Is Columbus West Elementary School a good school?

Columbus West Elementary School ranks in the bottom 22.3% of Illinois elementary schools.

How many students attend Columbus West Elementary School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 586 students attended Columbus West Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Columbus West Elementary School?

Students at Columbus West Elementary School are 98% Hispanic.

What schools do graduates of Columbus West Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Columbus West Elementary School usually go on to attend: Middle : Columbus East Elementary School Middle : Unity Junior High School High : J Sterling Morton East High School

Columbus West Elementary School

Summary:

Columbus West Elementary School is a public elementary school serving grades PK-4 in Cicero, Illinois, with 586 students. The school is part of the Cicero School District 99, which is ranked 718 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Columbus West Elementary School has consistently been ranked in the bottom 20% of Illinois elementary schools over the past 10 years, with a ranking between 1643 and 1916 out of over 2,000 schools. The school faces significant challenges, including very high chronic absenteeism rates, poor academic performance, and achievement gaps among subgroups. In 2023-2024, only 11.9% of Columbus West students were proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 23.6% in the district and 41.2% statewide. In math, 17.6% of Columbus West students were proficient, compared to 13.1% in the district and 28.4% statewide. Despite spending significantly more per student ($19,268 in 2022-2023) than the state average, the school's academic outcomes remain among the lowest in the state.

Interestingly, the other Cicero elementary schools, such as Drexel, Goodwin, Woodrow Wilson, and Abe Lincoln, perform better than Columbus West on most metrics, including academic achievement, chronic absenteeism, and student-teacher ratios. Additionally, the nearby Berwyn schools, such as Hiawatha, Pershing, and Komensky, generally outperform Columbus West and the Cicero district on academic measures, despite serving similar demographics.

Detail:

Public PK, KG-4

5425 W 31st St
Cicero, IL 60804-3989

(708) 780-4482

District: Cicero School District 99

SchoolDigger Rank:
1606^th of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $21,924

Students who attend Columbus West Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Columbus East Elementary School
	Unity Junior High School
High:	J Sterling Morton East High School

Student/teacher ratio: 13.3

Number of students: 586

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

97.6%

White:

0.9%

African American:

0.9%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 94.4%

See top rated Illinois elementary schools

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Performance Trends

Compare Details Columbus West Elementary School ranks worse than 77.7% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 7^th among 8 ranked elementary schools in the Cicero School District 99. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 22.54. (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 Columbus West Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Cicero School District 99. (See more...)

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Teachers

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Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Columbus West Elementary School is $21,924, which is the 3^rd highest among 8 elementary schools in the Cicero School District 99.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Columbus West Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Columbus West Elementary School 1606^th of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Columbus West Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Male students:

Hispanic students:

Cicero School District 99:

SchoolDigger ranks Cicero School District 99 718^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Columbus West Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	2.12	1973^rd	2020	2.3%
2004	6.21	1881^st	2030	7.3%
2005	10.51	1821^st	2022	9.9%
2006	16.60	1828^th	2086	12.4%
2007	17.64	1829^th	2095	12.7%
2008	15.57	1843^rd	2092	11.9%
2009	12.85	1913^th	2120	9.8%
2010	23.83	1758^th	2139	17.8%
2011	12.67	1952^nd	2147	9.1%
2012	16.28	1922^nd	2166	11.3%
2013	11.68	1989^th	2167	8.2%
2014	11.63	1916^th	2093	8.5%
2015	14.43	1858^th	2052	9.5%
2016	17.94	1753^rd	2046	14.3%
2017	17.70	1749^th	2044	14.4%
2018	20.17	1643^rd	2037	19.3%
2019	18.05	1788^th	2086	14.3%
2021	17.70	1659^th	1948	14.8%
2022	18.07	1737^th	2082	16.6%
2023	18.63	1727^th	2077	16.9%
2024	22.54	1606^th	2067	22.3%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	37.93	455^th	718	36.6%
2019	32.80	564^th	743	24.1%
2021	26.15	505^th	537	6.0%
2022	28.46	649^th	768	15.5%
2023	30.87	615^th	788	22.0%
2024	37.14	517^th	826	37.4%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2018	32.94	478^th	763	37.4%
2019	23.35	1028^th	1194	13.9%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	31.26	1278^th	1765	27.6%
2019	30.07	1371^st	1816	24.5%
2021	22.56	1320^th	1514	12.8%
2022	30.04	1285^th	1763	27.1%
2023	31.65	1271^st	1808	29.7%
2024	29.72	1318^th	1793	26.5%

