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Riverside Middle

Q: Is Riverside Middle a good school?

Riverside Middle ranks 474 th of 643 Wisconsin middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

474^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 643 Wisconsin Middle Schools

Better than 26% of Wisconsin middle schools

Summary

Riverside Middle is a grades 6–8 school serving 616 students in Watertown, Wisconsin, part of the Watertown Unified School District in a relatively high-poverty area — 44.5% of students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–2025, down from 48.4% the year before.

By state rankings, Riverside currently sits at 474th of 643 Wisconsin middle schools (26th percentile, 1 star) in 2025–2026 — its lowest recent percentile and a drop from its usual 2-star standing. That is the lowest rank among ten nearby middle schools, whose percentiles run from 31st to 96th. Waterloo Middle, with a nearly identical free/reduced lunch rate (44.1%), ranks slightly higher at the 31st percentile. Proficiency is below the state in every tested subject: ELA ranged from 39.9% to 46.4% versus roughly 54–55% statewide, and math from 45.2% to 45.5% versus roughly 54–56%. Eighth-grade science (39.2% vs. 51.9% state) and social studies (51.5% vs. 64.6%) show the largest gaps; Riverside outperforms only Central Middle among nearby schools in both. High performers such as Kettle Moraine Middle and Silver Lake Intermediate reach the 70s and 80s.

The school spends $17,649 per student — the highest among its neighbors — and has a student-teacher ratio of 12.5, yet results remain at the bottom of the comparison group, suggesting resource levels alone do not explain the gap. Poverty is a real factor, but similar-poverty peers such as Dodgeland Middle (50% free/reduced lunch, around the 50th percentile) do considerably better. Low-income students ranked in the 19th percentile and male students in the 23rd. Chronic absenteeism is 15.3%, better than the state's 17.3% but above the district's 14.4% and well above high-performing neighbors such as Lake Mills Middle (6.5%). The dropout rate is essentially zero.

616

Students ?

12.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,649

Per pupil spending ?

44.5%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

131 Hall St
Watertown, WI 53094-4114

(920) 262-1480

District: Watertown Unified School District

Students who attend Riverside Middle usually attend:

High:

Watertown High

Feeder schools for Riverside Middle:

Elementary:	Douglas Elementary
	LEAP Elementary
	Lincoln Elementary
	Schurz Elementary
	More...
	Webster Elementary

Racial breakdown:

White:

68.0%

Hispanic:

23.4%

Two or more races:

5.5%

See top rated Wisconsin middle schools

Compare Riverside Middle to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 36th percentile in 2016 → 26th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Wisconsin average (44% vs 56% meeting standards)

!Ranking has slipped — down 10 percentile points since 2016

!Social Studies scores 13 pts below the Wisconsin average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school44%

District avg45%

Wisconsin avg56%

474^th of 643

Wisconsin public middle schools ?

Bottom 26%▼ down 9 pts since 2016

From bottom 36% (2016) to bottom 26% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Wisconsin Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

289^th of 432Watertown Unified 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
2026	34.2	474 of 643	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	39.3	434 of 628	30.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.1	395 of 641	38.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	39.6	409 of 640	36.1%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.4	423 of 617	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	43.3	381 of 613	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2019	36.2	421 of 594	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	30.7	452 of 579	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	37.5	420 of 612	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2016	42.3	392 of 609	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2015	45.9	398 of 612	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2014	53.7	313 of 585	46.5%	★★☆☆☆
2013	48.1	359 of 569	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	49.4	392 of 559	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2011	44.3	421 of 549	23.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	39.4	432 of 539	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	43.1	402 of 521	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	42.0	395 of 519	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	51.8	248 of 366	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2006	49.6	261 of 382	31.7%	★★☆☆☆
2005	44.3	245 of 332	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	39.0	257 of 324	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2019	41.1	66 of 127	48.0%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	35.4	116 of 169	31.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	33.4	134 of 178	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.2	136 of 173	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	32.9	128 of 170	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.2	130 of 158	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	35.6	101 of 138	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.9	126 of 153	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	42.2	65 of 140	53.6%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	37.9	398 of 572	30.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	38.7	398 of 573	30.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.7	349 of 580	39.8%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.6	404 of 579	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	34.8	408 of 576	29.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	44.1	350 of 574	39.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	40.4	384 of 557	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	29.5	444 of 551	19.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	29.6	176 of 236	25.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	38.3	148 of 237	37.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	34.2	155 of 239	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.5	158 of 229	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	35.4	142 of 221	35.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	33.3	162 of 225	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.0	159 of 209	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.0	174 of 204	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	27.8	413 of 513	19.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	29.3	397 of 509	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	33.2	376 of 520	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	33.4	368 of 525	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	30.0	401 of 522	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	42.6	294 of 499	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	32.7	371 of 487	23.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.6	399 of 489	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	31.3	443 of 575	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	39.7	404 of 577	30.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.7	351 of 585	40.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	44.5	338 of 591	42.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	40.3	364 of 577	36.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	44.9	332 of 572	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	33.3	417 of 557	25.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	34.3	406 of 551	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2025	64.2	40 of 126	68.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	44.8	73 of 131	44.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	53.5	59 of 132	55.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	8.5	124 of 126	1.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	29.1	76 of 96	20.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	35.7	284 of 439	35.3%	★★☆☆☆
2025	41.1	234 of 414	43.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.2	302 of 425	28.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	36.6	290 of 439	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	28.9	325 of 421	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	53.1	158 of 437	63.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	38.0	265 of 414	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	37.0	269 of 417	35.5%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Wisconsin percentile	Rating
2026	19.7	339 of 391	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	25.5	322 of 399	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	35.1	282 of 407	30.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	33.7	292 of 412	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	32.0	293 of 397	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	39.0	258 of 393	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2019	27.1	311 of 382	18.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	324 of 375	13.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Multi-racial (2025)68th percentile+37 vs school

