Is Cullen Elementary School a good school?

Cullen Elementary School ranks in the bottom 20.4% of Illinois elementary schools.

How many students attend Cullen Elementary School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 171 students attended Cullen Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Cullen Elementary School?

Students at Cullen Elementary School are 96% African American, 2% Hispanic, 1% White.

What schools do graduates of Cullen Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Cullen Elementary School usually go on to attend: High : Corliss High School

Cullen Elementary School

Summary:

Cullen Elementary School is a public K-8 school in Chicago, Illinois, with a total enrollment of 171 students. The school is part of the Chicago Public Schools District 299, which is ranked 688 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Cullen Elementary School consistently performs below the district and state averages in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics proficiency rates across all grade levels. For example, in the 2023-2024 school year, only 17.1% of Cullen students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 30.5% for the district and 41.2% for the state. In Mathematics, the proficiency rate was just 10.1% at Cullen, compared to 18.3% for the district and 28.4% for the state. Additionally, Cullen Elementary School has struggled with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 21.7% to 41.9% over the past few years, significantly higher than the district and state averages.

When comparing Cullen Elementary School to the nearby schools within the same district, it becomes evident that Cullen's academic performance is generally lower than its peers. For example, Smith W Elementary School and Poe Elementary Classical School, both within a mile of Cullen, significantly outperform Cullen in both ELA and Mathematics proficiency rates. However, the school's consistent 1-star rating from SchoolDigger suggests that there may be opportunities for improvement through targeted interventions and support, particularly in addressing the root causes of the school's high chronic absenteeism rates and the needs of its diverse student population.

Detail:

Public K-8

10650 S Eberhart Ave
Chicago, IL 60628-2954

(773) 535-5375

District: Chicago Public Schools District 299

SchoolDigger Rank:
1646^th of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $23,457

Students who attend Cullen Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Corliss High School

Student/teacher ratio: 14.2

Number of students: 171

Racial breakdown:

African American:

95.9%

Hispanic:

2.3%

White:

1.2%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 89.5%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Cullen Elementary School ranks worse than 79.6% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 240^th among 452 ranked elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 21.4. (See more...)

Compare Details Cullen Elementary School ranks worse than 82.5% of middle schools in Illinois. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 18.79. (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 Cullen Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Chicago Public Schools District 299. (See more...)

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Teachers

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Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Cullen Elementary School is $23,457, which is the 143^rd highest among 452 elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Cullen Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Cullen Elementary School 1646^th of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Cullen Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Male students:

African American students:

SchoolDigger ranks Cullen Elementary School 1125^th of 1363 Illinois public middle schools. (See Cullen Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Male students:

African American students:

Chicago Public Schools District 299:

SchoolDigger ranks Chicago Public Schools District 299 688^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

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Rank History for Cullen Elementary School

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	22.71	1636^th	2020	19.0%
2004	14.57	1768^th	2030	12.9%
2005	18.06	1754^th	2022	13.3%
2006	28.35	1683^rd	2086	19.3%
2007	37.46	1548^th	2095	26.1%
2008	29.68	1622^nd	2092	22.5%
2009	38.88	1489^th	2120	29.8%
2010	44.63	1402^nd	2139	34.5%
2011	20.23	1833^rd	2147	14.6%
2012	49.18	1317^th	2166	39.2%
2013	38.05	1439^th	2167	33.6%
2014	32.52	1480^th	2093	29.3%
2015	16.31	1808^th	2052	11.9%
2016	18.66	1728^th	2046	15.5%
2017	23.92	1577^th	2044	22.8%
2018	14.92	1828^th	2037	10.3%
2019	18.64	1766^th	2086	15.3%
2022	17.83	1746^th	2082	16.1%
2023	22.73	1583^rd	2077	23.8%
2024	21.40	1646^th	2067	20.4%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school Low Socio Economic Status students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	23.79	1485^th	1765	15.9%
2019	30.13	1368^th	1816	24.7%
2022	25.26	1416^th	1763	19.7%
2023	31.19	1293^rd	1808	28.5%
2024	30.47	1298^th	1793	27.6%