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

Rank History for Female students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	19.37	1634^th	1964	16.8%
2019	18.18	1739^th	2019	13.9%
2021	17.08	1457^th	1680	13.3%
2022	16.12	1731^st	1970	12.1%
2023	19.08	1633^rd	1957	16.6%
2024	16.84	1689^th	1942	13.0%

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

Rank History for Male students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	22.68	1556^th	1972	21.1%
2019	20.79	1656^th	2019	18.0%
2021	18.30	1453^rd	1707	14.9%
2022	21.50	1544^th	1977	21.9%
2023	21.43	1552^nd	1984	21.8%
2024	29.06	1342^nd	1959	31.5%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Columbus West Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	27.07	737^th	938	21.4%
2019	24.43	804^th	955	15.8%
2021	28.83	561^st	742	24.4%
2022	25.38	775^th	954	18.8%
2023	27.95	750^th	970	22.7%
2024	34.06	647^th	959	32.5%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Hispanic 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 Columbus West Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1999	127	3	9	1010	0	n/a	n/a	0	1149
2000	91	5	6	1194	0	n/a	n/a	0	1296
2001	70	3	7	1285	1	n/a	n/a	0	1366
2002	66	13	4	1444	1	n/a	n/a	0	1528
2003	66	13	4	1444	1	n/a	n/a	0	1528
2004	29	6	2	977	0	n/a	n/a	0	1014
2005	33	3	5	934	0	n/a	n/a	0	975
2006	39	10	2	943	0	n/a	n/a	0	994
2007	35	14	4	992	0	n/a	n/a	3	1048
2008	25	18	4	1001	2	n/a	n/a	5	1055
2009	21	15	3	918	2	n/a	n/a	2	961
2010	17	19	4	997	3	n/a	n/a	3	1043
2011	12	10	2	915	4	0	0	0	943
2012	19	4	3	915	2	0	0	0	943
2013	11	6	5	913	3	0	0	0	938
2014	12	6	5	878	7	0	0	0	908
2015	12	8	4	906	12	0	0	0	942
2016	17	15	4	854	17	0	2	0	909
2017	11	6	2	530	106	1	0	0	656
2018	11	5	1	613	71	0	1	0	702
2019	7	5	0	645	0	0	0	0	657
2020	10	6	0	705	0	0	1	0	722
2021	6	6	1	653	1	0	2	0	669
2022	9	4	2	588	1	0	1	0	605
2023	5	5	2	572	0	0	2	0	586

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 Columbus West Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1999	1149	55.0	20.9	n/a
2000	1296	67.0	19.3	n/a
2001	1366	67.0	20.4	n/a
2002	1528	89.0	17.2	73.8
2003	1528	89.0	17.2	73.8
2004	1014	84.0	12.1	77.1
2005	975	66.0	14.8	77.4
2006	994	63.0	15.8	75.1
2007	1048	75.0	14.0	75.1
2008	1055	53.0	19.9	79.2
2009	961	66.7	14.4	92.6
2010	1043	68.0	15.3	88.4
2011	943	66.0	14.2	88.4
2012	943	66.3	14.2	89.7
2013	938	94.4	9.9	91.4
2014	908	56.4	16.0	94.4
2015	942	60.0	15.7	95.9
2016	909	59.0	15.4	92.8
2017	656	53.1	12.3	86.1
2018	702	53.8	13.0	69.7
2019	657	48.8	13.4	93.5
2020	722	50.9	14.1	91.1
2021	669	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	605	51.5	11.7	96.2
2023	586	44.0	13.3	94.4

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 Columbus West Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1999	1149	55.0	20.9	n/a
2000	1296	67.0	19.3	n/a
2001	1366	67.0	20.4	n/a
2002	1528	89.0	17.2	73.8
2003	1528	89.0	17.2	73.8
2004	1014	84.0	12.1	77.1
2005	975	66.0	14.8	77.4
2006	994	63.0	15.8	75.1
2007	1048	75.0	14.0	75.1
2008	1055	53.0	19.9	79.2
2009	961	66.7	14.4	92.6
2010	1043	68.0	15.3	88.4
2011	943	66.0	14.2	88.4
2012	943	66.3	14.2	89.7
2013	938	94.4	9.9	91.4
2014	908	56.4	16.0	94.4
2015	942	60.0	15.7	95.9
2016	909	59.0	15.4	92.8
2017	656	53.1	12.3	86.1
2018	702	53.8	13.0	69.7
2019	657	48.8	13.4	93.5
2020	722	50.9	14.1	91.1
2021	669	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	605	51.5	11.7	96.2
2023	586	44.0	13.3	94.4

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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