The Baraboo School District is a school district based in the city of Baraboo, Wisconsin. It serves the city of Baraboo, and the villages of West Baraboo, North Freedom, a portion of Lake Delton, and the surrounding rural area.
In 1885 the $8,000 First Ward School opened at the intersection of Summit Street and Sixth Avenue.
The Second Ward School, a Queen Anne style building, was built in 1889. The Madison company Conover & Porter designed it.
On January 9, 1883, the Third Ward School, a six classroom Queen Anne building, opened after having been under construction since 1882. The school was located at Elm Street at Grove Street. The Third Ward had a major population increase due to the 1871 construction of a railroad.
According to the Baraboo Historical Society, in 1950 a fire ruined the First Ward School building. A document posted by the Baraboo Public Library stated that the fire destroyed the Second Ward School Building.
Some former schools were acquired by the district in the 1960s. Lyons, now known as West Baraboo, was served by a wood schoolhouse until a permanent brick one was built in 1901. The former wood building became a storage unit and was relocated to Oschner Park. The brick building was razed in 1981. The $56,444 Pleasant Valley School opened in 1956. The $93,889 Fairfield Center School, located northwest of the center of Baraboo, opened in 1960.
The current interim superintendent is Stephen J. Considine who took over after the resignation of Dr. Rainey Briggs. On April 14th, Considine was selected for the next superintendent term starting July 1, 2025. Briggs served from July 1, 2021 until February 10, 2025.
The district is run by a seven-member school board. Members are elected in April for staggered three-year terms.
The first school in Baraboo opened in 1843. A school district was organized a year later.
The City of Baraboo incorporated in 1882. When the school district was first established, the district was solely within the City of Baraboo; the district charged tuition for students living in West Baraboo in other surrounding areas. The Mayor of Baraboo appointed members of the school board.
The city had three wards upon its creation, and the initial plan was that one school building would serve one ward. New schools were built to serve those wards.
The board system changed to one where citizens vote for board members in 1938. The district expanded in size in 1961-1962, so areas previously paying tuition no longer had to.