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Beaver Dam Education

There is a track record in both the public and private school systems in Beaver Dam of excellence, and a strong tradition of community support for education. The Beaver Dam Unified School District (BDUSD) provides public school education in the community, while Lutheran and Catholic grade schools and a private college preparatory high school, Wayland Academy, offer a private sector educational alternative. In addition, Beaver Dam is home to one of the three campuses of Moraine Park Technical College, offering a wide variety of two- and four-year degree courses.

Public Education – Primary & Secondary

The education students receive at the Beaver Dam Unified School District is focused on maximizing their potential. Upon graduation, students have the abilities, knowledge, and character necessary to be contributing members of the community. Student achievement is the focus for the dedicated teaching, support, and administrative staff in the district.

The district operates seven elementary schools, a middle school, a high school and a charter school. The charter school offers an alternative education opportunity for at-risk middle and high school age students, and allows young adults ages 18-21 to finish their high school educational requirements. The district is a member of Cooperative Educational Service Agency (CESA 6), which provides special classes for blind, deaf, and multiple-handicapped students.

In addition to publicly funded services, the BDUSD excels in collaborating with the community by bringing volunteers into the schools for such programs as the Partners Are Learning (PALs) program. PALs offers students one-on-one tutoring and mentoring before or after school with a high school volunteer or an adult in the community. There are numerous additional volunteer programs including Junior Achievement and the Architecture Walk.

The Beaver Dam Unified School District continuously seeks opportunities to enhance education. Scholarships are available to graduating seniors through the Beaver Dam High School Endowment Scholarship program and the Beaver Dam Scholarship Foundation, with a trust fund of more than $2.3 million. These two programs award more than 60 local scholarships in excess of $100,000 each year.

Students participate in co-curricular activities, which include numerous academic-based programs and more than 20 sports in Division 1 interscholastic competition in the Little Ten Conference. The district welcomes visitors to our schools. Please stop by to learn more about the district and to see us “Learning for a Lifetime.”

Public Education - College

The Beaver Dam campus of Moraine Park Technical College serves approximately 3,700 students annually. Moraine Park offers more than 60 associate’s degrees and technical diplomas as well as numerous certificate programs offering short-term learning opportunities at campuses in Beaver Dam, Fond du Lac and West Bend.

Local business and industry training and technical assistance needs can be met through contracts between companies and Moraine Park. Learn more by visiting Moraine Park’s website at www.morainepark.edu or by calling (920) 887-1101.

Private Education

Recently, the three former Catholic parishes of Beaver Dam, St. Michael’s, St. Patrick’s and St. Peter’s completed a multi-year merger into one new Catholic church and school, St. Katharine Drexel, representing over 100 years of Catholic education in the community. The school operates two downtown school sites, a Primary Campus on Maple Street, and an Elementary Campus five blocks away on south Spring Street. St. Katharine’s guarantees a quality, Catholic, education for preschool youth through 8th grade in Beaver Dam.

St. Stephen’s Lutheran School is part of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS). This private Lutheran grade school traces its roots back to 1896 in Beaver Dam, with staff currently teaching kindergarten through 8th grade. The school and St. Stephen’s Church is located just west of downtown at West and Maple streets. The WELS tradition of blending Christian morals with an excellent education has provided the community with another quality educational option to the fine public school system in Beaver Dam.

Founded in 1855, Wayland Academy is an internationally renowned independent, coeducational, college preparatory, boarding and day school for grades 9-12. Today, over 150 years after Wayland first began educating young people, a Wayland Academy education is as valuable and important as ever.

Wayland’s mission is “…to prepare young people for a successful college experience and a rapidly changing world…” One hundred percent of Wayland’s graduates are accepted to colleges and universities, including some of the most selective and prestigious institutions in the nation.

Situated on a beautiful 55-acre campus in the heart of Beaver Dam, Wayland’s 25 buildings house extensive academic, athletic, and extracurricular facilities. Buildings range in age from Wayland Hall (1855), to brand new, aesthetically pleasing structures that blend with the historic architecture of the campus. Through an extensive array of community related programs, Wayland enriches life for all residents in Beaver Dam. The Academy allows use of some of its facilities for community groups, and opens its observatory to the public several times each year for public viewing of the stars. In addition, the Academy invites the public to a series of fine arts events each year, ranging from drama productions and visual art exhibits to faculty performances and special guest lectures.