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Hartford Avenue Elementary

Public Grades PK, KG-8
1021st
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,039 Wisconsin Elementary Schools
Better than 2% of Wisconsin elementary schools
Summary

Hartford Avenue Elementary is a PK–8 school serving 256 students at 2227 E Hartford Ave on Milwaukee’s East Side, part of Milwaukee School District, with a high-poverty, neighborhood-served population and 92.97% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch in 2024–25. Academically, it has sat at the very bottom of Wisconsin’s state distribution for a decade: it has never ranked above the 8th percentile statewide and has earned zero stars every reported year, including 2nd percentile in 2025–2026.

The clearest local comparison is within the same Milwaukee School District: Maryland Montessori, about a mile away, ranks at the 69th percentile, while nearby Atwater and Cumberland rank at the 96th and 98th percentiles. Hartford Avenue’s average proficiency is roughly 8.6% in ELA and roughly 4.7% in math, with 0% in both 3rd- and 4th-grade math. Its defining operational challenge is chronic absenteeism: 60.9% in 2024–25, more than triple the state rate and higher than most Milwaukee peers, though improved from 73.1% in 2021–22. Notably, Gaenslen has lower absenteeism (34.7%) but ranks below Hartford Avenue Elementary, so attendance alone does not explain results.

Spending and staffing have changed sharply without matching achievement gains. Per-student spending rose from $10,945 in 2019–20 to $21,290 in 2024–25, and the student-teacher ratio improved from 22.1 to 15.6. Yet Hartford Avenue spends more per student than high-performing Cumberland ($11,935), Atwater ($14,818), and Maryland Montessori ($18,583). Its relative strengths are special education students, who rank in the 20th percentile, and social studies (27.27% in 4th grade; 21.05% in 8th). Because cohorts are small, one or two students can swing a percentage; the reliable signal is the persistent single-digit overall proficiency and high absenteeism.

256
Students ?
15.6
Student/teacher ratio ?
$21,290
Per pupil spending ?
93.0%
Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?
67%
Kindergartners meeting all minimum immunization requirements (2025-26)
 2227 E Hartford Ave
       Milwaukee, WI  53211-3101

(414) 906-4700

District: Milwaukee School District


Students who attend Hartford Avenue Elementary usually attend:

Middle:    King International Baccalaureate Middle
    Lincoln Middle
    Roosevelt Middle
High:    Audubon Technology and Communication High
    Bradley Technology High
    King International
    Milwaukee High School of the Arts
    More...
Racial breakdown:

African American:
83.6%
Two or more races:
8.2%
Hispanic:
5.1%
more
 See top rated Wisconsin elementary schools