African American (2019)48th percentile+19 vs school

Special Education (2026)35th percentile+9 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)31st percentile+5 vs school

Female (2026)30th percentile+4 vs school

Hispanic (2026)25th percentile~ school

Male (2026)23rd percentile-3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)19th percentile-7 vs school

White (2026)13th percentile-13 vs school

By subject vs Wisconsin (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies52%-13 vs state

Mathematics45%-9 vs state

English Language Arts43%-12 vs state

Science39%-13 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a student
Monday, July 30, 2012

Riverside Middle School is so much fun!!!! If you want to send your child to a good school send him/her to Riverside Middle School!!! Because you will not be disappointed by the results your child gets! Close Quote

Schools Near Riverside Middle

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				Forward Exam English Language Arts (2026)				Forward Exam Mathematics (2026)				Forward Exam Social Studies (2026)	Forward Exam Science (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	Forward Exam English Language Arts 5th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 6th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 7th Grade	Forward Exam English Language Arts 8th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 5th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 6th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 7th Grade	Forward Exam Mathematics 8th Grade	Forward Exam Social Studies 8th Grade	Forward Exam Science 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Riverside Middle	Public	6-8	131 Hall St	Watertown	53094	Jefferson County	Watertown Unified School District	No	No	No	No	(920) 262-1480	616	49	12.5	44.5%	419 (68.0%)	12 (1.9%)	144 (23.4%)	5 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	34 (5.5%)	34.2	474^th of 643 public middle schools	26.3%		39.3	434^th of 628 public middle schools	30.9%	40		46.4	39.9	42.2		45.2	45.2	45.5	51.5	39.2	$17,649	$900	$16,749
Nature Hill Intermediate	Public	5-8	850 Lake Dr	Oconomowoc	53066	Waukesha County	Oconomowoc Area School District	No	No	No	Yes	(262) 569-4945	750	57	13.2	16.7%	676 (90.1%)	6 (0.8%)	39 (5.2%)	7 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (2.9%)	81.6	84^th of 643 public middle schools	86.9%		72.8	146^th of 628 public middle schools	76.8%	62	66.1	78.7	72.2	66.5	72.6	80.3	78.9	76.8	72.7	60.3	$13,827	$390	$13,437
Silver Lake Intermediate	Public	5-8	555 Oconomowoc Pkwy	Oconomowoc	53066	Waukesha County	Oconomowoc Area School District	No	No	No	Yes	(262) 560-4305	633	50	12.7	18.8%	534 (84.4%)	11 (1.7%)	54 (8.5%)	5 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (4.6%)	88.9	33^rd of 643 public middle schools	94.9%		86.2	49^th of 628 public middle schools	92.2%	16	76.2	74.4	75.8	78.9	78.2	80.6	82.4	83.8	84.5	72.1	$14,829	$383	$14,446
Lake Mills Middle	Public	5-8	318 College St	Lake Mills	53551	Jefferson County	Lake Mills Area School District	No	No	No	No	(920) 648-2358	413	34	12.2	26.9%	348 (84.3%)	3 (0.7%)	38 (9.2%)	5 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (4.6%)	59.3	274^th of 643 public middle schools	57.4%		70.4	173^rd of 628 public middle schools	72.5%	101	53.3	69.8	75.6	46.2	56.2	53.5	67.4	47.1	58.7	53.9	$14,660	$354	$14,306
