Caledonia, Wisconsin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Caledonia
Village
WIS 32 in Caledonia at 4 Mile Road
Location of Caledonia in Racine County, Wisconsin
Country	United States
State	Wisconsin
County	Racine
Area
• Total	45.52 sq mi (117.89 km2)
• Land	45.23 sq mi (117.13 km2)
• Water	0.29 sq mi (0.76 km2)  6.75%
Elevation	659 ft (201 m)
Population  (2020)
• Total	25,361
• Density	558.90/sq mi (215.80/km2)
Time zone	UTC-6 (CST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-5 (CDT)
ZIP Code	53108
Area code(s)	262
FIPS code	55-11950
GNIS feature ID	1582904
Website	http://www.caledoniawi.com

Caledonia is a village located in Racine County, Wisconsin, in the United States. In 2020, about 25,361 people lived there. Several smaller communities are part of Caledonia, including Franksville, Husher, and Tabor.

History of Caledonia

Caledonia used to be a "town" (a type of local government area) until January 2006. The state government first said no when Caledonia wanted to become a "village" (another type of local government). But then, the state legislature made a special rule just for Caledonia. This rule allowed the people of Caledonia to vote on the idea. In 2005, they voted in favor, and Caledonia officially became a village.

Geography and Location

Caledonia, along with Wind Point (lower right), and southern Oak Creek (top), November 15, 2015, during Expedition 45 of the ISS

Caledonia covers a total area of about 48.72 square miles (126.18 square kilometers). Most of this area is land, about 45.43 square miles (117.66 square kilometers). The rest is water, which is about 3.29 square miles (8.52 square kilometers).

Population and People

How Many People Live Here?

In 2010, there were 24,705 people living in Caledonia. These people lived in 9,629 households. A household is a group of people living together in one home. Most households, about 63.6%, were married couples.

The average age of people in Caledonia was 43.5 years old. About 22.6% of the residents were under 18 years old. About 14.4% were 65 years old or older. The population was almost evenly split between males (49.7%) and females (50.3%).

Schools and Education

Caledonia is part of the Racine Unified School District. This district manages the public schools in the area.

Local Schools in Caledonia

Several schools serve the children of Caledonia:

• Gifford K–8 School (for kindergarten through 8th grade)
• Olympia Brown Elementary School
• North Park Elementary School

For middle school, students might also attend Jerstad-Agerholm K–8 School in Racine. Older students go to high schools like J.I. Case High School in Mount Pleasant or Horlick High School in Racine.

There are also special "magnet schools" like The R.E.A.L. School and Walden III Green School. These schools offer unique learning programs for students in grades 6 through 12.

Private and Religious Schools

Some families choose to send their children to private religious schools. These include:

• Saint Rita School (K–8), a Catholic school in Caledonia.
• Trinity Lutheran School (K–8) in Racine.

Efforts to Create a New School District

Since 2008, some people in Caledonia have wanted to create their own independent school district. They believe this would give them more control over local schools.

In 2015, a vote was held, and people narrowly agreed to explore separating from the Racine Unified School District. State lawmakers, like Van H. Wanggaard and Tom Weatherston, suggested a different solution. They proposed dividing the school board into smaller areas, so Caledonia would have its own representative. This idea became law in 2015.

The discussion continued, and in 2017, a new state program called the Opportunity Schools and Partnership Program (OSPP) was introduced. This program would allow communities to separate from a school district if it received failing grades for two years in a row. However, the Racine Unified School District received a passing grade in 2017, so separation under this law was not possible at that time.

In 2018, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction and State Superintendent Tony Evers suggested getting rid of the OSPP program entirely. Tony Evers later became the Governor of Wisconsin.

Notable People from Caledonia

• Marcel Dandeneau (1931–2017) was a teacher and state politician from Wisconsin. He lived in Caledonia and served on the town board, even as its chairman.

See also

In Spanish: Caledonia (Wisconsin) para niños