Best Public Schools in Zip Code 54745

ZIP code 54745 is home to three public schools — Holcombe Elementary (PK–5), Lake Holcombe Middle (6–8), and Holcombe High (9–12) — all part of the Lake Holcombe School District, a small rural district serving 244 students total. The district ranks 387th of 432 Wisconsin districts, in the 10th percentile with 1 star, so all three schools share that challenging context even though their individual results differ.

Lake Holcombe Middle is the strongest relative performer, sitting at the 39th percentile with 2 stars and posting results above state in 6th grade ELA (84.21% vs 54.95%) and 8th grade science (68.75% vs 50.04%). It is also volatile: 8th grade ELA fell to 29.41% the following year. Holcombe High shows a completion-success paradox — 95.2% graduation and 0.0% dropout, both better than state, plus 60% Science ACT proficiency vs 43.2% — but only 13.33% ELA ACT proficiency vs 48.47% and the area's highest chronic absenteeism at 35.4%. Holcombe Elementary has the best attendance here (14.9% chronic absenteeism, below the 17.3% state rate) and a bright spot in 3rd grade math (70% vs 54.75%), but most other grades fall below state, including 4th grade at 12.5% in ELA, math, and science.

Two patterns stand out for families. First, chronic absenteeism climbs sharply by level — 14.9% elementary, 28.0% middle, 35.4% high — against 17.3% statewide. Second, spending is high ($19,196 to $22,815 per student) with low ratios of about 10 to 11 students per teacher, yet the district remains in the bottom 10% of the state. Because cohorts are tiny at the middle and high schools, single-year swings should be read cautiously; multi-year trends are more meaningful.