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Pelican Elementary

Q: Is Pelican Elementary a good school?

Pelican Elementary ranks 693 rd of 1044 Wisconsin elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

693^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,044 Wisconsin Elementary Schools

Better than 34% of Wisconsin elementary schools

Summary

Pelican Elementary is a public elementary school located in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, serving grades PK-5 with a total enrollment of 265 students. The school is part of the Rhinelander School District, which is ranked 302 out of 426 districts in Wisconsin and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Pelican Elementary faces several academic challenges, with its performance generally below the district and state averages across various grade levels and subject areas. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, the percentage of 3rd-grade students proficient or better in English Language Arts was 42.5% at Pelican Elementary, compared to 46.21% for the Rhinelander School District and 52.14% for the state. The school also experiences high rates of chronic absenteeism, ranging from 7.6% to 19.5% over the past few years, which is significantly higher than the state average. Additionally, Pelican Elementary has a high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 52.4% to 58.11% in recent years, indicating a higher proportion of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds.

Interestingly, Northwoods Community Elementary, another school in the Rhinelander School District, consistently outperforms Pelican Elementary in academic measures, while Crescent Elementary and Central Elementary have similar academic performance. Tomahawk Elementary, a school in a different district, has generally higher academic performance compared to Pelican Elementary.

263

Students ?

10.0

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,760

Per pupil spending ?

49%

Free/discounted lunch ?

3350 V Hickey Rd
Rhinelander, WI 54501-8241

(715) 365-9160

District: Rhinelander School District

Students who attend Pelican Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	James Williams Middle
High:	Rhinelander High

Racial breakdown:

White:

91.3%

Two or more races:

4.2%

Hispanic:

1.5%

See top rated Wisconsin elementary schools

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At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 41st percentile in 2022 → 34th in 2025

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Wisconsin average (48% vs 54% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped from its 41st-percentile peak (2022) to 34th (2025)

!Mathematics scores 12 pts below the Wisconsin average

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school48%

District avg48%

Wisconsin avg54%

693^rd of 1,044

Wisconsin public elementary schools ?

Bottom 34%▲ up 8 pts since 2021

From bottom 26% (2021) to bottom 34% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd of 4Elementary Schools in the Rhinelander School District

302^nd of 426Rhinelander 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	42.3	693 of 1044	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	41.6	713 of 1061	32.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	41.9	695 of 1067	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	47.4	626 of 1067	41.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	32.1	777 of 1050	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	41.3	447 of 632	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	47.8	594 of 1001	40.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	52.9	553 of 1011	45.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	49.2	573 of 1010	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2022	55.4	482 of 1017	52.6%	★★★☆☆
2021	43.7	623 of 1004	37.9%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	37.8	593 of 870	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	39.3	583 of 866	32.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	38.1	595 of 871	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.5	594 of 859	30.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	27.2	679 of 847	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	37.2	697 of 1000	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	29.9	786 of 1012	22.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	35.8	710 of 1011	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	39.1	689 of 1017	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	26.4	798 of 1003	20.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	29.7	593 of 802	26.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	42.6	418 of 748	44.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	18.2	679 of 746	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

Female (2025)41st percentile+7 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)32nd percentile~ school

Male (2025)30th percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2025)26th percentile-8 vs school

By subject vs Wisconsin (2024-2025) ?

Social Studies59%-5 vs state

Science54%+3 vs state

English Language Arts47%-5 vs state

Mathematics42%-12 vs state

★

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Schools Near Pelican Elementary

