James Williams Middle

James Williams Middle is the 6th–8th grade campus of the Rhinelander School District, located at 915 Acacia Ln in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, and serving 454 students — making it by far the largest middle school in its northern Wisconsin comparison group. In 2025-26 it ranked 431st of 643 ranked Wisconsin middle schools, placing it in the 33rd percentile with a 2-star rating.

That mid-to-lower placement is not new. Over ten reported years the school has never risen above the 42nd percentile or earned more than 2 stars, and its best stretch came in 2022-23 and 2023-24; 2024-25 dipped to the 29th percentile (1 star) before 2025-26 recovered modestly. Attendance is a real bright spot: chronic absenteeism was 13.9% in 2024-25, better than the 17.3% state figure and well below Three Lakes Junior High (20.6%) and Elcho Middle (20.8%), though behind Tomahawk Middle (4.1%). Per-pupil spending has grown 22% in three years to $17,237, the lowest of the four peer schools, with a 12.2 student-teacher ratio, and free/reduced-price lunch eligibility has eased from 52.3% to 46.5%.

Among the four nearby middle schools, James Williams lands second: Three Lakes Junior High ranks in the 94th percentile and Tomahawk Middle in the 61st, while Elcho Middle sits at the 22nd. Academic strengths are 8th-grade Social Studies at 67.3%, the only subject above the state mark, and 7th-grade Math at 51.2%. English language arts is the steady weak spot, trailing the state by roughly 10–16 points in all three grades, and Science (46.5% vs. 51.9% statewide) also lags. Year-to-year changes vary widely by grade, so single-year swings are a noisy signal; students in special education and low-income groups have moved up relative to peers statewide.