Rio Community School District, Wisconsin, elections

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Rio Community School District
District details
School board members: 5
Students: 360 (2022-2023)
Schools: 2 (2022-2023)
Website: Link

Rio Community School District is a school district in Wisconsin (Columbia County). During the 2023 school year, 360 students attended one of the district's two schools.

This page provides information regarding school board members, election rules, finances, academics, policies, and more details about the district.

Jump to a section:

Elections School board Location Budget Academic performance Students Staff Schools

Elections

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• 2025
• 2024
• 2023

Per our coverage scope, Ballotpedia does not provide election results for this particular race. Check your city or county government's election website for vote totals.

Rio Community School District, At-large

General election

General election for Rio Community School District, At-large (2 seats)

Keith Desjarlais and Jordan Noyes ran in the general election for Rio Community School District, At-large on April 1, 2025.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Keith Desjarlais (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Jordan Noyes (Nonpartisan)

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Per our coverage scope, Ballotpedia does not provide election results for this particular race. Check your city or county government's election website for vote totals.

Rio Community School District, At-large

General election

General election for Rio Community School District, At-large (2 seats)

Keith Desjarlais, Christofer Ditscheit, Beth Laufenberg, and Jordan Noyes ran in the general election for Rio Community School District, At-large on April 2, 2024.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Keith Desjarlais (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Christofer Ditscheit (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Beth Laufenberg (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Jordan Noyes (Nonpartisan)

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Per our coverage scope, Ballotpedia does not provide election results for this particular race. Check your city or county government's election website for vote totals.

Rio Community School District, At-large

General election

General election for Rio Community School District, At-large

Tammy Wakeman and Carley Young ran in the general election for Rio Community School District, At-large on April 4, 2023.

		Candidate
	Submit photo	Tammy Wakeman (Nonpartisan)
	Submit photo	Carley Young (Nonpartisan)

---

	There are no incumbents in this race.
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Election rules

View election rules

 

Election dates and frequency

See also: Rules governing school board election dates and timing

School board general elections in Wisconsin are held on the first Tuesday in April. The one first class city school district in the state, Milwaukee Public Schools, holds school board elections in odd-numbered years. All other school districts hold school board elections every year.

School board nonpartisan primary elections in Wisconsin are held on the third Tuesday in February. The one first class city school district in the state, Milwaukee Public Schools, holds school board elections every two years in odd-numbered years. All other school districts hold school board elections every year. School board primary elections are only held if there are more than two candidates running for any specific single-seat race or if the number of candidates running for multi-seat races is more than twice the number of seats up for election. Otherwise, the primary is canceled and candidates automatically advance to the general election ballot.

See law: Wisconsin Statute Section 5.02(21) and Wisconsin Statute Section 5.02(22)

Recent or upcoming election dates for all school districts in the state except first class school districts (Milwaukee Public Schools)

Below are the recent/upcoming dates for all school districts in the state except first class school districts (Milwaukee Public Schools). There may be exceptions to these dates for specific districts because of local charters and district-specific exceptions and carve-outs.

• Filing deadline date: January 6, 2026
• Primary election date: February 17, 2026
• General election date: April 7, 2026

Recent or upcoming election dates for first class city school districts, which are districts serving cities with a population of more than 150,000 (Milwaukee Public Schools is the only first class city school district)

Below are the recent/upcoming dates for first class city school districts, which are districts serving cities with a population of more than 150,000 (Milwaukee Public Schools is the only first class city school district). There may be exceptions to these dates for specific districts because of local charters and district-specific exceptions and carve-outs.

• Filing deadline date: January 5, 2027
• Primary election date: February 16, 2027
• General election date: April 6, 2027

Election system

School board members in Wisconsin are elected through a system of a nonpartisan primary election and a nonpartisan general election. The primary election is only held if a large enough number of candidates run for office.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10(2).a and Wisconsin Statute 120.41(1)

Party labels on the ballot

See also: Rules governing party labels in school board elections

School board elections in Wisconsin are nonpartisan, which means party labels do not appear on the ballot for school board candidates. Wisconsin Statute requires school board candidates to file nomination papers before the state's spring primary and for regular school board general elections to occur at the state's April spring election, which features nonpartisan races. Statute defines "spring primary" as "the nonpartisan primary held on the 3rd Tuesday in February to nominate nonpartisan candidates to be voted for at the spring election."

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10(2).a and Wisconsin Statute 120.41(1)

Winning an election

The school board candidate or candidates with the most votes are elected to office in the general election. State law requires a place on the school board general election ballot for write-in candidates.

School board primary elections are only held if (a) for single-seat races, there are more than two candidates for any one seat up for election; or (b) for multi-seat races, if the number of candidates is more than twice the number of seats up for election. If a primary is held, the top two vote getters per seat advance to the general election.

