Summary:
Zip code 54452 is home to two elementary schools, both part of the Merrill Area School District: Kate Goodrich Elementary, which serves grades K–2 with 337 students, and Washington Elementary, which serves grades 3–4 with 257 students, for 594 students combined. The two campuses operate as a grade-level split rather than as direct academic competitors. The district is ranked 213 of 432 in Wisconsin, at the 51st percentile with 3 stars. Free and reduced lunch rates are nearly identical — 55.79% at Kate Goodrich and 55.64% at Washington — indicating very similar economic need across both schools.
Washington Elementary is the only school with current test data, since state testing starts in grade 3. Its 2025–2026 ranking is 502 of 1,039, at the 52nd percentile with 3 stars, up from 47th percentile and 2 stars in 2023–2024. Washington beats the state in 4 of 6 tested areas: 3rd grade ELA (62.5), 4th grade ELA (58.33), 3rd grade math (59.82), and 4th grade science (55.83). The clear weak point is 4th grade math at 44.17%, below the district's 45.77% and the state's 52.87%. Following the same cohort from 3rd to 4th grade, ELA rose 13.20 percentage points while math fell 5.39 points. Its chronic absenteeism of 11.8% is below the district's 14.6% and the state's 17.3%.
Kate Goodrich Elementary has no current test scores because it serves only K–2, so its present academic standing cannot be evaluated from this data. Its historical ranking, however, shows a strong trajectory: from 1 star and the 23rd percentile in 2017–2018 to 4 stars and the 71st percentile in 2020–2021 — older data that is context only, not proof of current performance. Kate Goodrich also has smaller classes (a 12.5 student-teacher ratio versus Washington's 14.5) and spends $18,481 per student versus $16,832 at Washington. Its chronic absenteeism is 13.1%, higher than Washington's 11.8% but still below district and state levels. Because both schools have nearly identical free/reduced lunch rates, those differences in staffing, spending, and attendance are not explained by poverty indicators.
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