Dodgeland Middle	Public	6-8	401 S Western Ave	Juneau	53039	Dodge County	Dodgeland School District	No	No	No	No	(920) 386-4404	140	12	11.8	50.0%	120 (85.7%)	2 (1.4%)	16 (11.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.4%)	53.7	321^st of 643 public middle schools	50.1%		46.8	374^th of 628 public middle schools	40.4%	53		51.1	52.1	51.2		53.2	54.2	62.8	62.8	53.5	$14,284	$249	$14,035
Jefferson Middle	Public	6-8	501 S Taft Ave	Jefferson	53549	Jefferson County	Jefferson School District	No	No	No	Yes	(920) 675-1300	349	30	11.4	41.3%	263 (75.4%)	4 (1.1%)	67 (19.2%)	3 (0.9%)	1 (0.3%)	1 (0.3%)	9 (2.6%)	60.9	254^th of 643 public middle schools	60.5%		61	254^th of 628 public middle schools	59.6%			52.3	56.1	53.9		63.6	61.7	57.7	66.4	59.6	$16,240	$609	$15,631
Waterloo Middle	Public	5-8	865 N Monroe St	Waterloo	53594	Jefferson County	Waterloo School District	No	No	No	Yes	(920) 478-2696	118	8	14.7	44.1%	80 (67.8%)	2 (1.7%)	32 (27.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (3.4%)	38.1	445^th of 643 public middle schools	30.8%		41.8	424^th of 628 public middle schools	32.5%	21	46.3	37.5	41.5	58.3	39.0	39.3	32.1	43.8	60.4	56.3	$16,998	$468	$16,530
Honor Intermediate	Public	5-8	N3501 County Road P	Rubicon	53078	Dodge County	Herman-Neosho-Rubicon School District	No	No	No	Yes	(262) 673-2920	128	9	14.4	17.2%	117 (91.4%)	1 (0.8%)	4 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.7%)	73	155^th of 643 public middle schools	75.9%		65.5	217^th of 628 public middle schools	65.4%	62	52.9	69.7	66.7	57.6	50.0	54.6	70.0	81.8	81.8	54.6	$16,218	$1,103	$15,115
Kettle Moraine Middle	Public	6-8	301 E Ottawa Ave	Dousman	53118	Waukesha County	Kettle Moraine School District	No	No	No	No	(262) 965-6500	726	48	15.0	11.2%	641 (88.3%)	6 (0.8%)	38 (5.2%)	9 (1.2%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (4.3%)	90.1	24^th of 643 public middle schools	96.3%		89.2	31^st of 628 public middle schools	95.1%	7		79.6	83.3	73.7		80.9	83.7	78.4	86.4	75.6	$14,315	$300	$14,015
Central Middle	Public	6-8	1100 Cedar St	Hartford	53027	Washington County	Hartford J1 School District	No	No	No	Yes	(262) 673-8040	419	33	12.8	39.4%	329 (78.5%)	13 (3.1%)	57 (13.6%)	7 (1.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.9%)	40.4	429^th of 643 public middle schools	33.3%		42.9	413^th of 628 public middle schools	34.2%	16		55.6	49.2	37.7		56.3	52.5	43.5	50.7	36.2	$15,897	$834	$15,063

Frequently Asked Questions about Riverside Middle

What district is Riverside Middle in?

Watertown Unified School District

What high school do graduates of Riverside Middle attend?

Students who attend Riverside Middle usually go on to attend Watertown High

What is the racial makeup of Riverside Middle?

Students at Riverside Middle are 68% White, 23% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 2% African American.

How many students attend Riverside Middle?

In the 2024-25 school year, 616 students attended Riverside Middle.

Is Riverside Middle a good school?

Riverside Middle ranks 474^th of 643 Wisconsin middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Rate Riverside Middle!

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Latest Wisconsin data All new data »

2025–26 ACT & Forward Exam scoresOct 1, 2026

2021–22 through 2024–25 school spending dataJul 16, 2026

2024–25 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesMar 5, 2026

2024–25 ACT & Forward Exam scoresSep 25, 2025

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.