Emerson Elementary

Emerson Elementary is a mid-sized elementary campus in Madison, Wisconsin, overseen by Madison Metropolitan School District. The school educates 297 students in grades pre-K through 5.

Madison Metropolitan School District runs 53 schools in total, collectively educating 25,155 students. Emerson Elementary is one of those campuses.

In terms of who attends, Emerson Elementary logs that 43% of students identify as White, with the remaining enrollment distributed across several groups; the rest is composed of 27% Black, 15% Hispanic, 11% multiracial, 2% Asian. That is visibly less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 77%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 30 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 10.0:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 14.7:1, putting Emerson Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. Roughly 54% of students at Emerson Elementary qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. By comparison, Dane County runs at roughly 32%, so the school's eligibility rate is somewhat above the surrounding baseline.

After controlling for student poverty, Emerson Elementary sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 44.4%; this one delivers 49.1%.

Across the wider county, Dane County reports that median household earnings sit near $89,975, roughly 55% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 5% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Emerson Elementary is one of 169 public schools in Dane County (combined enrollment of about 78,525 students).

The closest other public school is East High, roughly 0.3 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, Emerson Elementary comes 5th of 7 in the immediate cluster, ahead of the nearby-schools average of 48.4%.

Emerson Elementary operates from a metropolitan location.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count contracted 27%: 409 students in 2018 compared to 297 in 2025. The Black share of enrollment edged up from 20% to 27% over that span. Class-load math has narrowed: from 11.0:1 in 2018 to 10.0:1 in 2025.

On the community side, recent activity here tends to focus on enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.