MacDowell Montessori School K3-12

MacDowell Montessori School K3-12 is a mid-sized Milwaukee public Montessori school serving 823 students in grades K3 through 12 at 6415 W Mount Vernon Ave on the city's west side, part of Milwaukee School District. It is one of the few area schools that carries a single group of students from early childhood through 12th grade, and it generally outperforms its district while trailing the state.

Attendance is the standout. Chronic absenteeism was 24.4% in 2024‑25 — roughly half the district's 46.2% — after falling in each of the last three years from a 43.9% spike in 2021‑22. The dropout rate, 0.9%, is below the state's 1.1% and under a quarter of the district's 4.0%, the one headline measure where this school beats Wisconsin. The 84.0% graduation rate has topped the district's 71.5% every year for five years, though it has never reached the state's 92.0%. In English/language arts, 44.9% of tested students in grades 3–8 were proficient, versus 25.9% districtwide and 54.0% statewide. Spending per student has risen 58% in five years, to $19,293, and the 16.2 student–teacher ratio is the second-lowest among nearby MPS alternatives.

Math is the clearest weakness: 25.7% proficiency in grades 3–8, against 20.7% districtwide and 53.7% statewide — about 28 points below the state and roughly 35 points behind HAPA-Hmong American Peace Academy K3-12, which posts 60.8% in math. Golda Meir School spends 11% less per student, yet its ELA and math proficiency are 21 and 30 points higher. The high school looks different from the lower grades: 10th‑graders fell below the district on all three ACT subjects (ELA 19.23%, math 13.46%, science 7.69%), even as they scored 30.23% on Forward Social Studies, above the district. Those 10th‑grade figures come from a small cohort and swing year to year, so treat them as a question to ask rather than a fixed verdict.