-Third Street Elementary are 85% African American, 9% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races, 1% White.

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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.