See law: Wisconsin Statute Section 8.10 and Wisconsin Statute Section 120
and Wisconsin Statute Section 8.10 and Wisconsin Statute Section 120

Term length and staggering

School board members for all school districts except first class city school districts are elected to staggered three-year terms.

First class city school district board members are elected to staggered four-year terms. As of 2022, the Milwaukee Public Schools district was the only first class city school district in the state.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10.2
and Wisconsin Statute 119.08(1)(a) and Wisconsin Statute 119.06(3)(a)

School districts other than first class city districts elect as close to equal numbers of board members as possible every year to three-year terms, which means roughly one-third of board members are up for regular election every year.

As close to half of first class city school district board members as possible are elected every two years. As of 2022, the Milwaukee Public Schools district was the only first class city school district in the state and had nine board members, with five elected in the year after each midterm election and four elected in the year after each presidential election.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 120
and Wisconsin Statute 119.08(1)(a) and Wisconsin Statute 119.06(3)(a)

Representation: at large vs. by sub-district

School board members are elected at large by voters from the whole district for all school districts except first class city school districts. By default, board members are elected through multi-seat races. District voters can opt to establish numbered seats with members elected at large in single-seat races, for which candidates must file for specific seat numbers. District voters can also opt to create apportioned areas (sub-districts) and require board members to be elected to represent each sub-district. Under that system, school board candidates must reside within the sub-district for which they are running but are elected at large by all voters in the whole district. Voters in a school district can submit a petition with either 100 or 500 voter signatures, depending on whether the district contains part of a city, to propose electing school board members according to numbered seats or from apportioned residence areas. Upon such a petition the proposal is put before voters at either an annual meeting or election. Once adopted by a majority of voters, the structure can only be changed or reversed by the same petition and voter approval process.

School board members for first class city school districts are elected through a combination of one member elected at-large and eight members elected by voters from sub-districts determined by the school board. State law requires the sub-districts to be substantially equal in population and "reflect a balanced representation of citizens in all areas within the city." As of 2022, the Milwaukee Public Schools district was the only first class city school district in the state.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 120.06
and Wisconsin Statute 119.08(1)(a) and Wisconsin Statute 119.06(3)(a)

Filing deadlines and swearing-in dates

School board candidates must file by 5:00 pm on the first Tuesday in January before elections, which are held every year.

First class city school district board candidates must file by 5:00 pm on the first Tuesday in January before elections, which are held in each odd-numbered year.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10.2

School board candidates cannot circulate nominating petitions until after December 1 of the year before elections, which are held every year.

First class city school district board candidates cannot circulate nominating petitions until after December 1 of the year before elections, which are held in each odd-numbered year.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10.2

New school board members officially take office on the fourth Monday in April.

See law: Wisconsin Statute 8.10.2

 

About the district

School board

The Rio Community School District consists of five members serving three-year terms. To find information about school board meetings, click here.

List of school board members

Name	Year assumed office	Year term ends
Beth Laufenberg
Jordan Noyes
Tammy Wakeman		2026
Carley Young		2026
Andrea Becker		2025

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District map

School district map

Overlapping state house districts

Rio Community School District

Office Name	Current Officeholder	Party	% School District Covered	% Other District Covered
Wisconsin State Assembly District 42	Maureen McCarville	Democratic Party	90%	14%
Wisconsin State Assembly District 40	Karen DeSanto	Democratic Party	10%	1%

The table was limited to the lower chamber because it provides the most granularity. State house districts tend to be more numerous and therefore smaller than state senate or U.S. House districts. This provides an impression of the partisan affiliations in the area.

Budget

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Revenue
• Expenditures

Revenue, 2020-2021

SOURCE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Federal:	$419,000	$1,097	6%
Local:	$3,475,000	$9,097	49%
State:	$3,250,000	$8,508	46%
Total:	$7,144,000	$18,702

Expenditures, 2020-2021

TYPE	AMOUNT	AMOUNT PER STUDENT	PERCENT
Total Expenditures:	$6,748,000	$17,664
Total Current Expenditures:	$5,476,000	$14,335
Instructional Expenditures:	$3,397,000	$8,892	50%
Student and Staff Support:	$436,000	$1,141	6%
Administration:	$639,000	$1,672	9%
Operations, Food Service, Other:	$1,004,000	$2,628	15%
Total Capital Outlay:	$186,000	$486
Construction:	$11,000	$28
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other:	$0	$0
Interest on Debt:	$66,000	$172

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by the U.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result, proficiency levels are not comparable between different states and year-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements. To protect student privacy, percentages are reported as ranges for groups of 300 students or fewer. If five or fewer students were included in a data set, the data will display as "PS."

