Wisconsin Education Statistics 2026: Schools, Enrollment & Spending
Wisconsin served 806,065 public school students across 2,190 operating public schools in school year 2024–25, the latest final national nonfiscal release available for a 2026 profile. Wisconsin DPI identifies 421 school districts; the federal operating-agency count is broader.
Enrollment has moved downward for more than a decade. Finance data use fiscal year 2024, when current public elementary-secondary spending reached $13.24 billion, or $15,952 per pupil. School-year membership and fiscal-year finance figures are reported separately because they come from different federal collections.
Wisconsin Public Education Snapshot
Enrollment, school, staffing, and operating-agency counts use NCES Common Core of Data definitions. The 421 school-district count comes from Wisconsin DPI. Dollar values use the U.S. Census Bureau Annual Survey of School System Finances.
Enrollment Movement Since 2013–14
Public school membership declined in every year shown, with the largest single-year reduction occurring between 2019–20 and 2020–21.
Wisconsin Public School Enrollment Trend
NCES public school membership, prekindergarten through grade 13 where reported
Enrollment fell from 874,414 in 2013–14 to 806,065 in 2024–25, a reduction of 68,349 students, or 7.8%.
Enrollment Movement Since 2019
- The 2019–20 to 2024–25 change was −49,335 students, equal to −5.8%.
- The 2020–21 drop of 25,334 students was larger than any other annual movement in the series.
- The latest two annual declines were −1.1% and −1.0%, showing that the downward direction continued after the initial pandemic-era break.
Wisconsin Public School Enrollment by Year
The index fixes 2013–14 at 100.0 so the cumulative change can be read without mixing percentages from different base years.
| School year | Enrollment | Annual change | Change % | Index |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013–14 | 874,414 | — | — | 100.0 |
| 2014–15 | 871,432 | −2,982 | -0.3% | 99.7 |
| 2015–16 | 867,800 | −3,632 | -0.4% | 99.2 |
| 2016–17 | 864,432 | −3,368 | -0.4% | 98.9 |
| 2017–18 | 860,753 | −3,679 | -0.4% | 98.4 |
| 2018–19 | 859,333 | −1,420 | -0.2% | 98.3 |
| 2019–20 | 855,400 | −3,933 | -0.5% | 97.8 |
| 2020–21 | 830,066 | −25,334 | -3.0% | 94.9 |
| 2021–22 | 829,359 | −707 | -0.1% | 94.8 |
| 2022–23 | 823,040 | −6,319 | -0.8% | 94.1 |
| 2023–24 | 814,202 | −8,838 | -1.1% | 93.1 |
| 2024–25 | 806,065 | −8,137 | -1.0% | 92.2 |
Long-Term Enrollment Direction
- The index moved from 100.0 to 92.2 over the 12-year series.
- Six annual declines before 2020 were each below one-half of one percent; the reductions became larger after 2019–20.
- Membership counts include public prekindergarten where reported, so state and year comparisons depend partly on reporting coverage.
Schools, Districts, Staffing, and Finance
The supporting modules separate system scale from spending. A lower enrollment total does not translate directly into the same percentage reduction in schools, staffing, transportation, facilities, or district administration.
Operating System Size, 2020–21 to 2024–25
| School year | Schools | Operating LEAs | Enrollment | Teacher FTE | Pupil-teacher | Students/school |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020–21 | 2,240 | 463 | 830,066 | 60,092 | 13.8 | 371 |
| 2021–22 | 2,243 | 469 | 829,359 | 60,337 | 13.7 | 370 |
| 2022–23 | 2,235 | 468 | 823,040 | 60,011 | 13.7 | 368 |
| 2023–24 | 2,224 | 468 | 814,202 | 59,623 | 13.7 | 366 |
| 2024–25 | 2,190 | 465 | 806,065 | 59,308 | 13.6 | 368 |
Scale and Staffing Changes
- From 2020–21 to 2024–25, enrollment decreased 2.9%, operating schools decreased 2.2%, and teacher FTE decreased 1.3%.
- The NCES operating-agency count moved from 463 to 465. That federal LEA count is not the same as Wisconsin DPI’s 421 school-district count.
- The statewide pupil-teacher ratio changed only slightly, from 13.8 to 13.6.
Current Spending per Pupil
Nominal dollars, fiscal years 2022–2024
Current spending per pupil rose from $14,505 in FY2022 to $15,952 in FY2024. The values are not adjusted for inflation or regional price levels.
Nominal Spending Growth
- The two-year increase was $1,447 per pupil, or 10.0%.
- FY2024 produced the larger annual rise: 7.2%, compared with 2.6% in FY2023.
Wisconsin and U.S. Revenue Mix
Federal, state, and local shares of public school revenue in FY2024
Wisconsin relied more on state revenue and less on local revenue than the national distribution in FY2024.
Revenue Mix Compared With the U.S.
- Wisconsin’s state share was 6.9 percentage points above the U.S. share.
- Wisconsin’s local share was 7.2 percentage points below the U.S. share.
- The federal shares were close: 11.9% in Wisconsin and 11.6% nationally.
