Is Freedom Middle School a good school?

Freedom Middle School ranks 822 nd of 1363 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Freedom Middle School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 502 students attended Freedom Middle School.

What is the racial makeup of Freedom Middle School?

Students at Freedom Middle School are 85% Hispanic, 6% African American, 5% White, 2% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

What high school do graduates of Freedom Middle School attend?

Students who attend Freedom Middle School usually go on to attend J Sterling Morton West High School

Freedom Middle School

Summary:

Freedom Middle School is a public middle school located in Berwyn, Illinois, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 494 students. The school is part of the Berwyn South School District 100, which is ranked 508 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Freedom Middle School faces several challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates, lower-than-average academic performance, and significant disparities in subgroup performance. The school's chronic absenteeism rates have risen from 5.8% in 2019-2020 to 35.2% in 2023-2024, notably higher than the state average and the surrounding schools in the Berwyn South School District. In 2023-2024, only 35.8% of students were proficient or better in English Language Arts (ELA), compared to the state average of 41.2%, and only 14.1% were proficient or better in Mathematics, compared to the state average of 28.4%. However, the school's performance varies across different student subgroups, with relatively stronger performance for African American and Hispanic students compared to the overall school performance.

When compared to other nearby middle schools, such as Heritage Middle School (also in Berwyn South School District 100) and Forest Park Middle School, Freedom Middle School generally underperforms in both ELA and Mathematics proficiency rates. Heritage Middle School, for instance, had significantly higher proficiency rates in 2023-2024, with 44% in ELA and 32.5% in Mathematics. The school's high percentage of students from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, with 78.14% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch in 2022-2023, likely contributes to its academic challenges and higher chronic absenteeism rates.

Detail:

Public 6-8

3016 Ridgeland Ave
Berwyn, IL 60402-2700

(708) 795-5800

District: Berwyn South School District 100

SchoolDigger Rank:
822^nd of 1,363 Illinois Middle Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $16,075

Students who attend Freedom Middle School usually attend:

High:

J Sterling Morton West High School

Feeder schools for Freedom Middle School:

Elementary:	Hiawatha Elementary School
	Komensky Elementary School
	Pershing Elementary School

Student/teacher ratio: 10.5

Number of students: 502

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

85.3%

African American:

5.8%

White:

4.8%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 79.7%

See top rated Illinois middle schools

Compare Freedom Middle School to nearby middle schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Freedom Middle School ranks worse than 60.3% of middle schools in Illinois. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 34.76. (See more...)

Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.

Student Body

Compare Details Racial makeup is: Hispanic (85.3%), African American (5.8%), White (4.8%). (See more...)

Compare Details 79.7% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Freedom Middle School is 10.5. (See more...)

Compare Freedom Middle School employs 47.6 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Freedom Middle School is $16,075.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Freedom Middle School:

SchoolDigger ranks Freedom Middle School 822^nd of 1363 Illinois public middle schools. (See Freedom Middle School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Male students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

Berwyn South School District 100:

SchoolDigger ranks Berwyn South School District 100 508^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

What do you think?

Your rating for Freedom Middle School?

(Ranking FAQ)

Rank History for Freedom Middle School

Compare

Rank History for all students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2006	39.37	880^th	1272	30.8%
2007	48.17	792^nd	1287	38.5%
2008	32.30	970^th	1293	25.0%
2009	31.10	1004^th	1318	23.8%
2010	34.89	980^th	1327	26.1%
2011	40.75	914^th	1344	32.0%
2012	31.42	1032^nd	1365	24.4%
2013	15.07	1208^th	1367	11.6%
2014	22.22	1091^st	1322	17.5%
2015	23.89	1005^th	1302	22.8%
2016	22.10	1057^th	1294	18.3%
2017	19.26	1069^th	1293	17.3%
2018	28.46	925^th	1293	28.5%
2019	34.35	861^st	1356	36.5%
2021	38.35	672^nd	1241	45.9%
2022	39.89	749^th	1369	45.3%
2023	26.51	977^th	1367	28.5%
2024	34.76	822^nd	1363	39.7%

See the entire list of Illinois Middle School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	35.66	193^rd	285	32.3%
2019	44.22	157^th	339	53.7%
2021	40.93	158^th	277	43.0%
2022	46.05	183^rd	454	59.7%
2023	32.08	371^st	480	22.7%
2024	39.41	268^th	486	44.9%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for English Language Learner Students!

