Is Jefferson Elementary School a good school?

Jefferson Elementary School ranks 1489 th of 2067 Illinois elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

How many students attend Jefferson Elementary School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 151 students attended Jefferson Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Jefferson Elementary School?

Students at Jefferson Elementary School are 70% Hispanic, 29% African American, 1% White.

What schools do graduates of Jefferson Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary School usually go on to attend: High : Bloom High School

Jefferson Elementary School

Summary:

Jefferson Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Chicago Heights, Illinois, serving 151 students from kindergarten to 5th grade. The school is part of the Chicago Heights School District 170, which is ranked 602 out of 813 school districts in Illinois and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Jefferson Elementary School faces significant challenges in academic performance, with only 19.1% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts and just 25% of 3rd graders, 13.8% of 4th graders, and 0% of 5th graders proficient or better in mathematics. The school's performance has declined over the years, with its statewide ranking dropping from 846 out of 1,948 Illinois elementary schools in 2020-2021 to 1,489 out of 2,067 in 2023-2024. Additionally, the school has a very high chronic absenteeism rate of 58.5%, significantly higher than the state and district averages. The student population is predominantly minority, with 69.5% Hispanic and 27.8% African American students, and 99.34% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

While Jefferson Elementary School has a relatively high per-student spending of $21,625 and a low student-teacher ratio of 10.7, these resources do not seem to translate into improved student outcomes. Nearby schools within the same district, such as U.S. Grant Elementary, Wilson Elementary, and Kennedy Elementary, also struggle with low academic performance and high chronic absenteeism rates, suggesting systemic challenges within the Chicago Heights School District 170. However, some nearby schools, like Greenbriar Elementary and Serena Hills Elementary (in a different district), perform significantly better academically, indicating that the challenges faced by Jefferson Elementary School may be specific to the district.

Detail:

Public K-5

176 E 11th St
Chicago Heights, IL 60411-2937

(708) 756-4162

District: Chicago Heights School District 170

SchoolDigger Rank:
1489^th of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $20,703

Students who attend Jefferson Elementary School usually attend:

High:

Bloom High School

Student/teacher ratio: 10.7

Number of students: 151

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

69.5%

African American:

29.1%

White:

1.3%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 99.3%

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Jefferson Elementary School ranks worse than 72% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 8^th among 9 ranked elementary schools in the Chicago Heights School District 170. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 26.84. (See more...)

Compare Details Jefferson Elementary School is not ranked due for the most recent year due to insufficient test score data. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2015 the calculated Average Standard Score was 23.57. (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 Jefferson Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Chicago Heights School District 170. (See more...)

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Teachers

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Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Jefferson Elementary School is $20,703. 6 elementary schools in the Chicago Heights School District 170 spend more per student.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Jefferson Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Jefferson Elementary School 1489^th of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Jefferson Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

Chicago Heights School District 170:

SchoolDigger ranks Chicago Heights School District 170 602^nd of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Jefferson Elementary School

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Jefferson Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	18.35	1688^th	2020	16.4%
2004	9.92	1828^th	2030	10.0%
2005	11.72	1813^th	2022	10.3%
2006	21.34	1772^nd	2086	15.1%
2007	17.44	1831^st	2095	12.6%
2008	26.78	1670^th	2092	20.2%
2009	22.68	1757^th	2120	17.1%
2010	33.51	1607^th	2139	24.9%
2011	38.42	1511^th	2147	29.6%
2012	13.55	1967^th	2166	9.2%
2013	22.87	1744^th	2167	19.5%
2014	35.18	1420^th	2093	32.2%
2015	31.09	1380^th	2052	32.7%
2016	24.08	1589^th	2046	22.3%
2017	17.86	1742^nd	2044	14.8%
2018	19.27	1675^th	2037	17.8%
2019	19.55	1746^th	2086	16.3%
2021	50.27	846^th	1948	56.6%
2022	38.88	1201^st	2082	42.3%
2023	25.83	1506^th	2077	27.5%
2024	26.84	1489^th	2067	28.0%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school English Language Learner students at Jefferson Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2018	46.14	341^st	718	52.5%
2019	53.42	239^th	743	67.8%

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

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

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	31.70	1271^st	1765	28.0%
2019	30.31	1363^rd	1816	24.9%
2021	69.31	268^th	1514	82.3%
2022	61.21	517^th	1763	70.7%
2023	42.91	983^rd	1808	45.6%
2024	41.70	1010^th	1793	43.7%

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

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Jefferson Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	17.08	1698^th	1964	13.5%
2019	14.58	1829^th	2019	9.4%
2021	35.65	1022^nd	1680	39.2%
2022	43.14	1019^th	1970	48.3%
2023	18.97	1638^th	1957	16.3%
2024	16.06	1709^th	1942	12.0%

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

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Jefferson Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	24.34	1516^th	1972	23.1%
2019	25.87	1503^rd	2019	25.6%
2021	41.25	912^th	1707	46.6%
2023	48.51	920^th	1984	53.6%
2024	28.45	1358^th	1959	30.7%

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

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

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	45.85	308^th	698	55.9%
2019	35.34	458^th	711	35.6%
2024	32.81	454^th	655	30.7%

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

Rank History for elementary school Hispanic students at Jefferson Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	30.74	674^th	938	28.1%
2019	31.83	687^th	955	28.1%
2021	67.13	133^rd	742	82.1%
2022	42.10	516^th	954	45.9%
2023	57.83	307^th	970	68.4%
2024	57.36	311^th	959	67.6%

