Wisconsin · Sheboygan Falls · Sheboygan County · CESA 07

Sheboygan Falls School District

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

On the ballot · November 3, 2026

Sheboygan Falls School District: one referendum question

Shall the School District of Sheboygan Falls, Sheboygan County, Wisconsin be authorized to issue pursuant to Chapter 67 of the Wisconsin Statutes, general obligation bonds in an amount not to exceed $65,700,000 for the public purpose of paying the cost of a school facility improvement project consisting of: renovations and updates at the Elementary School, including to special education and classroom spaces, the media center and cafeteria/kitchen; construction of additions and renovations at the High School for science classrooms and labs, career and technical education, a science, technology, engineering and math lab, the media center and weight room/fitness area; renovations and updates at the High School, including to special education and classroom spaces, the locker rooms, existing gymnasium and auditorium; district-wide accessibility, safety, security and site improvements; other capital projects identified in the District's capital improvement plan; and acquisition of furnishings, fixtures and equipment?

Source: news

Enrollment
1,633
2024-25
Revenue-limit members
1,569
2025-26 funding count
Enrollment, 5 yr
−0.9%
headcount change · peers −2.3%
Forward ELA z
−0.00
last 3 tested years
Cost / member
$18,884
2024-25
Mill rate
7.11
statewide K-12 6.90
Home value
−10%
5-yr avg vs. 14 nearby districts
Teachers staying
83%
2025-26
Enrollment

1,633 students in 2024-25, −0.9% over five years while the regional peer median moved −2.3%.

Achievement

Forward Exam results average −0.00 (ELA) and −0.20 (math) on a z scale over the last three tested years, where 0 is the average Wisconsin district. ACT composite: 19.6 against a statewide median of 19.2.

Spending

$18,884 total cost per member in 2024-25, above the regional peer median of $17,394 and above the statewide median of $18,324.

Taxes

The school tax rate is 7.11 mills (2025-26), against a statewide K-12 median of 6.90; the 2025-26 levy is $11.4M, 41% of it referendum-approved debt.

Revenue limit

$12,435 per member under the state revenue limit, against a statewide K-12 median of $13,575; the district has never asked voters to exceed the limit.

Sheboygan Falls enrolled 1,633 students in 2024-25 (September membership). Since 2009-10 its enrollment has fallen 9%; the median regional peer shrank 2% and the median Wisconsin district shrank 12%. The chart indexes each series to its 2009-10 level.

Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
102989490862009-102013-142017-182024-25

Students, 2025-26

Student group2025-262020-21Median WI district
Students with disabilities17.5%14.9%16.6%
English learners2.5%0.2%2.4%
Economically disadvantaged31.5%31.9%36.7%
White79.7%85.6%85.3%
Hispanic8.2%7.0%6.8%
Two or More5.2%3.2%3.9%
Asian4.0%2.3%0.9%
Black2.0%1.3%1.0%
Amer Indian0.6%0.5%0.4%
Pacific Isle0.3%0.2%0.1%

Community (ACS 2024)

MeasureSheboygan FallsMedian WI district
Median household income$74,301$77,317
Poverty rate7.2%8.3%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more28.8%25.4%
Households with children23.8%25.9%
Residents 65 and older20.5%20.5%
Median home value$252,100$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 Sheboygan Falls averaged $211,380, 10% below the median of the 14 districts within 25 miles ($235,500). That ranks 11th of 15 in the area and at the 53rd percentile of Wisconsin districts (state median $205,920).

ACS 5-year releaseSheboygan FallsNearby medianDifferenceWisconsin median
2016–20$164,300$201,900−19%$172,200
2017–21$188,300$210,250−10%$182,750
2018–22$216,900$242,500−11%$210,250
2019–23$235,300$256,650−8%$227,050
2020–24$252,100$274,100−8%$241,800
Five-release average$211,380$235,500−10%$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 Sheboygan Falls's: Kohler (2 mi, $325,560); Kewaskum (25 mi, $300,060); Northern Ozaukee (18 mi, $289,340); Elkhart Lake-Glenbeulah (13 mi, $283,080); Random Lake (14 mi, $253,120); Port Washington-Saukville (22 mi, $251,880); Howards Grove (8 mi, $240,020); Oostburg (7 mi, $230,980); Cedar Grove-Belgium Area (10 mi, $226,440); Plymouth Joint (8 mi, $217,180); Kiel Area (18 mi, $206,200); Valders Area (24 mi, $192,400); New Holstein (21 mi, $188,160); Sheboygan Area (4 mi, $165,880).

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. Sheboygan Falls's revenue-limit membership for 2025-26 is 1,569.

School yearEnrolled studentsRevenue-limit membershipPer enrolled student
2020-211,6641,6260.98
2021-221,6821,6260.97
2022-231,7031,6380.96
2023-241,6821,6360.97
2024-251,6331,6070.98
2025-26—1,569—

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

In spring 2025, 54% of Sheboygan Falls students met or exceeded Forward standards in ELA and 53% 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, Sheboygan Falls averaged −0.00 in ELA and −0.20 in math over the last three tested years, against −0.52 and −0.17 in its first three years on file.

Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Average Wisconsin district (0)

ELA

+1.05+0.52−0.01−0.53−1.062015-162019-202024-25

Math

+1.28+0.71+0.15−0.42−0.982015-162019-202024-25

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

MeasureSheboygan FallsRegional peersWisconsin medianYear
Attendance rate95.2%95.3%94.3%2024-25
Chronic absenteeism6.6%6.9%10.9%2024-25
ACT composite (grade 11)19.620.119.22024-25
Enrolled in college the first fall100.0%100.0%100.0%2024-25
Suspensions and expulsions per 1,00056.218.133.02024-25

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

Sheboygan Falls's total cost per member was $18,884 in 2024-25, against $17,394 for the median regional peer and $18,324 for the median Wisconsin district. Local property tax paid for 36% of revenue, against 38% statewide.

Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
$19,913$17,255$14,597$11,939$9,2812006-072010-112014-152018-192024-25

The revenue limit allows $12,435 per member for 2025-26, below the statewide K-12 median of $13,575 and below the regional peer median of $12,587. The limit counts general state aid and the property tax together, so state aid changes move the levy rather than total revenue. It has never asked voters to exceed the limit.

Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
$14,229$12,540$10,851$9,162$7,4732005-062009-102013-142017-182021-222025-26

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 $11.4M, at a rate of 7.11 mills per $1,000 of equalized value (statewide K-12 median 6.90). 41% of the levy repays referendum-approved debt (Fund 39).

Levy yearTotal levyGeneral fund (Fund 10)Referendum debt (Fund 39)Mill rate
2020-21$9.7M$6.7M$2.8M9.41
2021-22$9.7M$5.4M$4.1M8.76
2022-23$9.7M$5.1M$4.3M8.14
2023-24$10.5M$5.7M$4.4M7.90
2024-25$11.4M$5.6M$5.5M7.90
2025-26$11.4M$6.4M$4.7M7.11
Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
11.299.878.467.055.642006-072010-112014-152018-192025-26

The median residential property-tax bill inside the district, all governments, was $3,300 in 2025 (statewide median $2,766). The full bill on the median home comes to 4.4% of median household income, and the school portion on that home ($252,100) is about $1,992.

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

A home at Sheboygan Falls's median value, about $341,000 at the current assessment, owes roughly $4,660 in property tax for taxes payable 2026. The school district's part is $2,420 (47% 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 $230 more than the average regional peer's median home.

Taxing authoritySheboygan FallsRegional peers (average)
School district$2,420 47%$2,370 48%
Technical college$170 3%$200 4%
County$1,100 21%$1,000 20%
City, village or town$1,200 23%$1,180 24%
Special districts$250 5%$140 3%
State school levy tax credit−$480−$460
Total$4,660$4,430
Median home value$341,000$367,000

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 $341,000 home at each group's tax rates

Holding the house constant separates tax rates from home values. Taxed at Sheboygan Falls's rates the home owes $4,660; at the regional peers' rates it would owe $4,150 on average.

Taxing authoritySheboygan FallsRegional peers (average)
School district$2,420 47%$2,200 48%
Technical college$170 3%$180 4%
County$1,100 21%$950 21%
City, village or town$1,200 23%$1,110 24%
Special districts$250 5%$130 3%
State school levy tax credit−$480−$430
Total$4,660$4,150
Tax as a share of home value1.37%1.22%

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 13 referendum questions since 1997 and approved 5. All were capital questions; the district has never asked voters to exceed the limit.

ElectionTypePurposeAmountYesResult
Apr 2025CapitalINITIAL RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $70,...$70.0M48.9%Failed
Nov 2024CapitalThe first question asks voters to approve general obligation bonds in an amount not to ...$78.3M44.1%Failed
Nov 2016CapitalIssue debt for the cost of constructing a new middle school, taking down the existing m...$30.9M63.2%Passed
Apr 2014CapitalBuild an auditorium in the new middle school.$2.6M39.5%Failed
Apr 2014CapitalConstruct a new Middle School, Taking down the existing Middle School, Construct 4K cla...$27.6M45.3%Failed
Apr 2013CapitalAcquiring Land, Construct a new Middle School, Construct an early learning addition to ...$33.8M40.5%Failed
Apr 2007CapitalElementary School Addition$0.9M56.7%Passed
Apr 2007CapitalExtraordinary Maintenance at all school district buildings.$2.7M59.1%Passed
Apr 2006CapitalNew Middle School and Major Maintenance Projects$21.5M13.1%Failed
Nov 1998Capitalnew elementary school$10.0M57.5%Passed
Nov 1998Capitalindoor swimming pool$2.0M59.8%Passed
Oct 1997Capitalnew elementary and remodel ms$14.1M37.6%Failed
Oct 1997Capitalcommunity swimming pool$2.0M47.7%Failed

DPI referenda file, 1993 onward.

83% of Sheboygan Falls's teachers stayed in the district into 2025-26, against 93% for the median regional peer and 91% statewide; 11% left Wisconsin public schools. Average teacher salary was $61,175, against $63,243 for the median peer and $61,273 statewide.

Sheboygan FallsRegional peers (median)Wisconsin (median district)
99%93%87%81%75%2016-172018-192020-212022-232024-25

Staff by role, 2016-17 to 2025-26

RoleHeadcount, firstHeadcount, lastChangePeer median change
Administrators1211−8%0%
Teachers119114−4%−1%
Aides/Paraprofessionals3234+6%+3%
Pupil Services1512−20%+13%
Other6566+2%−4%

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 Sheboygan Falls 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 Sheboygan Falls 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
KohlerSheboygan07Suburb4475$21,644
OostburgSheboygan07Rural6976$16,315
Sheboygan AreaSheboygan07City610,185$16,363
Plymouth JointSheboygan07Town82,107$16,905
Howards GroveSheboygan07Suburb9853$17,417
Cedar Grove-Belgium AreaSheboygan07Rural12928$17,371
Random LakeSheboygan07Rural12736$20,068
Kiel AreaManitowoc07Town151,226$18,035
Port Washington-SaukvilleOzaukee01Suburb222,574$20,273
KewaskumWashington06Suburb221,866$14,985
West BendWashington06Suburb276,272$16,242
North Fond du LacFond du Lac06Suburb331,393$17,864

“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.