The Fox River divides the West De Pere School District from the De Pere School District. In a city of 24,903, it is unique to have two separate school districts. The West De Pere School District encompasses approximately 44 square miles and consists of residents from De Pere, Ashwaubenon, Oneida, Hobart and Lawrence. The School District of West De Pere has a current PK – 12 enrollment of 3,525 students. Unlike most districts, the enrollment is increasing by over 100 new students a year. There are currently five buildings housing students--West De Pere High School, grades 9-12 (1,055 students), West De Pere Middle School, grade 6-8 (521 students), West De Pere Intermediate School (543 students), Westwood Elementary School, grades K-4 (532 students) Hemlock Creek Elementary School, grades K-4 (715 Students), and Phantom Knight School of Opportunity, grades 7-12 (20 students). The district office is located within another building, and some of our 4K classrooms are off site.

Each school has a library website to host resources and information for staff and students -

• • • High School

    • Middle School

    • Intermediate School

    • Hemlock Creek

    • Westwood

Our libraries are funded mostly by Common School Funds. The smaller part of our budget comes from the building level. Common School Funds have rigid guidelines for how the money can be spent. In addition, it is important to have a building budget that has more flexibility for things like staff/student book clubs, supplies, and more! All Common School Funds must be aligned to the district's Board approved long-range library plan.

Managed by the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands (BCPL), the Common School Fund was established by the Wisconsin Constitution in 1848 with the granting of about 1.5 million acres of land for educational purposes. The vast majority of these lands were sold to create the principal for a permanent school fund, with the earnings to be exclusively used to support and maintain common schools (now known as K-12 public schools) and the purchase of suitable libraries and apparatus therefor. The Wisconsin Constitution also provided for growth of Common School Fund principal through the addition of clear proceeds of all fines, fees and forfeitures, including unclaimed property. Citation