Winneconne Middle

Winneconne Middle in Winneconne, WI is the only middle school in the Winneconne Community School District, serving about 411 students in grades 6–8 in a small lakeside community near Oshkosh. It ranks 28th of 643 middle schools statewide — the 96th percentile, with five stars — and has never fallen below the 95th percentile in ten years of data, earning a 5-star rating every single year. That places it first among 11 nearby schools, ahead of Traeger Middle, Hortonville Middle and Greenville Middle.

On the 2025–26 Forward Exam, Winneconne students scored above the state average in all eight tested areas, with the widest margins in math (7th grade math: 87.79% proficient versus 55.67% statewide). Its 8th grade math result was the highest of all 11 comparison schools. Reading and math in grades 6 and 7 have climbed sharply — 6th grade English language arts rose from 56.25% to 93.1% in three years. Eighth grade ELA is the exception: it has held in the low 70s for four straight years and ranks 4th among peers, behind Traeger Middle, Hortonville Middle and Fox West Academy.

What stands out most is how well the school serves students who often struggle elsewhere. Winneconne ranks 4th of 513 Wisconsin schools for effectiveness with low-income students (99th percentile, two years running) and 97th percentile for special education students. Dropout has been 0.0% for five straight years, and chronic absenteeism (9.9%) sits well below the state's 17.3%, though higher than a few neighbors. It achieves this while spending $12,220 per student — thousands less than Traeger Middle or Hortonville Middle — with the leanest staffing of any comparable-enrollment peer. The takeaway for parents: a consistently top-performing school with an unusually strong record for students who need extra support, and one clear growth area in 8th grade English language arts.