Wisconsin · Bloomer · Chippewa County · CESA 10

Bloomer School District

District briefing, fall 2026: survey results alongside enrollment, achievement, finances and property taxes.

On the ballot · November 3, 2026

Bloomer School District: one referendum question

Shall the School District of Bloomer, Chippewa and Dunn Counties, Wisconsin be authorized to issue pursuant to Chapter 67 of the Wisconsin Statutes, general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed $77,000,000 for the public purpose of paying the cost of a school building and facility improvement project consisting of: construction of a new high school with a community performing arts center; safety and security, capital maintenance and building infrastructure improvements at the Middle and Elementary Schools; and district-wide site improvements and acquisition of furnishings, fixtures and equipment?

Source: newspaper legal notice

Enrollment
1,242
2024-25
Revenue-limit members
1,188
2025-26 funding count
Enrollment, 5 yr
−4.5%
headcount change · peers −1.3%
Forward ELA z
−0.39
last 3 tested years
Cost / member
$16,564
2024-25
Mill rate
6.47
statewide K-12 6.90
Home value
−2%
5-yr avg vs. 12 nearby districts
Survey responses
362
latest staff + parent
Enrollment

1,242 students in 2024-25, −4.5% over five years while the regional peer median moved −1.3%.

Achievement

Forward Exam results average −0.39 (ELA) and −0.29 (math) on a z scale over the last three tested years, where 0 is the average Wisconsin district. ACT composite: 18.8 against a statewide median of 19.2.

Spending

$16,564 total cost per member in 2024-25, below the regional peer median of $16,854 and below the statewide median of $18,324.

Taxes

The school tax rate is 6.47 mills (2025-26), against a statewide K-12 median of 6.90; the 2025-26 levy is $7.0M, 33% of it referendum-approved debt.

Revenue limit

$12,476 per member under the state revenue limit, against a statewide K-12 median of $13,575; voters have decided 2 operating questions, passing 1, most recently Nov 2002 (non-recurring, failed).

Survey results

362 parents responses in the latest surveys. The lowest-rated area is communication and involvement among parents (21st percentile among surveyed districts).

School Perceptions surveyed Bloomer's parents. Each index below averages several survey items on a 1–5 scale. The percentile places the district among every Wisconsin district that took the same survey that school year; 50th is the middle.

Parent survey, 2021-22 n = 362

IndexDistrict (1–5)StatewideRegionalPercentile among surveyed districtsChange vs. prior survey
District governance3.743.583.6461st—
Child experience3.973.983.9331st—
Communication and involvement3.893.963.9421st—

Likelihood to recommend the district (0–10): 7.01 in 2022-23, statewide median 7.10.

Statewide = mean across surveyed Wisconsin districts; regional = surveyed districts in the same region. Change compares the district's index with its previous survey of the same audience.

Bloomer enrolled 1,242 students in 2024-25 (September membership). Since 2009-10 its enrollment has grown 6%; the median regional peer shrank 7% and the median Wisconsin district shrank 12%. The chart indexes each series to its 2009-10 level. Private schools inside the district's boundaries enroll 7.4% of school-age children (2024-25), against 9.7% in the median district.

BloomerRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
1141079992852009-102013-142017-182024-25

Students, 2025-26

Student group2025-262020-21Median WI district
Students with disabilities13.2%11.0%16.6%
English learners0.2%0.5%2.4%
Economically disadvantaged28.8%40.6%36.7%
White95.5%95.2%85.3%
Hispanic1.6%1.2%6.8%
Two or More1.4%1.0%3.9%
Black1.0%1.3%1.0%
Pacific Isle0.3%0.3%0.1%
Asian0.2%0.6%0.9%
Amer Indian0.1%0.5%0.4%

Community (ACS 2024)

MeasureBloomerMedian WI district
Median household income$71,549$77,317
Poverty rate6.2%8.3%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more23.0%25.4%
Households with children33.8%25.9%
Residents 65 and older18.3%20.5%
Median home value$246,200$241,800

Home values against nearby districts

Across the five most recent Census releases (2016–20 to 2020–24), the median owner-occupied home in Bloomer averaged $200,700, 2% below the median of the 12 districts within 25 miles ($204,390). That ranks 8th of 13 in the area and at the 45th percentile of Wisconsin districts (state median $205,920).

ACS 5-year releaseBloomerNearby medianDifferenceWisconsin median
2016–20$164,500$168,300−2%$172,200
2017–21$169,900$181,400−6%$182,750
2018–22$193,300$208,400−7%$210,250
2019–23$229,600$225,100+2%$227,050
2020–24$246,200$239,300+3%$241,800
Five-release average$200,700$204,390−2%$205,920

U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, median value of owner-occupied homes (table B25077), in nominal dollars. Consecutive releases share four of their five survey years, so the average is a smoothed level rather than five independent years. Nearby districts are those whose NCES office address lies within 25 miles of Bloomer's: Chippewa Falls Area Unified (12 mi, $235,420); Elk Mound Area (18 mi, $230,800); Amery (21 mi, $223,820); Eau Claire Area (20 mi, $220,400); Altoona (21 mi, $216,660); Colfax (13 mi, $206,620); New Auburn (8 mi, $202,160); Cameron (24 mi, $198,700); Lake Holcombe (20 mi, $194,700); Cadott Community (20 mi, $192,520); Chetek-Weyerhaeuser Area (17 mi, $189,500); Cornell (17 mi, $149,900).