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

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	14.87	1759^th	1964	10.4%
2019	25.33	1534^th	2019	24.0%
2022	10.66	1941^st	1970	1.5%

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

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	18.71	1684^th	1972	14.6%
2019	20.44	1668^th	2019	17.4%
2022	16.89	1728^th	1977	12.6%
2023	27.25	1392^nd	1984	29.8%
2024	18.49	1633^rd	1959	16.6%

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

Rank History for elementary school African American students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	36.70	417^th	698	40.3%
2019	43.66	346^th	711	51.3%
2022	41.41	344^th	684	49.7%
2023	52.65	239^th	692	65.5%
2024	51.86	236^th	655	64.0%

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

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

Rank History for Cullen Elementary School

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Rank History for all middle school students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	17.62	968^th	1185	18.3%
2004	41.16	782^nd	1204	35.0%
2005	18.31	990^th	1209	18.1%
2006	50.32	749^th	1272	41.1%
2007	61.76	571^st	1287	55.6%
2008	62.75	571^st	1293	55.8%
2009	72.67	360^th	1318	72.7%
2010	47.69	824^th	1327	37.9%
2011	24.68	1111^th	1344	17.3%
2012	44.51	876^th	1365	35.8%
2013	20.18	1140^th	1367	16.6%
2014	28.07	1001^st	1322	24.3%
2015	17.57	1115^th	1302	14.4%
2016	14.64	1183^rd	1294	8.6%
2017	21.67	1033^rd	1293	20.1%
2018	11.54	1220^th	1293	5.6%
2019	11.31	1281^st	1356	5.5%
2022	22.73	1047^th	1369	23.5%
2023	29.95	915^th	1367	33.1%
2024	18.79	1125^th	1363	17.5%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for middle school Low Socio Economic Status students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	14.98	1092^nd	1161	5.9%
2019	15.83	1132^nd	1217	7.0%
2022	34.85	770^th	1221	36.9%
2023	45.22	622^nd	1234	49.6%
2024	29.01	881^st	1219	27.7%

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

Rank History for middle school Female students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	21.65	982^nd	1226	19.9%
2019	11.62	1194^th	1276	6.4%
2022	12.84	1208^th	1286	6.1%

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

Rank History for middle school Male students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	12.49	1150^th	1223	6.0%
2019	15.10	1167^th	1296	10.0%
2022	31.74	836^th	1286	35.0%
2023	29.63	866^th	1292	33.0%
2024	26.14	900^th	1264	28.8%

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

Rank History for middle school African American students at Cullen Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	27.35	408^th	511	20.2%
2019	28.55	442^nd	565	21.8%
2022	49.82	216^th	573	62.3%
2023	64.37	130^th	569	77.2%
2024	42.33	279^th	548	49.1%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for African American 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

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)

100%

Reviews:

by a student
Tuesday, November 24, 2015

I WENT AND GRADUATED FROM COUNTEE CULLEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND IT IS AN EXCELLENT SCHOOL. THE TEACHERS ARE ALWAYS ON TASK AND I CAN SAY PLENTY OF THE STUDENTS HAVE IMPROVED THERE. AND THE STAFF IS GREAT, ALWAYS ON TASK. Close Quote

by a parent
Thursday, November 18, 2010

Countee Cullen Elementary is a great school. As a child I attended Cullen. My son graduated 8th grade there as well. the quality of education is still just as great as it was when I attended over 25 years ago. Cullen has continued to make AYP for the last 4 to 5 years Close Quote

