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Waunakee, Wisconsin - 7 schools
An equity score of 23/100 ranks Waunakee Community School District #354 of 403 districts in Wisconsin (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $13,753 per pupil, Waunakee Community School District ranks #253 of 422 Wisconsin districts by per-pupil spending (Wisconsin districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
4,408
Total Enrollment
7
Schools
$13,753
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Waunakee Community School District operates 7 public schools serving 4,408 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Wisconsin. The school portfolio breaks down into 4 combined, 1 high, 1 middle, 1 elementary schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Dane County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $13,753 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 422 Wisconsin districts by per-pupil spending. See how Wisconsin compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 58.9% local, 37.5% state, and 3.6% federal, a local-revenue-heavy mix that leaves the district more exposed to property-tax swings and local ballot measures than state-funded peers. The district's equity score is 23/100, ranked #354 of 403 in Wisconsin against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 7 schools offering Advanced Placement (14 AP courses district-wide), a 471.9:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 17.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 81.5% White, 8.1% Hispanic or Latino, 3.5% Asian across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Waunakee Heritage Elementary, with a diversity index of 40.5/100.
Its largest campus is Waunakee High, enrolling 1,335 students (30% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Waunakee Community 4k School, at 249 students, a 5x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Waunakee High accounts for 30.2% of all Waunakee Community School District student enrollment
That dominant concentration means Waunakee Community School District-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Waunakee Community School District school enrollment varies 5.4× across entities
Waunakee Community School District school enrollment ranges from 249 students (lowest) to 1,335 students (highest), a spread of 1,086 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Waunakee Community School District student-counselor ratio is 472:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.
Waunakee Community School District chronic absenteeism rate is 17.1% — near the typical range (US average ~28) — aligned with the national post-pandemic baseline of roughly 28% chronic absenteeism
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Variation between sub-units within Waunakee Community School District is typically wider than the Waunakee Community School District-aggregate figure suggests.
Comparisons are relative to Waunakee Community School District's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.
Nearby Districts in Wisconsin
Top districts in the same state, compare side-by-side for enrollment, spending, and demographics.
How many schools are in Waunakee Community School District?
Waunakee Community School District has 7 schools, including 1 high, 1 middle, 1 elementary, 4 combined. Total enrollment is 4,408 students.
How much does Waunakee Community School District spend per student?
Waunakee Community School District spends $13,753 per student. The district has an equity score of 23/100, ranking #354 in Wisconsin.
What is the demographic composition of Waunakee Community School District?
Waunakee Community School District students are 81.5% White, 8.1% Hispanic or Latino, 3.5% Asian, 1.6% African American, averaged across 7 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Waunakee Community School District?
Waunakee Community School District has an equity score of 23/100, ranking #354 out of 403 districts in Wisconsin.