Summary:
ZIP code 54204 has one elementary school: Southern Door Elementary, serving grades PK–5 with 482 students in Brussels, WI, as part of the Southern Door County School District. Because it is the only elementary school in the area, families have a single elementary option here. The school is improving overall: its rank moved from 331st of 1,044 schools in 2024–2025 to 252nd of 1,039 in 2025–2026, rising from the 68th to 76th percentile and from 3 stars to 4 stars. The district ranks 71st of 432 districts, at the 84th percentile with 4 stars. Chronic absenteeism is 8.8%, compared with 10.4% in the district and 17.3% statewide.
In 2025–2026 Forward Exam results, Southern Door Elementary exceeded the state average in 6 of 8 reported subject-grade tests. Upper grades are especially strong: 5th-grade math was 75.36% proficient versus 51.81% statewide, 5th-grade ELA was 69.57% versus 53.63%, 4th-grade social studies was 83.56% versus 65.51%, and 4th-grade science was 72.60% versus 53.46%. Fourth-grade ELA and math were also above state averages. The main relative weak spot is 3rd grade: ELA was 49.15% versus 52.08% statewide, and math was 50.85% versus 54.75%. Both declined from 2024–2025, by 6.26 points in ELA and 7.26 points in math. Fifth grade posted the largest year-over-year gains, up 16.34 points in ELA and 17.30 points in math, though grade-level changes may reflect different student cohorts.
For parents, the key takeaway is that this is a high-performing, improving elementary school with low chronic absenteeism and strong upper-grade outcomes. About 40.25% of students qualify for free/reduced-price lunch, per-student spending is $13,824, and the student-teacher ratio is 11.9, suggesting relatively small classes. The clearest area for targeted attention is 3rd-grade ELA and math, while the school can continue supporting its strong 4th- and 5th-grade results in math, science, and social studies.
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