Rank History for Special Education students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.95	432^nd	602	28.2%
2019	33.34	495^th	792	37.5%
2021	34.32	345^th	548	37.0%
2022	38.80	409^th	781	47.6%
2023	34.65	475^th	805	41.0%
2024	41.79	385^th	802	52.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	36.97	736^th	1161	36.6%
2019	51.17	533^rd	1217	56.2%
2021	63.50	229^th	1019	77.5%
2022	54.37	446^th	1221	63.5%
2023	37.10	776^th	1234	37.1%
2024	45.99	590^th	1219	51.6%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for Female students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	27.49	907^th	1226	26.0%
2019	34.07	846^th	1276	33.7%
2021	28.24	723^rd	1017	28.9%
2022	32.37	822^nd	1286	36.1%
2023	22.39	993^rd	1275	22.1%
2024	34.23	787^th	1251	37.1%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for Disabled students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	46.91	270^th	674	59.9%
2024	34.88	389^th	639	39.1%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Male students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.43	846^th	1223	30.8%
2019	34.89	807^th	1296	37.7%
2021	44.09	507^th	1048	51.6%
2022	47.17	594^th	1286	53.8%
2023	31.33	845^th	1292	34.6%
2024	35.28	751^st	1264	40.6%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for African American students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	39.80	300^th	548	45.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for African American Students!

Rank History for Hispanic students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	30.33	442^nd	590	25.1%
2019	38.50	385^th	639	39.7%
2021	48.32	219^th	517	57.6%
2022	47.60	302^nd	662	54.4%
2023	31.06	471^st	661	28.7%
2024	41.04	336^th	643	47.7%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for Hispanic Students!

Rank History for White students at Freedom Middle School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2018	39.14	548^th	889	38.4%
2019	37.22	579^th	905	36.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Middle Schools for White Students!

Data source: test scores: Illinois State Board of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Data source: Illinois State Board of Education

We're sorry, but no reviews have been submitted for Freedom Middle School.

If you have first-hand knowledge about Freedom Middle School, submit a rating!

Reviews:
No reviews have been submitted!

Enrollment information for Freedom Middle School

Compare

Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2006	105	17	21	478	0	n/a	n/a	3	624
2007	103	18	7	461	0	n/a	n/a	0	589
2008	93	21	15	477	0	n/a	n/a	4	610
2009	87	24	10	499	0	n/a	n/a	5	625
2010	63	26	9	507	0	n/a	n/a	6	611
2011	58	24	10	531	0	0	11	0	634
2012	53	27	9	537	1	0	16	0	643
2013	50	18	8	524	0	2	20	0	622
2014	46	19	4	562	0	1	13	0	645
2015	46	22	6	588	0	1	13	0	676
2016	41	15	6	637	0	0	6	0	705
2017	41	16	6	634	0	2	5	0	704
2018	39	10	5	597	0	2	5	0	658
2019	52	18	3	581	0	0	5	0	659
2020	47	18	7	552	2	0	5	0	631
2021	41	17	7	536	2	0	5	0	608
2022	25	26	5	479	1	0	6	0	542
2023	21	22	7	436	0	0	8	0	494
2024	24	29	10	428	0	0	11	0	502

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Freedom Middle School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2006	624	40.0	15.6	69.1
2007	589	44.0	13.4	69.6
2008	610	40.0	15.3	71.5
2009	625	47.0	13.3	78.1
2010	611	46.0	13.2	85
2011	634	45.0	14.0	84.7
2012	643	42.0	15.3	83
2013	622	n/a	n/a	82.6
2014	645	n/a	n/a	87.9
2015	676	50.0	13.5	81.1
2016	705	46.0	15.3	80.9
2017	704	45.6	15.4	86.4
2018	658	48.1	13.6	86.9
2019	659	47.0	14.0	79.1
2020	631	47.9	13.1	71
2021	608	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	542	48.1	11.2	71.4
2023	494	50.5	9.7	78.1
2024	502	47.6	10.5	79.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Freedom Middle School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2006	624	40.0	15.6	69.1
2007	589	44.0	13.4	69.6
2008	610	40.0	15.3	71.5
2009	625	47.0	13.3	78.1
2010	611	46.0	13.2	85
2011	634	45.0	14.0	84.7
2012	643	42.0	15.3	83
2013	622	n/a	n/a	82.6
2014	645	n/a	n/a	87.9
2015	676	50.0	13.5	81.1
2016	705	46.0	15.3	80.9
2017	704	45.6	15.4	86.4
2018	658	48.1	13.6	86.9
2019	659	47.0	14.0	79.1
2020	631	47.9	13.1	71
2021	608	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	542	48.1	11.2	71.4
2023	494	50.5	9.7	78.1
2024	502	47.6	10.5	79.7

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.

Immunization Rates