 Compare Hartford Avenue Elementary to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 8th percentile in 2016 → 2nd in 2026
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Wisconsin average (9% vs 55% meeting standards)
!In the lower quartile statewide (2nd percentile)
!High chronic absenteeism (61% vs 17% Wisconsin)
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school9%
District avg25%
Wisconsin avg55%
Elementary school
1,021st of 1,039
Wisconsin public elementary schools ?
Bottom 2%▼ down 6 pts since 2016
From bottom 8% (2016) to bottom 2% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Elementary Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
Middle school
623rd of 643
Wisconsin public middle schools ?
Bottom 3%▼ down 7 pts since 2016
From bottom 11% (2016) to bottom 3% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Middle Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
89th of 105Elementary Schools in the Milwaukee School District
418th of 432Milwaukee 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20262.21021 of 10391.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20253.5997 of 10444.5%☆☆☆☆☆
20241.51049 of 10611.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20233.11041 of 10672.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20223.21024 of 10674.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20213.21035 of 10501.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20192.81007 of 10372.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20185.8954 of 10256.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20174.01013 of 10715.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20166.9992 of 10757.7%☆☆☆☆☆
201510.5974 of 10769.5%☆☆☆☆☆
201417.0933 of 106112.1%★☆☆☆☆
201317.1937 of 105311.0%★☆☆☆☆
201214.9950 of 10459.1%☆☆☆☆☆
201125.5907 of 104613.3%★☆☆☆☆
201017.3941 of 104510.0%★☆☆☆☆
200918.1931 of 10309.6%☆☆☆☆☆
200821.8900 of 102111.9%★☆☆☆☆
200723.0586 of 68914.9%★☆☆☆☆
200620.4607 of 71214.7%★☆☆☆☆
200530.5496 of 63221.5%★☆☆☆☆
200443.6436 of 63331.1%★★☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
202417.0133 of 1372.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202222.7120 of 1339.8%★☆☆☆☆
202132.5102 of 14127.7%★☆☆☆☆
201929.7113 of 16129.8%★★☆☆☆
201846.366 of 16560.0%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20262.4970 of 9861.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20255.2945 of 10015.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20242.2993 of 10111.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20235.1969 of 10104.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20224.3979 of 10173.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20213.8987 of 10041.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20194.2959 of 10024.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20186.2935 of 9976.2%☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20194.7870 of 8740.5%☆☆☆☆☆
20184.5852 of 8540.2%☆☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20263.8949 of 9894.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20253.8959 of 10004.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20242.01004 of 10120.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20232.8998 of 10111.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20224.0975 of 10174.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20214.2975 of 10032.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20193.1979 of 10022.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20188.3921 of 9977.6%☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
202525.3638 of 80220.4%★☆☆☆☆
202322.3648 of 77015.8%★☆☆☆☆
202216.9690 of 7487.8%☆☆☆☆☆
202120.4647 of 74613.3%★☆☆☆☆
201914.5723 of 7422.6%☆☆☆☆☆
201822.7606 of 72116.0%★☆☆☆☆
Middle school ranking
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20262.3623 of 6433.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20252.7604 of 6283.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20244.1599 of 6416.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20235.7606 of 6405.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20226.6576 of 6176.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20215.6574 of 6136.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20195.3558 of 5946.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20187.7534 of 5797.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20175.8565 of 6127.7%☆☆☆☆☆
201611.1545 of 60910.5%★☆☆☆☆
201515.3537 of 61212.3%★☆☆☆☆
20149.7527 of 5859.9%★☆☆☆☆
201316.5505 of 56911.2%★☆☆☆☆
201216.7510 of 5598.8%☆☆☆☆☆
201113.2503 of 5498.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20104.7513 of 5394.8%☆☆☆☆☆
200910.5480 of 5217.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20089.6479 of 5197.7%☆☆☆☆☆
200713.0328 of 36610.4%★☆☆☆☆
200613.3338 of 38211.5%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
202418.0111 of 1185.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202328.7102 of 13021.5%★☆☆☆☆
202234.583 of 12533.6%★★☆☆☆
202138.679 of 13441.0%★★☆☆☆
201935.077 of 12739.4%★★☆☆☆
201847.655 of 12355.3%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20262.5561 of 5721.9%☆☆☆☆☆
20253.2554 of 5733.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20247.1535 of 5807.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20235.8552 of 5794.7%☆☆☆☆☆
20228.0535 of 5767.1%☆☆☆☆☆
20219.9520 of 5749.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20194.7526 of 5575.6%☆☆☆☆☆
201811.4501 of 5519.1%☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20239.8507 of 5253.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20196.0481 of 4871.2%☆☆☆☆☆
201811.3466 of 4894.7%☆☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
20264.7543 of 5755.6%☆☆☆☆☆
20253.0553 of 5774.2%☆☆☆☆☆
20243.9557 of 5854.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20237.8553 of 5916.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20227.6541 of 5776.2%☆☆☆☆☆
20214.2556 of 5722.8%☆☆☆☆☆
20198.3511 of 5578.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20187.7511 of 5517.3%☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankWisconsin percentileRating
202522.0350 of 41415.5%★☆☆☆☆
202425.0348 of 42518.1%★☆☆☆☆
202328.0347 of 43921.0%★☆☆☆☆
202223.3353 of 42116.2%★☆☆☆☆
202121.4379 of 43713.3%★☆☆☆☆
201921.6361 of 41412.8%★☆☆☆☆
201831.0311 of 41725.4%★☆☆☆☆
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
Special Education (2025)20th percentile+16 vs school
Male (2026)4th percentile~ school
African American (2024)3rd percentile~ school
Female (2026)2nd percentile~ school
Low Socio Economic Status (2019)<1st percentile~ school
Middle school
Special Education (2025)15th percentile+12 vs school
African American (2024)6th percentile~ school
Male (2026)6th percentile~ school
Low Socio Economic Status (2023)3rd percentile~ school
Female (2026)2nd percentile~ school
By subject vs Wisconsin (2025-2026) ?
Social Studies23%-42 vs state
English Language Arts9%-45 vs state
Science7%-46 vs state
Mathematics5%-48 vs state

2.3
3 ratings · 2 written reviews
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What people are saying
by a parent
Friday, December 5, 2014

Open Quote Several years ago this was a great school with a community feel, now there's a pack mentality to the the student interaction (at least in the later grades) where anyone who doesn't fall inline with the bullies or who tries to stand up for themselves becomes targeted. School should not be a case of survival of the fittest. Close Quote


by a citizen
Monday, November 29, 2010

Open Quote Hartford Ave School is wonderfully child-oriented, taking interest in each student as an individual. Classes are geared to bring out the best in each student. Close Quote





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Frequently Asked Questions about Hartford Avenue Elementary

In the 2024-25 school year, 256 students attended Hartford Avenue Elementary.

Hartford Avenue Elementary ranks in the bottom 1.7% of Wisconsin elementary schools.

Students at Hartford Avenue Elementary are 84% African American, 8% Two or more races, 5% Hispanic, 2% White, 1% Asian.

Rate Hartford Avenue Elementary!



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Latest Wisconsin data All new data »
2018–19 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 20, 2026
2016–17 through 2017–18 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 19, 2026
2025–26 ACT & Forward Exam scoresOct 1, 2026
2021–22 through 2024–25 school spending dataJul 16, 2026


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.

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