O Brown Elementary

O Brown Elementary is a PK–7 public school in Racine, Wisconsin, serving 540 students as part of the Racine Unified School District, which ranked 411th of 432 Wisconsin districts in 2025–2026 (5th percentile, 0 stars). The school itself ranked 840th of 1,039 ranked Wisconsin schools that year — 19th percentile, 1 star — and has held 1 star across a decade of rankings, moving from 904th of 1,075 in 2015–2016 to 814th of 1,067 in 2021–2022 before drifting back down.

Academically, O Brown outperforms the district in nearly every tested subject and grade but trails the state in all of them. Averaged across grades 3–7, ELA proficiency is about 38.9% versus the district's 29.1% and the state's 54.0%; math averages about 26.9% versus 22.4% district and 53.7% state. Math is the clearer weakness — 7th-grade math was 15.15%, below the district's 20.44% and the state's 55.67% — while 5th-grade ELA reached 47.30%, close to the state's 53.63%. Among nearby schools, O Brown generally beats Fratt Elementary, Julian Thomas Elementary, Wadewitz Elementary, Jerstad-Agerholm School, Gilmore Fine Arts School, and 21st Century Preparatory School, is mixed against Red Apple School, and trails Goodland Montessori and Gifford School.

Chronic absenteeism was 21.6% in 2024–2025 — far better than the district's 36.5% but above the state's 17.3%, and higher than Goodland Montessori (11.1%), Gifford School (14.0%), and Gilmore Fine Arts School (19.9%). The school spent $17,156 per student with a student–teacher ratio of 16.2, higher than most same-district peers, yet it outperforms several schools that spend more and have smaller classes. Effectiveness ranks vary widely by student group, with Hispanic students and students with disabilities ranking relatively higher than the school's overall standing and several other groups ranking substantially lower. For comparison, Deerfield Elementary in the neighboring Oak Creek-Franklin Joint School District ranks in the 79th percentile (4 stars) with 5.8% chronic absenteeism.