Enrollment and the funding count

Wisconsin's revenue limit, which caps what a district may raise from general state aid and the property tax combined, is set per member using a three-year rolling average of membership: each September's full-time-equivalent count plus 40% of summer-school FTE. Bloomer's revenue-limit membership for 2025-26 is 1,188.

School yearEnrolled studentsRevenue-limit membershipPer enrolled student
2020-211,1971,2421.04
2021-221,2351,2230.99
2022-231,2441,2040.97
2023-241,2341,2010.97
2024-251,2421,2020.97
2025-26—1,188—

DPI revenue limit worksheets (three-year average membership) and DPI September membership. Years without a membership count show a dash.

In spring 2025, 47% of Bloomer students met or exceeded Forward standards in ELA and 51% in math, against 54% and 57% in the median Wisconsin district.

On a z scale, which puts every year on the same footing across the 2023-24 rescaling, Bloomer averaged −0.39 in ELA and −0.29 in math over the last three tested years, against −0.23 and −0.15 in its first three years on file.

BloomerRegional peers (median)Average Wisconsin district (0)

ELA

+0.28+0.06−0.16−0.38−0.602015-162019-202024-25

Math

+0.38+0.16−0.05−0.27−0.492015-162019-202024-25

Wisconsin rescaled the Forward Exam in 2023-24. Z-scores standardize each year's result against every comparable district that year (0 = the average district; +1 = one standard deviation above), so years on either side of a test or cut-score change can be compared. Testing was canceled in spring 2020.

Attendance, ACT, college-going and discipline

MeasureBloomerRegional peersWisconsin medianYear
Attendance rate94.4%95.0%94.3%2024-25
Chronic absenteeism13.1%9.2%10.9%2024-25
ACT composite (grade 11)18.819.219.22024-25
Suspensions and expulsions per 1,00021.041.833.02024-25

DPI WISEdash files. Chronic absenteeism = share of students missing 10% or more of enrolled days.

Bloomer's total cost per member was $16,564 in 2024-25, against $16,854 for the median regional peer and $18,324 for the median Wisconsin district. Local property tax paid for 31% of revenue, against 38% statewide.

BloomerRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
$19,221$16,905$14,590$12,274$9,9592006-072010-112014-152018-192024-25

The revenue limit allows $12,476 per member for 2025-26, below the statewide K-12 median of $13,575 and above the regional peer median of $12,239. The limit counts general state aid and the property tax together, so state aid changes move the levy rather than total revenue. Voters have decided 2 operating questions, passing 1, most recently nov 2002 (non-recurring, failed).

BloomerRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
$14,204$12,580$10,956$9,332$7,7092005-062009-102013-142017-182021-222025-26

Total district cost per member and revenue shares: DPI comparative cost data. Revenue limit: DPI revenue limit worksheets; statewide comparison is K-12 districts only.

The district's 2025-26 levy is $7.0M, at a rate of 6.47 mills per $1,000 of equalized value (statewide K-12 median 6.90). 33% of the levy repays referendum-approved debt (Fund 39).

Levy yearTotal levyGeneral fund (Fund 10)Referendum debt (Fund 39)Mill rate
2020-21$6.2M$3.9M$2.3M9.28
2021-22$6.6M$4.2M$2.3M9.33
2022-23$5.6M$3.4M$2.2M7.09
2023-24$6.1M$3.9M$2.2M6.69
2024-25$6.4M$3.8M$2.5M6.59
2025-26$7.0M$4.7M$2.3M6.47
BloomerRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
12.5410.839.117.405.682006-072010-112014-152018-192025-26

The median residential property-tax bill inside the district, all governments, was $2,190 in 2025 (statewide median $2,766). The full bill on the median home comes to 2.8% of median household income, and the school portion on that home ($246,200) is about $1,622.

Property tax on the median home, by taxing authority, payable 2026

A home at Bloomer's median value, about $339,000 at the current assessment, owes roughly $3,540 in property tax for taxes payable 2026. The school district's part is $2,190 (55% before credits); the rest goes to the county, the city, village or town, the technical college district and special districts such as sanitary and lake districts, less the state's school levy tax credit. That bill is $280 less than the average regional peer's median home.

Taxing authorityBloomerRegional peers (average)
School district$2,190 55%$2,070 49%
Technical college$220 5%$190 4%
County$710 18%$1,160 28%
City, village or town$620 16%$680 16%
Special districts$200 5%$110 3%
State school levy tax credit−$410−$400
Total$3,540$3,820
Median home value$339,000$322,000

Each column is the tax on that district's own median home; peer columns average the districts in the group. The percentage is each authority's share of the bill before credits.

