Knapp Elementary first opened its doors in 1912 as a neighborhood school, serving students in grades K-5. Over 100 years later, we remain a neighborhood school. In addition to serving students K-5, we also have two full day 4K classrooms.
In the 2016-17 school year, Knapp opened its doors on a brand new building and became Racine's first community school in partnership with United Way of Racine County.
Our collective goal for Knapp students is that they experience the joy of learning, are inspired to great achievement, and become positive contributors to our community. We know that our students are more than just their academics. As a community school, we offer programs that support the whole child including school-based mental health services and high quality extended learning programs. We also offer programs for families and adults in our neighborhood. Our goal is to lift everyone up together, using our school as the hub of our community.
Please stop by & see what we have to offer - our doors are open!
Click here for parent resources: Knapp Title I Parent Involvement Policy, Knapp Parent Compact
History
Our school is named to honor Gilbert Knapp who lived from 1798 to 1887. Knapp found his way to the Root River during his travels as a Great Lakes sailor. He thought the area would be a good place to start a settlement and port for Great Lakes trade.
Years later, he returned to the Root River to become a founder of the City of Racine, which was originally named, "Port Gilbert", after him! Knapp was involved in government service and Wisconsin politics both before and after we became a state.
Our school has chosen a Clipper sailing ship as our "mascot" in memory of Knapp’s career as a sailor.