Is Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy a good school?

Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy ranks 1421 st of 2067 Illinois elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy?

In the 2022-23 school year, 280 students attended Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy.

What is the racial makeup of Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy?

Students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy are 97% African American, 2% Hispanic.

What schools do graduates of Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy attend?

Students who attend Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy usually go on to attend: High : Phillips Academy High School

Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Summary:

Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy is a public school serving 280 students in grades PK-8 in Chicago, Illinois, which is part of the Chicago Public Schools District 299.

Despite spending significantly more per student ($21,499 in 2022-2023) than the district average, Wells Preparatory's academic performance is concerning. The school's proficiency rates on state assessments are significantly lower than the district and state averages across all grade levels, particularly in mathematics where only 8% of students were proficient compared to 18.3% for the district and 28.4% for the state. The school also struggles with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 35-43% over the past few years. Interestingly, nearby schools like Univ of Chicago Charter-Donoghue and Bronzeville Classical Elementary School that serve similar student populations outperform Wells Preparatory across most academic metrics, with Bronzeville Classical ranking in the top 3% of Illinois elementary schools.

Wells Preparatory's challenges extend beyond just academic performance. The school's African American students perform relatively better compared to other student groups, but its special education and low socioeconomic status students are in the bottom 25% of Illinois elementary schools. Additionally, the school's academic performance has been consistently low, with its statewide ranking declining from the bottom 25% of Illinois elementary schools in 2012-2013 to the bottom 30% in recent years. Addressing the root causes of these issues, such as instructional quality, student engagement, and attendance, will be crucial for improving outcomes at Wells Preparatory.

Detail:

Public PK, KG-8

249 E 37th St
Chicago, IL 60653-1001

(773) 535-1204

District: Chicago Public Schools District 299

SchoolDigger Rank:
1421^st of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $23,637

Students who attend Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy usually attend:

High:

Phillips Academy High School

Student/teacher ratio: 12.7

Number of students: 280

Racial breakdown:

African American:

97.1%

Hispanic:

2.1%

Two or more races:

0.7%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 87.9%

See top rated Illinois elementary schools

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy ranks worse than 68.7% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 173^rd among 452 ranked elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 29.24. (See more...)

Compare Details Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy ranks better than 59% of middle schools in Illinois. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 53.01. (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 Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy 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 Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy is $23,637, which is the 132^nd highest among 452 elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy:

SchoolDigger ranks Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy 1421^st of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

African American students:

SchoolDigger ranks Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy 559^th of 1363 Illinois public middle schools. (See Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female 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.)

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Rank History for Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	17.43	1698^th	2020	15.9%
2004	22.00	1690^th	2030	16.7%
2005	15.85	1773^rd	2022	12.3%
2006	5.27	1973^rd	2086	5.4%
2007	22.97	1776^th	2095	15.2%
2008	20.72	1766^th	2092	15.6%
2009	29.33	1655^th	2120	21.9%
2010	35.36	1566^th	2139	26.8%
2011	22.89	1792^nd	2147	16.5%
2012	13.32	1975^th	2166	8.8%
2013	15.14	1911^th	2167	11.8%
2014	24.97	1655^th	2093	20.9%
2015	24.44	1579^th	2052	23.1%
2016	25.84	1541^st	2046	24.7%
2017	23.75	1579^th	2044	22.7%
2018	26.42	1509^th	2037	25.9%
2019	22.65	1637^th	2086	21.5%
2022	15.34	1850^th	2082	11.1%
2023	25.04	1521^st	2077	26.8%
2024	29.24	1421^st	2067	31.3%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school Special Education students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2024	25.69	933^rd	1195	21.9%

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

Rank History for elementary school Low Socio Economic Status students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	39.52	1072^nd	1765	39.3%
2019	37.56	1177^th	1816	35.2%
2022	22.74	1483^rd	1763	15.9%
2023	30.47	1313^th	1808	27.4%
2024	37.63	1125^th	1793	37.3%

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

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	28.34	1413^th	1964	28.1%
2019	28.06	1468^th	2019	27.3%
2022	13.50	1833^rd	1970	7.0%
2023	16.99	1705^th	1957	12.9%
2024	33.00	1241^st	1942	36.1%

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

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	23.71	1535^th	1972	22.2%
2019	16.82	1771^st	2019	12.3%
2022	19.24	1628^th	1977	17.7%
2023	31.41	1287^th	1984	35.1%
2024	19.33	1598^th	1959	18.4%

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

Rank History for elementary school African American students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	53.93	230^th	698	67.0%
2019	51.10	272^nd	711	61.7%
2022	39.25	371^st	684	45.8%
2023	44.54	319^th	692	53.9%
2024	57.18	189^th	655	71.1%