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				Forward Exam English Language Arts (2025)				Forward Exam Mathematics (2025)				Forward Exam Social Studies (2025)	Forward Exam Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2021)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Forward Exam English Language Arts 3rd Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 4th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 5th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 6th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 3rd Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 4th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 5th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 6th Grade	Forward Exam Social Studies 4th Grade	Forward Exam Science 4th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Pelican Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3350 V Hickey Rd	Rhinelander	54501	Oneida County	Rhinelander School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 365-9160	263	26	10.0	49.0%	240 (91.3%)	2 (0.8%)	4 (1.5%)	2 (0.8%)	3 (1.1%)	1 (0.4%)	11 (4.2%)	42.3	693^rd of 1044 public elementary schools	33.6%		41.6	713^th of 1061 public elementary schools	32.8%	20	42.5	54.3	44.8		40.0	42.9	44.8		58.8	54.3	$18,760	$723	$18,037
Central Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	418 N Pelham St	Rhinelander	54501	Oneida County	Rhinelander School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 365-9600	269	26	10.4	61.7%	228 (84.8%)	5 (1.9%)	12 (4.5%)	1 (0.4%)	5 (1.9%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (6.7%)	43.3	678^th of 1044 public elementary schools	35.1%		54.8	570^th of 1061 public elementary schools	46.3%	108	46.2	36.1	46.4		61.5	50.0	64.3		55.6	36.1	$20,755	$763	$19,992
Crescent Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	3319 Boyce Dr	Rhinelander	54501	Oneida County	Rhinelander School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 365-9132	384	36	10.7	52.9%	338 (88.0%)	2 (0.5%)	16 (4.2%)	1 (0.3%)	9 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.7%)	34.2	778^th of 1044 public elementary schools	25.5%		30.4	809^th of 1061 public elementary schools	23.8%	31	42.3	49.1	32.8		32.7	49.1	24.1		60.4	49.1	$18,677	$758	$17,920
Sugar Camp Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	4066 Camp Four Rd	Rhinelander	54501	Oneida County	Three Lakes School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 272-1105	111	11	10.2	22.5%	106 (95.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (4.5%)	65.2	381^st of 1044 public elementary schools	63.5%		78.1	184^th of 1061 public elementary schools	82.7%	197	68.4	50.0	73.3	75.0	79.0	50.0	46.7	91.7	60.0	50.0	$18,851	$900	$17,950
Northwoods Community Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	9086 County Road K	Harshaw	54529	Oneida County	Rhinelander School District	No	No	No	No	(715) 282-8200	97	11	9.2	24.7%	93 (95.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.1%)	79.6	166^th of 1044 public elementary schools	84.1%		78.4	181^st of 1061 public elementary schools	82.9%	15	71.4	77.8	69.2		78.6	66.7	69.2		88.9	44.4	$21,645	$845	$20,800
Three Lakes Elementary	Public	PK, KG-6	6930 W School St	Three Lakes	54562	Oneida County	Three Lakes School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 546-3323	160	11	14.4	41.9%	155 (96.9%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.3%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.6%)	77.6	199^th of 1044 public elementary schools	80.9%		63.4	429^th of 1061 public elementary schools	59.6%	230	79.0	71.4	21.4	73.9	84.2	76.2	35.7	78.3	81.0	81.0	$16,224	$1,092	$15,131
Elcho Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	N11268 Antigo St	Elcho	54428	Langlade County	Elcho School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 275-3707	127	11	11.5	49.6%	114 (89.8%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.9%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.4%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.9%)	42.9	685^th of 1044 public elementary schools	34.4%		62.5	448^th of 1061 public elementary schools	57.8%	237	42.9	38.9	66.7		50.0	33.3	22.2		66.7	55.6	$18,069	$837	$17,231
Tomahawk Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1048 E Kings Rd	Tomahawk	54487	Lincoln County	Tomahawk School District	No	No	No	Yes	(715) 453-2126	512	43	11.9	53.1%	470 (91.8%)	2 (0.4%)	17 (3.3%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (3.5%)	59.8	462^nd of 1044 public elementary schools	55.7%		58.6	506^th of 1061 public elementary schools	52.3%	44	44.6	56.1	58.2		39.2	68.2	70.0		71.2	56.1	$14,432	$866	$13,566

Frequently Asked Questions about Pelican Elementary

How many students attend Pelican Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 263 students attended Pelican Elementary.

What district is Pelican Elementary in?

Rhinelander School District

Is Pelican Elementary a good school?

Pelican Elementary ranks 693^rd of 1044 Wisconsin elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What schools do graduates of Pelican Elementary attend?

Students who attend Pelican Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : James Williams Middle
High : Rhinelander High

What is the racial makeup of Pelican Elementary?

Students at Pelican Elementary are 91% White, 4% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic, 1% American Indian.

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Schools in Rhinelander, WI

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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.