Owen-Withee Junior High

Owen-Withee Junior High is a small rural middle school in Owen, Wisconsin (Clark County area) serving grades 6–8 with 112 students — roughly 37 per grade — and is part of the Owen-Withee School District. About 58.9% of students qualified for free or reduced lunch in 2024–2025, up roughly 10 percentage points in three years, and the school spends $9,729 per student — the lowest of any school in this comparison group.

The school just posted its best year in a decade. In 2025–2026 it ranked 384th of 643 Wisconsin middle schools (40th percentile) with 2 stars — its first 2-star rating since 2015–2016, after years in the bottom quartile, including the 15th percentile in 2022–2023. Seven of eight tested areas improved year over year, and grade 8 math nearly doubled (25% to 48.6%). Grade 6 is the engine: 64% proficient in both ELA and math, the best grade-6 results in the group, ahead of Stanley-Boyd Middle, Medford Middle, Loyal Middle School and Colby Middle. Grades 7–8 lag, with grade 7 ELA at 37.5%, the weakest result.

The school appears to add the most value for its highest-need students: low-income students ranked at the 51st percentile (3 stars) and English learners at the 67th percentile (3 stars), both above the school's own overall standing. Attendance is the main concern — chronic absenteeism rose to 18.9%, the highest of the five schools and now above the state's 17.3%, even though Colby Middle carries nearly identical poverty and reports 8.3%. With about 37 students per grade, small swings can look dramatic, so year-to-year changes should be read directionally.