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

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

Rank History for Jefferson Elementary School

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Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Middle Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	2.91	1168^th	1185	1.4%
2004	7.85	1097^th	1204	8.9%
2005	10.30	1062^nd	1209	12.2%
2006	18.65	1068^th	1272	16.0%
2007	4.55	1238^th	1287	3.8%
2008	9.36	1179^th	1293	8.8%
2009	4.93	1262^nd	1318	4.2%
2010	26.37	1057^th	1327	20.3%
2011	33.10	1011^th	1344	24.8%
2012	22.97	1134^th	1365	16.9%
2013	13.51	1228^th	1367	10.2%
2014	14.73	1180^th	1322	10.7%
2015	23.57	1012^th	1302	22.3%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

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

Data source: Illinois State Board of Education

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Enrollment information for Jefferson Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	79	120	1	101	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	301
1989	71	139	n/a	97	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	307
1990	72	118	n/a	97	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	287
1991	60	127	0	87	0	n/a	n/a	0	274
1992	54	140	0	91	0	n/a	n/a	0	285
1993	56	117	0	78	0	n/a	n/a	0	251
1994	46	134	0	93	0	n/a	n/a	0	273
1995	31	149	2	76	0	n/a	n/a	0	258
1996	31	149	2	76	0	n/a	n/a	0	258
1997	23	168	2	120	0	n/a	n/a	0	313
1998	25	141	0	106	0	n/a	n/a	0	272
1999	15	151	0	146	0	n/a	n/a	0	312
2000	16	152	0	173	0	n/a	n/a	0	341
2001	9	150	0	192	0	n/a	n/a	0	351
2002	6	144	1	187	0	n/a	n/a	0	338
2003	6	144	1	187	0	n/a	n/a	0	338
2004	2	134	1	202	0	n/a	n/a	0	339
2005	4	126	0	194	0	n/a	n/a	3	327
2006	3	126	0	167	0	n/a	n/a	7	303
2007	3	122	0	179	0	n/a	n/a	8	312
2008	3	126	0	180	0	n/a	n/a	8	317
2009	4	168	2	220	0	n/a	n/a	15	409
2010	0	120	1	177	0	n/a	n/a	13	311
2011	1	125	1	167	0	0	11	0	305
2012	1	123	0	177	0	0	7	0	308
2013	1	116	0	170	0	0	9	0	296
2014	2	78	0	169	0	0	7	0	256
2015	1	98	0	149	1	0	7	0	256
2016	2	129	0	143	1	0	11	0	286
2017	5	120	0	147	0	0	9	0	281
2018	10	126	1	142	0	0	9	0	288
2019	10	134	0	144	0	0	5	0	293
2020	12	129	0	139	0	0	4	0	284
2021	8	54	0	89	0	0	1	0	152
2022	8	52	0	94	0	0	1	0	155
2023	2	44	0	105	0	0	0	0	151

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 Jefferson Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	301	13.0	23.1	n/a
1989	307	13.6	22.5	n/a
1990	287	14.0	20.5	n/a
1991	274	12.0	22.8	n/a
1992	285	13.0	21.9	n/a
1993	251	13.0	19.3	n/a
1994	273	14.0	19.5	n/a
1995	258	14.0	18.4	n/a
1996	258	14.0	18.4	n/a
1997	313	17.0	18.4	n/a
1998	272	16.0	17.0	n/a
1999	312	16.0	19.5	n/a
2000	341	16.0	21.3	n/a
2001	351	17.0	20.6	n/a
2002	338	20.0	16.9	91.1
2003	338	20.0	16.9	91.1
2004	339	21.0	16.1	93.2
2005	327	21.0	15.6	92
2006	303	21.1	14.4	96.6
2007	312	19.0	16.4	90.8
2008	317	19.0	16.7	99
2009	409	22.0	18.6	87.3
2010	311	19.0	16.3	95
2011	305	16.0	19.0	96.7
2012	308	17.0	18.1	97.7
2013	296	19.0	15.5	94.6
2014	256	13.0	19.6	95.3
2015	256	19.0	13.4	96.9
2016	286	21.0	13.6	79.4
2017	281	22.0	12.7	98.9
2018	288	22.0	13.0	99
2019	293	22.0	13.3	97.6
2020	284	22.0	12.9	99.3
2021	152	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	155	12.0	12.9	99.4
2023	151	14.0	10.7	99.3

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 Jefferson Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	301	13.0	23.1	n/a
1989	307	13.6	22.5	n/a
1990	287	14.0	20.5	n/a
1991	274	12.0	22.8	n/a
1992	285	13.0	21.9	n/a
1993	251	13.0	19.3	n/a
1994	273	14.0	19.5	n/a
1995	258	14.0	18.4	n/a
1996	258	14.0	18.4	n/a
1997	313	17.0	18.4	n/a
1998	272	16.0	17.0	n/a
1999	312	16.0	19.5	n/a
2000	341	16.0	21.3	n/a
2001	351	17.0	20.6	n/a
2002	338	20.0	16.9	91.1
2003	338	20.0	16.9	91.1
2004	339	21.0	16.1	93.2
2005	327	21.0	15.6	92
2006	303	21.1	14.4	96.6
2007	312	19.0	16.4	90.8
2008	317	19.0	16.7	99
2009	409	22.0	18.6	87.3
2010	311	19.0	16.3	95
2011	305	16.0	19.0	96.7
2012	308	17.0	18.1	97.7
2013	296	19.0	15.5	94.6
2014	256	13.0	19.6	95.3
2015	256	19.0	13.4	96.9
2016	286	21.0	13.6	79.4
2017	281	22.0	12.7	98.9
2018	288	22.0	13.0	99
2019	293	22.0	13.3	97.6
2020	284	22.0	12.9	99.3
2021	152	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	155	12.0	12.9	99.4
2023	151	14.0	10.7	99.3

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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