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

Rank History for Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

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Rank History for all middle school students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	42.29	751^st	1185	36.6%
2004	6.44	1121^st	1204	6.9%
2005	7.09	1105^th	1209	8.6%
2006	29.21	984^th	1272	22.6%
2007	34.08	951^st	1287	26.1%
2008	59.29	635^th	1293	50.9%
2009	45.52	841^st	1318	36.2%
2010	46.60	838^th	1327	36.9%
2011	40.74	915^th	1344	31.9%
2012	26.23	1095^th	1365	19.8%
2013	38.56	894^th	1367	34.6%
2014	31.48	957^th	1322	27.6%
2015	16.98	1128^th	1302	13.4%
2016	25.10	1002^nd	1294	22.6%
2017	37.20	785^th	1293	39.3%
2018	22.26	1017^th	1293	21.3%
2019	13.84	1221^st	1356	10.0%
2022	18.53	1144^th	1369	16.4%
2023	49.73	595^th	1367	56.5%
2024	53.01	559^th	1363	59.0%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for middle school Low Socio Economic Status students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	35.28	766^th	1161	34.0%
2019	21.68	1029^th	1217	15.4%
2022	26.38	952^nd	1221	22.0%
2023	60.89	359^th	1234	70.9%
2024	61.66	354^th	1219	71.0%

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

Rank History for middle school Female students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	22.58	969^th	1226	21.0%
2019	16.24	1101^st	1276	13.7%
2022	21.29	1026^th	1286	20.2%
2023	46.52	618^th	1275	51.5%
2024	59.92	430^th	1251	65.6%

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

Rank History for middle school Male students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	22.02	978^th	1223	20.0%
2019	13.54	1199^th	1296	7.5%
2022	12.64	1232^nd	1286	4.2%

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

Rank History for middle school African American students at Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	52.47	179^th	511	65.0%
2019	32.03	405^th	565	28.3%
2022	40.50	288^th	573	49.7%
2023	70.07	91^st	569	84.0%
2024	77.47	58^th	548	89.4%

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

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Enrollment information for Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
1997	0	151	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	151
1998	0	159	0	1	0	n/a	n/a	160
1999	0	185	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	185
2000	0	185	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	185
2001	0	175	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	175
2002	0	163	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	163
2003	0	163	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	163
2004	0	154	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	154
2005	0	161	0	0	0	n/a	n/a	161
2006	0	179	0	2	0	n/a	n/a	181
2007	0	147	0	2	0	n/a	n/a	149
2008	0	157	0	5	0	n/a	n/a	162
2009	0	146	0	5	0	n/a	n/a	151
2010	0	166	1	4	0	n/a	n/a	171
2011	0	205	0	3	0	0	2	210
2012	0	184	0	2	0	0	21	207
2013	0	159	0	2	0	0	37	198
2014	0	478	0	8	1	0	0	487
2015	1	443	0	7	1	0	2	454
2016	0	400	0	12	1	0	4	417
2017	0	366	0	5	1	0	14	386
2018	0	359	0	18	1	0	4	382
2019	1	341	0	17	1	0	2	362
2020	2	354	0	16	1	0	3	376
2021	1	310	0	14	1	0	29	355
2022	0	288	0	12	1	0	24	325
2023	0	272	0	6	0	0	2	280

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 Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1997	151	0.0	0.0	n/a
1998	160	0.0	0.0	n/a
1999	185	0.0	0.0	n/a
2000	185	0.0	0.0	n/a
2001	175	0.0	0.0	n/a
2002	163	10.0	16.3	81.6
2003	163	10.0	16.3	81.6
2004	154	10.3	15.0	0
2005	161	13.5	11.9	n/a
2006	181	10.5	17.2	n/a
2007	149	9.0	16.6	n/a
2008	162	10.0	16.2	n/a
2009	151	7.0	21.6	n/a
2010	171	9.0	19.0	n/a
2011	210	10.0	21.0	n/a
2012	207	11.0	18.8	96.6
2013	198	12.1	16.2	85.4
2014	487	27.0	18.0	95.3
2015	454	25.0	18.1	97.8
2016	417	27.0	15.4	96.9
2017	386	27.0	14.2	97.2
2018	382	21.1	18.0	93.7
2019	362	22.0	16.4	90.6
2020	376	23.0	16.3	83.2
2021	355	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	325	23.0	14.1	87.7
2023	280	22.0	12.7	87.9

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 Wells Preparatory Elementary Academy

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1997	151	0.0	0.0	n/a
1998	160	0.0	0.0	n/a
1999	185	0.0	0.0	n/a
2000	185	0.0	0.0	n/a
2001	175	0.0	0.0	n/a
2002	163	10.0	16.3	81.6
2003	163	10.0	16.3	81.6
2004	154	10.3	15.0	0
2005	161	13.5	11.9	n/a
2006	181	10.5	17.2	n/a
2007	149	9.0	16.6	n/a
2008	162	10.0	16.2	n/a
2009	151	7.0	21.6	n/a
2010	171	9.0	19.0	n/a
2011	210	10.0	21.0	n/a
2012	207	11.0	18.8	96.6
2013	198	12.1	16.2	85.4
2014	487	27.0	18.0	95.3
2015	454	25.0	18.1	97.8
2016	417	27.0	15.4	96.9
2017	386	27.0	14.2	97.2
2018	382	21.1	18.0	93.7
2019	362	22.0	16.4	90.6
2020	376	23.0	16.3	83.2
2021	355	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	325	23.0	14.1	87.7
2023	280	22.0	12.7	87.9

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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