Wisconsin School Finance Trend
| Fiscal year | Current/pupil | Total revenue | Total expenditure | Current spending | Federal share | State share | Local share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2022 | $14,505 | $14.15B | $13.78B | $12.19B | 11.6% | 52.2% | 36.3% |
| FY2023 | $14,882 | $15.07B | $14.58B | $12.47B | 13.0% | 50.8% | 36.2% |
| FY2024 | $15,952 | $15.62B | $15.94B | $13.24B | 11.9% | 52.1% | 36.0% |
Finance Period Changes
- Current spending increased from $12.19 billion in FY2022 to $13.24 billion in FY2024.
- The federal revenue share rose in FY2023 and then moved back to 11.9% in FY2024.
- The state share remained above one-half of total revenue in all three fiscal years.
Where FY2024 Current Spending Went
| Current spending function | Amount | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Instruction | $7.62B | 57.5% |
| Support services | $4.94B | 37.4% |
| Other current functions | $0.68B | 5.1% |
Instruction and Support Shares
- Instruction accounted for 57.5% of current spending, including salaries, benefits, and other instructional costs.
- Support services accounted for 37.4%, covering student support, instructional staff support, administration, operations, transportation, and related functions.
- Capital outlay is excluded because the Census current-spending measure reports it separately.
Revenue Source Comparison
| Geography | Federal | State | Local |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wisconsin | 11.9% | 52.1% | 36.0% |
| United States | 11.6% | 45.2% | 43.2% |
Current Spending per Pupil in Nearby Midwest States
FY2024 nominal current spending, ranked among 50 states and the District of Columbia
Wisconsin ranked 27th nationally and placed between Minnesota and Iowa among the six states shown.
Wisconsin’s Position in the Midwest
| State | Current/pupil | U.S. rank | Federal share | State share | Local share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Illinois | $21,776 | 11 | 10.3% | 38.6% | 51.1% |
| Michigan | $18,314 | 19 | 10.9% | 56.7% | 32.4% |
| Minnesota | $17,098 | 25 | 8.1% | 61.7% | 30.2% |
| Wisconsin | $15,952 | 27 | 11.9% | 52.1% | 36.0% |
| Iowa | $14,369 | 36 | 9.2% | 50.9% | 39.9% |
| Indiana | $13,622 | 41 | 11.4% | 55.9% | 32.7% |
How Enrollment and Spending Fit Together
The statewide figures describe scale and finance structure. They do not measure the service mix, building condition, transportation distance, labor market, or student needs of an individual district.
Enrollment Is Falling Faster Than School Capacity
Membership fell 7.8% from 2013–14 to 2024–25. The recent five-year system table shows a smaller reduction in operating schools than in students, which keeps many fixed costs in place even as enrollment contracts.
District and LEA Counts Use Different Definitions
Wisconsin DPI reports 421 school districts. NCES reports 465 operating LEAs in 2024–25 because the federal agency universe uses a broader operating-entity definition. The two counts should not be substituted for one another.
Public Membership Is Not Total K–12 Enrollment
CCD public membership includes district and public charter schools. It does not add private-school students, including pupils attending private schools through Wisconsin’s choice programs, so 806,065 is not a count of every K–12 student in the state.
Revenue Limits Shape Local Budget Capacity
Wisconsin districts receive revenue from state aid, property taxes, federal aid, and other local sources. State general aid and selected local levies operate within the state revenue-limit system, so revenue shares do not describe unrestricted spending authority.
Per-Pupil Spending Is Not Total Spending
Total current spending reflects the size of the public system. Per-pupil spending divides current expenditure by the Census enrollment measure, which supports state comparison but excludes capital outlay and debt transactions.
Data Sources and Measurement
U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2024–25 Final Version 1a. The table reports operating schools, operating LEAs, public school membership, teacher FTE, and the pupil-teacher ratio.
NCES Digest of Education Statistics, Table 203.20, based on the State Nonfiscal Survey of Public Elementary/Secondary Education. The 2024–25 point comes from the later CCD final release.
U.S. Census Bureau, Annual Survey of School System Finances, FY2022–FY2024 summary tables. Values labeled total are converted from thousands of dollars to billions; per-pupil amounts remain in dollars.
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction descriptions of state aid, property tax, federal aid, other local revenue, equalization aid, and school district revenue limits.
Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, FY2024–25 school census count. The state table lists 421 school districts; its resident census totals are not used as public school membership.
Enrollment is student membership rather than district-resident census count. Teacher counts are full-time equivalents. NCES operating schools and operating LEAs include entities providing services at the start of the school year. Wisconsin DPI’s 421 school-district count and NCES’s 465 operating-LEA count use different entity definitions. Revenue shares may not sum to exactly 100.0% after display rounding. Current spending per pupil is the Census current-expenditure measure and excludes capital outlay, debt redemption, and interest on debt.
School counts and enrollment use academic years, while revenue and expenditure use fiscal years. FY2024 dollars are nominal and are not adjusted for inflation or regional price differences. The national rank applies only to current spending per pupil in the Census FY2024 table. It is not a rank of school quality, student outcomes, tax burden, or spending efficiency.