Enrollment information for Cullen Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1989	n/a	435	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	435
1990	n/a	431	n/a	3	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	434
1991	0	430	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	430
1992	0	422	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	422
1993	0	430	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	430
1994	0	390	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	390
1995	0	372	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	372
1996	0	372	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	372
1997	0	399	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	399
1998	0	407	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	407
1999	0	367	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	367
2000	0	380	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	380
2001	0	378	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	378
2002	0	437	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	437
2003	0	437	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	437
2004	0	434	0	1	0	n/a	n/a	0	435
2005	0	410	0	1	0	n/a	n/a	0	411
2006	0	392	0	1	1	n/a	n/a	5	399
2007	0	360	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	6	366
2008	0	356	0	1	2	n/a	n/a	7	366
2009	0	329	2	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	331
2010	0	283	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	0	283
2011	0	235	0	2	0	0	2	0	239
2012	0	227	0	3	0	0	2	0	232
2013	1	234	0	2	0	0	2	0	239
2014	0	256	0	5	0	0	2	0	263
2015	0	237	0	4	0	0	2	0	243
2016	1	197	0	5	0	0	3	0	206
2017	0	167	0	2	2	0	1	0	172
2018	0	179	0	2	1	0	3	0	185
2019	1	195	0	2	0	0	2	0	200
2020	0	195	0	3	0	0	1	0	199
2021	1	200	0	3	0	0	1	0	205
2022	1	190	0	5	0	0	1	0	197
2023	2	164	0	4	0	0	1	0	171

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 Cullen Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1989	435	20.0	21.7	n/a
1990	434	21.0	20.6	n/a
1991	430	20.0	21.5	n/a
1992	422	21.0	20.0	n/a
1993	430	21.0	20.5	n/a
1994	390	16.0	24.4	n/a
1995	372	22.0	16.9	n/a
1996	372	22.0	16.9	n/a
1997	399	21.0	19.0	n/a
1998	407	22.0	18.5	n/a
1999	367	19.0	19.3	n/a
2000	380	21.0	18.1	n/a
2001	378	21.0	18.0	n/a
2002	437	19.0	23.0	91.1
2003	437	19.0	23.0	91.1
2004	435	20.4	21.3	95.9
2005	411	22.7	18.1	94.6
2006	399	23.7	16.8	95.2
2007	366	15.0	24.4	97.2
2008	366	16.0	22.9	95.3
2009	331	18.0	18.4	94.9
2010	283	15.0	18.8	97.5
2011	239	15.0	15.9	98.7
2012	232	13.0	17.8	97
2013	239	12.8	18.6	95.8
2014	263	16.0	16.4	96.2
2015	243	14.0	17.3	95.9
2016	206	12.0	17.1	91.7
2017	172	10.0	17.2	94.2
2018	185	9.5	19.3	90.3
2019	200	11.0	18.1	92
2020	199	11.0	18.0	93
2021	205	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	197	11.0	17.9	91.4
2023	171	12.0	14.2	89.5

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 Cullen Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1989	435	20.0	21.7	n/a
1990	434	21.0	20.6	n/a
1991	430	20.0	21.5	n/a
1992	422	21.0	20.0	n/a
1993	430	21.0	20.5	n/a
1994	390	16.0	24.4	n/a
1995	372	22.0	16.9	n/a
1996	372	22.0	16.9	n/a
1997	399	21.0	19.0	n/a
1998	407	22.0	18.5	n/a
1999	367	19.0	19.3	n/a
2000	380	21.0	18.1	n/a
2001	378	21.0	18.0	n/a
2002	437	19.0	23.0	91.1
2003	437	19.0	23.0	91.1
2004	435	20.4	21.3	95.9
2005	411	22.7	18.1	94.6
2006	399	23.7	16.8	95.2
2007	366	15.0	24.4	97.2
2008	366	16.0	22.9	95.3
2009	331	18.0	18.4	94.9
2010	283	15.0	18.8	97.5
2011	239	15.0	15.9	98.7
2012	232	13.0	17.8	97
2013	239	12.8	18.6	95.8
2014	263	16.0	16.4	96.2
2015	243	14.0	17.3	95.9
2016	206	12.0	17.1	91.7
2017	172	10.0	17.2	94.2
2018	185	9.5	19.3	90.3
2019	200	11.0	18.1	92
2020	199	11.0	18.0	93
2021	205	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	197	11.0	17.9	91.4
2023	171	12.0	14.2	89.5

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.

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