SEPTEMBER 2019 | CHICAGO 101
PHOTOGRAPHY: (RENDER) BURNS PHOTOGRAPHY
1 Hickory Creek Middle School Frankfort 6–8 873 $6,071 87 80
2 River Woods Elementary School Naperville K–5 501 $8,898 71 71
3 Jane Addams Middle School Bolingbrook 6–8 690 $8,486 58 49
4 Union Elementary School Joliet K–8 91 $9,259 59 41
5 Eisenhower Academy Joliet 1–5 240 $6,533 83 84
6 Danielle-Joy Peterson Elementary School Naperville K–5 737 $7,843 70 73
7 Frankfort Square Elementary School Frankfort 1–4 211 $6,616 66 64
8 Oliver Julian Kendall Elementary School Naperville K–5 349 $7,843 77 73
9 Chelsea Intermediate School Frankfort 3–5 815 $6,071 68 70
10 Fry Elementary School Naperville K–5 560 $7,843 73 80TOP ELEMENTARY
& MIDDLE SCHOOLS Grades EnrollmentSpending per pupilPARCC reading attainment %PARCC math attainment %1 Neuqua Valley High School Naperville 3,662 $7,843 74 75 98
2 Lincoln-Way East High School Frankfort 2,889 $7,194 59 59 97
3 Lincoln-Way Central High School New Lenox 2,138 $7,194 57 60 98
4 Lincoln-Way West High School New Lenox 1,905 $7,194 54 60 98
5 Lockport Township High School East Lockport 3,706 $8,039 50 45 95TOP HIGH SCHOOLS Enrollment Spending per pupilSAT reading attainment %SAT math attainment %
WILL COUNTY
Graduation rateTHE MEASURES WE USED
QSpending per pupil is the
instructional expenditure,
reported by district. (Because
Chicago Public Schools reports
the same amount for every stu-
dent — $10,562 in 2017–18 — we
excluded that figure from Chicago
school calculations.)
QSAT attainment percentage
is the percentage of students
meeting or exceeding state stan-
dards on the SAT reading and
math exams. We also factored in
SAT attainment figures adjusted
for the school’s percentage of
low-income students. Income-
adjusted figures are widely used
in the absence of year-over-year
individual-student growth mea-
sures to evaluate how a school’s
performance compares with pre-
dicted levels.HOW WE RANKED THE SCHOOLS
QPARCC attainment percent-
age is the percentage of students
meeting or exceeding state stan-
dards on the PARCC reading and
math exams.
QPARCC growth is the school’s
average student growth percen-
tile, which compares the growth
achieved by individual students
on the PARCC reading and math
exams with that of other students
in the state.
Q5Essentials is a teacher and
student survey that assesses five
key aspects of a school’s learning
environment; figures used are the
average scores for each of the
five rubrics.
QAttendance is a school’s aver-
age daily rate, an indicator of a
school’s learning environment.
QGraduation rate is the percent-
age of students who graduated
within four years of entering
high school.HOW WE WEIGHTED THE MEASURES
Chicago High Schools
QSAT reading attainment % ...................................... 12.5%
QSAT math attainment % ........................................... 12.5%
QSAT reading attainment %, income-adjusted .... 12.5%
QSAT math attainment %, income-adjusted ........... 12.5%
Q5Essentials ....................................................................... 15%
QAttendance ...................................................................... 15%
QGraduation rate ............................................................. 20%Chicago Elementary Schools
QPARCC reading attainment % .................................. 17.5%
QPARCC math attainment % ....................................... 17.5%
QPARCC reading growth .............................................. 17.5%
QPARCC math growth ................................................... 17.5%
Q5Essentials ........................................................................ 15%
QAttendance ....................................................................... 15%Suburban High Schools
QSpending per pupil ......................................................... 15%
QSAT reading attainment % ....................................... 12.5%
QSAT math attainment % ............................................ 12.5%
QSAT reading attainment %, income-adjusted .... 12.5%
QSAT math attainment %, income-adjusted ......... 12.5%
QAttendance ....................................................................... 15%
QGraduation rate .............................................................. 20%Suburban Elementary and Middle Schools
QSpending per pupil ......................................................... 15%
QPARCC reading attainment % .................................. 17.5%
QPARCC math attainment % ....................................... 17.5%
QPARCC reading growth .............................................. 17.5%
QPARCC math growth ................................................... 17.5%
QAttendance ....................................................................... 15%The performance measures used to determine the rankings were based
on data obtained from the Illinois State Board of Education for the 2017–
18 school year, the most recent available. Calculations were done by the
research nonprofit RTI International, based on weighting instructions pro-
vided by Chicago; not all the measures used appear in the ranking tables.
Non-four-year high schools were excluded, as were elementary and mid-
dle schools with grade ranges too limited to generate growth data.JEFF RENDER
History teacher
Not every high school
history class kicks off
with a 10-day World
War I role-playing
game, but then, not
every high school his-
tory teacher is like
Render. In his elective
on world wars, “stu-
dents are rolling dice
and declaring war on
one another,” he says.
“It’s not just about
battles and weap-
ons; it really unlocks
an understanding of
today’s world — nucle-
ar arms races, the
traits of demagogues
and tyrants.”* Figures do not reflect low-income adjustment