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Alumni: what's one memory from South High that still sticks with you?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
833
High
DISTRICT 436 · STATE 475
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WAUKESHA SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 551578002025
South High
401 E Roberta Ave, Waukesha, WI 53186 · (262) 970-3705 · Waukesha County
GRADES 09–12HIGH13-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL833 STUDENTS
·
allk12 Grade
Not graded
This school has no state test results for 2023-24 or 2024-25 to grade, which is common for schools that end before third grade. How grades work
Student : Teacher
11.6:1
72 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 27.5:1 · STATE 14.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
55%
460 students
DISTRICT 39% · STATE 42%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 207 | 25% |
| Grade 10 | 214 | 26% |
| Grade 11 | 192 | 23% |
| Grade 12 | 220 | 26% |
Student demographics
65%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 57% · STATE 54% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
UNDERPERFORMING
Bottom 10% of WI schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
28.2%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
43.8%
based on WI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-15.6pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 28% of students here test proficient in math and reading, below the roughly 44% typical for Wisconsin schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations compares each school with others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school lands here when its results trail those comparable schools, which is not the same as having low scores. A higher-scoring school can still fall in this tier if similar schools score higher still.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like South High
South High's state test result (28.2% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| South High this school | 833 | 55.2% | 28.2% |
| Saint Francis High Saint Francis | 543 | 50.8% | 26.4% |
| Delavan-Darien High Delavan | 511 | 54.2% | 38.2% |
| Memorial High Beloit | 1,305 | 61.9% | 17.9% |
| Cudahy High Cudahy | 644 | 60.7% | 32.1% |
| Nathan Hale High West Allis | 1,134 | 57.1% | 28.8% |
Matched among Wisconsin high schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where South High ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Wisconsin | In Waukesha County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 28.2% | #361 of 402 | #18 of 18 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 833 | #121 of 532 | #15 of 23 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.6:1 | #20 of 325 | #1 of 15 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 65.3% | #27 of 325 | #1 of 15 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 55.2% | #59 of 418 | #1 of 18 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -11.9% | #82 of 203 | #2 of 12 |
Ranked against other public high schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
833
-97 (-10%) vs 2020
-45% since 1990-91, when it was 1,523
Student : Teacher
11.6:1
was 12.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 833 | 71.7 | 11.6:1 | 55% (460) |
| 2023-24 | 879 | 74.8 | 11.8:1 | 53% (464) |
| 2022-23 | 890 | 73.1 | 12.2:1 | 51% (453) |
| 2020-21 | 930 | 75 | 12.4:1 | 54% (498) |
| 2017-18 | 946 | 73.3 | 12.9:1 | 42% (395) |
| 2015-16 | 1,073 | 76 | 14.1:1 | 50% (533) |
| 2010-11 | 1,145 | 77 | 14.9:1 | 42% (484) |
| 2000-01 | 1,371 | 79 | 17.4:1 | 13% (179) |
| 1990-91 | 1,523 | 94 | 16.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for South High.
Since 2017-18: students down 12% (946 to 833); teachers down 2% (73.3 to 71.7).
About South High
A large high school in Waukesha, Wisconsin, South High is part of Waukesha School District. In all, 833 students attend the school in grades 9 through 12. It has 75% more students than the average for high schools in Wisconsin (about 475).
South High is one school in a 27-school district, Waukesha School District, which enrolls 10,922 students.
Of every 100 students at South High, about 41 are Hispanic, the largest group. The remaining students are 40% White, 12% Black, and 5% multiracial. Census figures show Waukesha County is about 6% Hispanic. On a 0 to 100 scale, the school's diversity index is 65, compared with 70 nationally.
The school lists 71.7 full-time-equivalent teachers and a student-to-teacher ratio of 11.6:1. Compared with the 14.6:1 average for high schools in Wisconsin, this school's ratio is lower. Free or reduced-price lunch covers 55% of the student body. Across public schools in Waukesha County, the average is 17%.
A school in Wisconsin with South High's free or reduced-price lunch share would be expected to score about 43.8%. South High scores 28.2%.
American Community Survey estimates for Waukesha County show that median household income comes to about $106,076, roughly 49% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 3% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Waukesha County counts 113 public schools with about 60,032 students.
Among nearby public schools, Waukesha Academy of Health Professions is closest at less than a tenth of a mile. South High is one of several public schools in the area, with at least 8 others within five miles. The nearest schools with test data average 56.5%, higher than South High's 28.2%.
The school's locale code, City: Small, means it is inside a principal city with a population under 100,000.
The 2020-21-to-2024-25 change in enrollment was a 10% decrease, from 930 to 833.
People who know South High can post here about homework, tutoring, and testing dates. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to post.
Waukesha County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
411,762
Census ACS
Median income
$106,076
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
49%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
3%
Below federal line
Schools in county
113
60,032 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Waukesha School District
- West HighHigh · 1,167 students
- North HighHigh · 911 students
- Butler MiddleMiddle · 786 students
- eAchieve Academy - WisconsinHigh · 639 students
- Waukesha STEM AcademyElementary · 580 students
- Les Paul MiddleMiddle · 547 students
Other schools in Waukesha
- West HighHigh · 1,167 students
- North HighHigh · 911 students
- Butler MiddleMiddle · 786 students
- eAchieve Academy - WisconsinHigh · 639 students
- Waukesha STEM AcademyElementary · 580 students
- Les Paul MiddleMiddle · 547 students
Other South High schools
13 other US public schools in 10 states are named South High. South High is the 13th largest of the 14.
- South HighSheboygan, WI · 1,075 students
- SOUTH HIGH SCHOOLOMAHA, NE · 2,412 students
- South HighBakersfield, CA · 2,107 students
- South High SchoolDENVER, CO · 1,950 students
- South HighTorrance, CA · 1,734 students
Nearby schools
- Waukesha Academy of Health Professions0.0 mi · 112
- Waukesha Engineering Preparatory Academy0.1 mi · 144
- Waukesha STEM Academy0.1 mi · 580
- Heyer Elementary0.7 mi · 328
- Les Paul Middle1.1 mi · 547
- Hadfield Elementary1.2 mi · 338
Frequently asked questions
About South HighWhat is the total enrollment at South High?
South High enrolls approximately 833 students in grades 09-12.
Is South High an elementary, middle, or high school?
South High is a high school covering grades 09-12.
What is the student-teacher ratio at South High?
The student-to-teacher ratio at South High is approximately 11.6:1 (72 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at South High?
At South High, the student body is approximately 40% White, 41% Hispanic, 12% Black, 2% Asian, 5% Two or more.
Is South High public or private?
South High is a public K-12 school, overseen by Waukesha School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.