• Mathematics
• Reading/language arts
• Graduation rates

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	30-34		PS	PS		<50	30-34
2018-2019	35-39		PS	PS		<50	35-39
2017-2018	30	PS	PS	PS		<50	30-34
2016-2017	34	PS	PS	PS		>=50	30-34
2015-2016	29	PS	PS	PS		<50	30-34
2014-2015	34	PS	PS	PS		<50	35-39
2013-2014	40	<50	PS	PS	PS		40-44
2012-2013	39	<50	PS	PS	PS		40-44
2011-2012	40	<50	>=50	PS	PS		40-44
2010-2011	77	PS	PS	PS	PS		75-79

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2020-2021	35-39		PS	PS		<50	35-39
2018-2019	35-39		PS	PS		<50	40-44
2017-2018	36	PS	PS	PS		<50	35-39
2016-2017	36	PS	PS	PS		<50	35-39
2015-2016	36	PS	PS	PS		<50	35-39
2014-2015	47	PS	PS	PS		<50	45-49
2013-2014	34	<50	PS	PS	PS		35-39
2012-2013	31	<50	PS	PS	PS		30-34
2011-2012	33	<50	>=50	PS	PS		30-34
2010-2011	84	PS	PS	PS	PS		85-89

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School year	All (%)	Asian/Pacific Islander (%)	Black (%)	Hispanic (%)	Native American (%)	Two or More Races (%)	White (%)
2019-2020	>=80			PS			>=80
2018-2019	>=80	PS		PS		PS	>=80
2017-2018	>=90	PS				PS	>=90
2016-2017	>=90		PS	PS		PS	>=90
2015-2016	>=80	PS				PS	>=80
2014-2015	>=90	PS		PS		PS	>=90
2013-2014	80-89	PS	PS	PS			80-89
2012-2013	80-89	PS	PS	PS	PS		80-89
2011-2012	>=90	PS		PS			>=90
2010-2011	80-89		PS	PS			80-89

Students

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Enrollment
• Demographics

Year	Enrollment	Year-to-year change (%)
2022-2023	360	-1.9
2021-2022	367	-4.1
2020-2021	382	-1.3
2019-2020	387	-5.2
2018-2019	407	-0.5
2017-2018	409	-7.6
2016-2017	440	0.7
2015-2016	437	-2.7
2014-2015	449	-6.9
2013-2014	480	-2.9
2012-2013	494	-0.8
2011-2012	498	0.2
2010-2011	497	3.2
2009-2010	481	-5.8
2008-2009	509	3.7
2007-2008	490	-3.5
2006-2007	507	2.2
2005-2006	496	-7.3
2004-2005	532	3.0
2003-2004	516	-7.8
2002-2003	556	-0.2
2001-2002	557	-2.5
2000-2001	571	-3.0
1999-2000	588	0.0

Racial Demographics, 2022-2023

RACE	Rio Community School District (%)	Wisconsin K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native	0.0	1.0
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander	0.6	4.2
Black	0.8	8.7
Hispanic	2.5	13.6
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander	0.0	0.1
Two or More Races	2.2	5.1
White	93.9	67.2

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Staff

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

• Teachers
• Administrators
• Other staff

As of the 2022-2023 school year, Rio Community School District had 36.24 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 9.93.

Teachers, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten:	2.00
Kindergarten:	1.00
Elementary:	12.39
Secondary:	20.85
Total:	36.24

Rio Community School District employed 0.70 district administrators and 1.50 school administrators as of the 2022-2023 school year.

Administrators, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators:	0.70
District Administrative Support:	1.00
School Administrators:	1.50
School Administrative Support:	1.84

Other staff, 2022-2023 school year

TYPE	NUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides:	6.38
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors:	0.20
Total Guidance Counselors:	1.50
Elementary Guidance Counselors:	0.50
Secondary Guidance Counselors:	1.00
Librarians/Media Specialists:	0.50
Library/Media Support:	0.60
Student Support Services:	7.24
Other Support Services:	8.00

Schools

The following statistics were published by the National Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of the U.S. Department of Education.

The Rio Community School District operates two schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.

List of schools

SCHOOL NAME	NUMBER OF STUDENTS	GRADES
Rio Elementary	170	PK-5
Rio Middle/High	190	6-12

About school boards

Education legislation in Wisconsin

Bills are monitored by BillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

School Boards	Education Policy	Local Politics	Wisconsin
List of school districts in Wisconsin Wisconsin school board elections, 2025 School board elections, 2025 School board recalls School board authority in Wisconsin	Wisconsin Department of Education Public education in Wisconsin	Municipal government Local courts Local ballot measures Recalls	Wisconsin Wisconsin elections, 2025 Wisconsin State Legislature Wisconsin state executive offices

External links

Office website

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