Lancaster Elementary

Lancaster Elementary is a primary school of mid-sized scale in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, run under Milwaukee School District, enrolling 316 students in grades pre-K through 8.

Across the 155 schools in Milwaukee School District (65,835 students total), Lancaster Elementary accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

Looking at the student body, Lancaster Elementary shows that 89% of students identify as Black, making the school strongly Black-majority; the rest is composed of 5% Hispanic, 4% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 26% Black, putting the school's mix meaningfully more Black than the area baseline.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 17 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 18.5:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 14.7:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. An estimated 91% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. Set against Milwaukee County (around 64%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, On a poverty-adjusted basis, Lancaster Elementary sits in the bottom 10% statewide. Predicted proficiency from the FRL regression is roughly 22.1%; actual is 7.2%, a gap of -14.9 points.

In the broader community, census data for Milwaukee County shows median household income runs about $64,435, roughly 35% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 13% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Lancaster Elementary is one of 284 public schools in Milwaukee County (combined enrollment of about 122,496 students).

Kilbourn Elementary is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.5 miles from this campus. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Lancaster Elementary at 8th of 9; the average score across the group is 16.5%.

The campus sits in a metropolitan setting.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count ticked down 12%: 358 students in 2018 compared to 316 in 2025. Black enrollment moved from 85% to 89% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 21.8:1 in 2018 to 18.5:1 today.

On this page, recent activity here tends to focus on classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Members of the school community can share what they know.