Summary
Rhinelander High is a public school in Rhinelander, WI, serving 757 students in grades 9–12 as the only comprehensive high school in the Rhinelander School District and the largest secondary campus in this part of northern Wisconsin. In 2025–2026, it earned 3 stars and ranked in the 60th percentile statewide, up from 41st percentile the year before and its best mark in a decade. That is notable because the district overall rates 2 stars and 32nd percentile, so the high school is currently outperforming its district. Among nearby schools, it trails Three Lakes High (75th percentile) but leads Elcho High (57th) and Tomahawk High (48th).
Graduation is a real strength: 96.4% in 2024–2025 with a 0.2% dropout rate, both well above Wisconsin’s 92.0% and 1.1%, and stable around 96–97% for five years. Social studies is also strong (62.57% proficient vs. 48.25% statewide); science is slightly above state, English language arts is near state, but math is the weak spot at 38.86% vs. 42.93% statewide—the only comparison school below state and well behind Three Lakes High (57.14%). The biggest warning sign is chronic absenteeism, which nearly tripled from 7.0% to 19.6% and now exceeds the district (12.8%) and state (17.3%), while Tomahawk High is at 7.9%. On the positive side, low-income students reached the 76th percentile (4 stars), up from 1 star, and special education students reached the 70th percentile (4 stars).
Resources are lean: Rhinelander High spends $16,084 per student—the lowest in the group—and has the highest student-to-teacher ratio (15.7:1), compared with Three Lakes High at $25,860 and 10.2:1 and Elcho High at $24,526 and 8.3:1. Overall, the school is on an upward trajectory with strong graduation results, reliable social studies performance, and standout results for low-income and special education students. The main watch items are math, which consistently lags, and chronic absenteeism, which is rising and can affect future achievement and graduation data. The school is making recent gains with lean resources and large classes, but absenteeism is the clearest risk to continued progress.
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