Franklin Elementary

Franklin Elementary is a small elementary school in West Allis, Wisconsin, operated by West Allis-West Milwaukee School District. The school works with 244 students in grades pre-K through 5. By comparison, Wisconsin's public schools average about 323 students each, so Franklin Elementary sits 24% below that benchmark.

Within West Allis-West Milwaukee School District, which oversees 16 schools and 6,619 students, Franklin Elementary is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Franklin Elementary reports that the most-represented group is White (50%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. The remainder consists of 25% Hispanic, 15% multiracial, 8% Black, 2% Asian. That composition is broadly in line with Milwaukee County as a whole.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 13.5:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 14.7:1, putting Franklin Elementary tighter than the state norm the norm. About 67% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, Franklin Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 36.4% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 37.0%.

Zooming out to the county, ACS estimates for Milwaukee County put median household earnings sit near $64,435, about 35% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 13%. In all, Milwaukee County runs 284 public schools (combined enrollment of about 122,496 students), of which Franklin Elementary is one.

The closest other public school is Central High, roughly 0.2 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, Franklin Elementary comes 4th of 7 in the immediate cluster, below the nearby-schools average of 38.1%.

Geographically, the school is in a bedroom-community area.

Over the past 7-year window. Franklin Elementary's enrollment has edged down 31% since 2018, when it stood at 355 (now 244). Over the same period, the White share declined from 55% to 50%.

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