Our School

Who We Are:

Madison Elementary School is a high-performing public elementary school in Wakarusa, Indiana, serving grades K–5 as part of the Penn-Harris-Madison School Corporation, one of northern Indiana’s top-ranked school districts.

P-H-M ranks in the Top 4% of ILEARN student performance, and Penn High School’s graduation rate is 97.3%.

Madison’s third graders posted an 84.2% IREAD pass rate in 2025, up from 77.3% in 2024—a 6.9-point gain.

Madison has also earned the distinction of being ranked Indiana’s #273 for Public Elementary Schools by U.S. News & World Report (Data is based on the 2021–2022, 2022–2023 and 2023–2024 school years) Click here to learn more.

Madison Elementary is a tight nit community. We take pride in not only supporting each other, but also supporting our greater community. Annually our families participate in the Riley Bike-a-Thon raising money for Riley Children’s Hospital.

Our compassionate and engaged teachers participate in ongoing professional development to empower students with the academic and lifelong skills they need to become problem solvers, effective communicators, and lifelong learners. Madison fosters a positive learning environment where every student is encouraged to grow, succeed, and build a bright future.

We are a 1:1 Technology district, which means that every student at Madison, as well as every student in the P-H-M school district, has access to their own Chromebook that they use every day in the classroom (kindergartners use iPads). 

We are the Panthers and our colors are Royal Blue and White. Our culture is captured in our school PBIS, which is P.A.W.S.: Personal Best, Accept Responsibility, Work Together, Safety Matters.

History

The original Madison School building was a two-room facility built at the turn of the century on the current site where our school stands today. A new building was constructed in 1924 for students in elementary through high school for an enrollment of 350 students. In 1964, the school became part of the Penn-Harris-Madison school district and high school students went to Penn High School. Madison continued as a middle and elementary school until 1968 when Grissom Middle School opened. In 1986, a new elementary school was built which retained the original high school gym.

We celebrate our rich history every year with the annual Fish Fry. At the May 2025 Fish Fry, we celebrated Madison’s 100th Anniversary! Click to see photos.

Grades: K-5

Click for most recent school performance report.

Madison students will attend Grissom Middle School and Penn High School

Special Facilities/Resources