The same $339,000 home at each group's tax rates

Holding the house constant separates tax rates from home values. Taxed at Bloomer's rates the home owes $3,540; at the regional peers' rates it would owe $4,010 on average.

Taxing authorityBloomerRegional peers (average)
School district$2,190 55%$2,170 49%
Technical college$220 5%$190 4%
County$710 18%$1,240 28%
City, village or town$620 16%$710 16%
Special districts$200 5%$110 2%
State school levy tax credit−$410−$410
Total$3,540$4,010
Tax as a share of home value1.05%1.18%

Wisconsin Department of Revenue, Town, Village and City Taxes, 2025 levies (taxes payable 2026): each taxing body's levy over the full value it is spread on. The school rate is the district's own levy over its equalized value; county, municipal, technical college and special-district rates are averages over the towns, villages and cities the district covers, weighted by its value in each, so a home in any one of them pays somewhat more or less. The school levy tax credit is the state-paid credit DOR spreads by municipality; the lottery and gaming credit and first dollar credit, applied per parcel, are not included. Median home value: Census ACS 2024 5-year median for owner-occupied homes, brought to January 1, 2025 values by the change in the district's TIF-out equalized value since 2022. The parcel-based median bill above runs lower because it covers every residential parcel, including vacant lots, condominiums and smaller homes, and is net of the per-parcel credits.

Levy by fund and equalized value: DPI and Department of Revenue. Typical bill: parcel-level residential bills inside the district boundary; school portion applies the school mill rate to the ACS median home value and is an estimate.

Voters have decided 9 referendum questions since 1997 and approved 5.

ElectionTypePurposeAmountYesResult
Apr 2016Capital$3,500,000.00 for constructing an addition on our Middle School for classroom space, a ...$3.5M50.2%Passed
Apr 2012Capitalpaying the cost of constructing and equipping an elementary school on land currently ow...$17.5M50.6%Passed
Feb 2003Capitalremodel/renovate/upgrade and add classrooms to HS and acquire related equipment$4.8M51.4%Passed
Nov 2002Operatingcompleting demolition and remodeling/renovation of gym portion of old Bloomer Middle Sc...$0.1M28.1%Failed
Nov 2000Operatingcomplete school improvement or to acquire and maintain portable classrooms$1.4M62.2%Passed
Nov 2000Capitalacquire land; construct/equip new MS$8.2M67.1%Passed
Feb 1999Capitalnew h.s; convert old h.s. to middle school.$12.9M34.3%Failed
Nov 1998Capitalnew high school; remodel old h.s. & raze middle school$13.6M44.2%Failed
May 1997Capitalmiddle and high school remodeling$12.3M27.3%Failed

DPI referenda file, 1993 onward.

92% of Bloomer's teachers stayed in the district into 2025-26, against 92% for the median regional peer and 91% statewide; 3% left Wisconsin public schools. Average teacher salary was $58,514, against $60,384 for the median peer and $61,273 statewide.

BloomerRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
96%93%91%88%86%2016-172018-192020-212022-232024-25

Staff by role, 2016-17 to 2025-26

RoleHeadcount, firstHeadcount, lastChangePeer median change
Administrators67+17%0%
Teachers8694+9%+7%
Aides/Paraprofessionals1525+67%+32%
Pupil Services48+100%+20%
Other5465+20%+9%

DPI All Staff files: distinct people by role. Peer median change across the regional peers.

DPI All Staff files, person-level, linked year to year.

Wherever this briefing sets Bloomer beside other districts, it uses the group below. A group figure is the middle value across its members (the property-tax tables on the median home use the average instead), each counted equally, so one large member cannot dominate it.

Regional peers 12 districts

The 12 Wisconsin districts of the same type most like Bloomer on four measures: distance and CESA (30% of the weight), total cost per member (30%), the Census child poverty rate (25%) and locale, meaning city, suburb, town or rural (15%). Districts under 400 students are not eligible.

DistrictCountyCESALocaleMiles awayEnrollmentCost per member
Chippewa Falls Area UnifiedChippewa10Suburb114,968$16,437
ColfaxDunn11Rural13750$16,056
CornellChippewa10Rural16452$14,683
Cadott CommunityChippewa10Rural19867$19,085
Elk Mound AreaDunn11Rural211,000$15,756
CameronBarron11Rural22899$18,723
Fall CreekEau Claire10Rural25813$16,654
Boyceville CommunityDunn11Rural26712$17,055
BruceRusk10Rural29476$17,859
ThorpClark10Rural37559$17,760
MondoviBuffalo10Rural38969$16,042
Eleva-StrumTrempealeau10Rural39654$17,732

“Wisconsin median” is the middle value across Wisconsin districts; property-tax and revenue-limit comparisons use K-12 districts only, because elementary and union high school districts overlap the same territory.