Enrollment
385
Elementary
DISTRICT 305 · STATE 323
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·UNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT·NCES 550075000097
Unity Elementary
1908 150th St, Balsam Lake, WI 54810 · (715) 825-2101 · Polk County
GRADES PK–04ELEMENTARY43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL385 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 54% of Wisconsin public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- B+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Wisconsin public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
12.8:1
30 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.4:1 · STATE 14.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
53%
205 students
DISTRICT 53% · STATE 42%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 56 | 15% |
| Kindergarten | 60 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 59 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 60 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 75 | 19% |
| Grade 4 | 75 | 19% |
This year's kindergarten class (60) is 20% smaller than its 4th grade class (75).
Student demographics
28%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 28% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within Unity School District. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
Forward Exam 2024-25 . % Meeting or AdvancedEnglish Language Arts
56.2%
WI avg 53.1% . -0.8pp since 2023
Math
52.1%
WI avg 54.8% . -0.8pp since 2023
What this means: On the Forward Exam, Wisconsin's statewide test, about 56 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 52 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Wisconsin schools, those numbers are about 53 and 55. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2023, while math scores have held steady.
Forward Exam results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 56.2% | 52.1% |
| 2023-24 | 57.0% | 52.9% |
% Meeting or Advanced, all students and all tested grades.
Source: Forward Exam. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
54.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
45.0%
based on WI schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+9.1pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 54% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 45% typical for Wisconsin schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Wisconsin's top nor bottom 10%.
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 Unity Elementary
Unity Elementary's state test result (54.1% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unity Elementary this school | 385 | 53.2% | 54.1% |
| Crescent Elementary Rhinelander | 384 | 52.9% | 42.5% |
| Spooner Elementary Spooner | 363 | 53.2% | 55.4% |
| Parkview Elementary Chippewa Falls | 377 | 55.7% | 50.9% |
| Marinette Intermediate Marinette | 372 | 52.7% | 43.5% |
| Kate Goodrich Elementary Merrill | 337 | 55.8% | N/A |
Matched among Wisconsin elementary 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 Unity Elementary ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Wisconsin | In Polk County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 54.1% | #547 of 982 | #7 of 9 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 52.1% | #555 of 992 ▲ 28 | #6 of 9 ▲ 2 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 56.2% | #415 of 992 ▲ 15 | #5 of 9 ▲ 2 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 385 | #379 of 1,157 | #1 of 11 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 12.8:1 | #383 of 901 | #7 of 7 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 28.3% | #601 of 901 | #1 of 7 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 53.2% | #359 of 1,064 | #1 of 10 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -2.5% | #621 of 664 | #9 of 9 |
Ranked against other public elementary 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
385
+20 (+5%) vs 2020
-35% since 1990-91, when it was 596
Student : Teacher
12.8:1
was 10.7:1
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 | 385 | 30.1 | 12.8:1 | 53% (205) |
| 2023-24 | 389 | 33.2 | 11.7:1 | 60% (232) |
| 2022-23 | 396 | 31.9 | 12.4:1 | 60% (237) |
| 2020-21 | 365 | 34 | 10.7:1 | 63% (231) |
| 2017-18 | 395 | 33.4 | 11.8:1 | 54% (213) |
| 2015-16 | 412 | 31 | 13.3:1 | 59% (242) |
| 2010-11 | 465 | 36 | 12.9:1 | 60% (277) |
| 2000-01 | 567 | 39 | 14.5:1 | 38% (218) |
| 1990-91 | 596 | 37 | 16.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Unity Elementary.
Since 2017-18: students down 3% (395 to 385); teachers down 10% (33.4 to 30.1).
About Unity Elementary
Unity Elementary is a medium-sized elementary school in Wisconsin, with an address in Balsam Lake. The school had 385 students in pre-K through 4 in 2024-25.
Unity School District is responsible for 3 schools, Unity Elementary included, with 915 students in all.
Most students at Unity Elementary are White: 84% of enrollment. The remaining students are 7% multiracial, 5% Native American, and 4% Hispanic. Census figures show Polk County is about 94% White. By the diversity index, Unity Elementary comes in at 28%.
The school reported 30.1 full-time-equivalent teachers in 2024-25 and a ratio of 12.8:1. For comparison, elementary schools in Wisconsin average 14.7:1. Free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is 53%. By comparison, the figure for public schools in Polk County is 37%.
Measured against Wisconsin public elementary schools, Unity Elementary receives a B-. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
When test results are adjusted for free or reduced-price lunch eligibility, Unity Elementary is 9.1 points above its prediction. Actual: 54.1%. Predicted: 45.0%.
Across Polk County, median household income is about $77,219, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 24%, and roughly 6% of residents are in poverty. Unity Elementary is among the 26 public schools in Polk County.
Nearby, Unity Middle is less than a tenth of a mile away. Other public schools within five miles number 2. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 54.1%; Unity Elementary's is 54.1%, ranking 4th of 9.
In the federal locale system, Unity Elementary is coded Rural: Remote, for schools in rural territory far from an urban area.
The student count in 2024-25 was 385, 5% above the 365 of 2020-21. From 2020-21 to 2024-25, the ratio rose from 10.7:1 to 12.8:1.
Threads on this page can be about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Polk County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
45,555
Census ACS
Median income
$77,219
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
6%
Below federal line
Schools in county
26
6,126 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Unity School District
- Unity HighHigh · 292 students
- Unity MiddleMiddle · 238 students
Other schools in Balsam Lake
- Unity HighHigh · 292 students
- Unity MiddleMiddle · 238 students
Other Unity Elementary schools
6 other US public schools in 6 states are named Unity Elementary. Unity Elementary is the 2nd largest of the 7.
- Unity Elementary SchoolSioux City, IA · 483 students
- Unity Elementary SchoolMendon, IL · 296 students
- Unity Elementary SchoolLima, OH · 241 students
- Unity Elementary SchoolBrookport, IL · 128 students
- Unity Elementary SchoolNewport, NH · 86 students
Nearby schools
- Unity Middle0.0 mi · 238
- Unity High0.0 mi · 292
- Luck Middle5.8 mi · 82
- Luck High5.8 mi · 102
- Luck Elementary5.8 mi · 174
- Saint Croix Falls Elementary9.7 mi · 303
Frequently asked questions
About Unity ElementaryHow many students attend Unity Elementary?
Unity Elementary enrolls approximately 385 students in grades PK-04.
What grades does Unity Elementary serve?
Unity Elementary serves grades PK-04.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Unity Elementary?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Unity Elementary is approximately 12.8:1 (30 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Unity Elementary?
At Unity Elementary, the student body is approximately 84% White, 4% Hispanic, 7% Two or more.
What district is Unity Elementary in?
Unity Elementary is part of Unity School District.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.