Wausau School District
The Wausau School District is a public school district serving the Wausau metropolitan area, including the City of Wausau and the Towns of Rib Mountain, Wausau, Stettin, and Texas. It contains two high schools, two middle schools, 13 elementary schools, and one alternative high school. Demographics. In 1981 there were 160 Hmong students in the Wausau School District. In the 1990s the Wausau School District received an increase of Hmong students, some of whom came from refugee camps and lacked formal education. In 1993 the Wausau School District began moving students, previously assigned to schools based on  attendance zone, to a different scheme intended to equalize the ethnic proportions of Hmong and non-Hmong students. However it reverted to its previous scheme in 1994 after a negative reception from area parents. By 2002, 12% of the Wausau population was Hmong, and 25% of the students at Wausau public schools were Hmong. Patti Kraus, who worked as a secretary for the WSD, stated in 2016 that the ethnic Hmong successfully adapted to American school life. Proposed Elementary School Merger. On April 23, 2020, the Wausau School District Board of Education proposed closing six elementary schools and shifting middle  school students. Specifically, if passed by referendum during the November 3, 2020 general election, the number of elementary schools in the district would be cut in half from 14 to 7. The consolidation would save $2.6 million in recurring expenses and $7.9 million in one-time expenses for the district. The following elementary schools would be closed under the proposal: The following elementary schools would remain, but 5th and 6th graders in the district would be moved to the existing John Muir Middle School. 7th and 8th graders will be moved to Horace Mann Middle School. Wausau School