Is Diekman Elementary School a good school?

Diekman Elementary School ranks in the bottom 19.9% of Illinois elementary schools.

How many students attend Diekman Elementary School?

In the 2023-24 school year, 301 students attended Diekman Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Diekman Elementary School?

Students at Diekman Elementary School are 91% African American, 6% Hispanic.

What schools do graduates of Diekman Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Diekman Elementary School usually go on to attend: Middle : Creative Communications Academy Middle : S T E M Academy Middle : School of Fine Arts

Diekman Elementary School

Summary:

Diekman Elementary School is a public elementary school located in Dolton, Illinois, serving grades PK-6 with a student population of 318. The school is part of the Dolton School District 149, which is ranked 793 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger. Diekman Elementary School has consistently ranked in the bottom 20% of Illinois elementary schools over the past decade, with a current ranking of 1656 out of 2067 schools and a 1-star rating.

Diekman Elementary School faces significant challenges, including high chronic absenteeism, low academic performance, and equity concerns. The school has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 14.8% in 2019-2020 to 35.6% in 2023-2024, which is notably higher than the state average of 17% for the 2020-2021 school year. Academically, only 18.1% of Diekman students were proficient or better in ELA in 2023-2024, compared to 41.2% statewide and 14.5% in the Dolton School District 149. Additionally, the school's performance varies significantly across different student subgroups, with the school ranking in the top 50% of Illinois schools for African American students but in the bottom 40% for female, male, and low socioeconomic status students.

Despite the increased spending per student at Diekman Elementary School, from $13,604 in 2019-2020 to $21,123 in 2022-2023, the school's academic performance has not shown commensurate improvement. This suggests that simply increasing funding may not be enough to drive meaningful change, and a more comprehensive approach to school improvement may be necessary. Interestingly, Diekman Elementary School's performance is generally lower than that of the nearby schools within the Dolton School District 149, such as New Beginnings Learning Academy, Carol Moseley Braun School, and Berger-Vandenberg Elementary School, which also struggle academically but tend to outperform Diekman.

Detail:

Public PK, KG-6

15121 Dorchester Ave
Dolton, IL 60419-2941

(708) 841-3838

District: Dolton School District 149

SchoolDigger Rank:
1656^th of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $20,491

Students who attend Diekman Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Creative Communications Academy
	S T E M Academy
	School of Fine Arts

Student/teacher ratio: 22.5

Number of students: 301

Racial breakdown:

African American:

91.0%

Hispanic:

6.3%

White:

1.0%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 99.7%

See top rated Illinois elementary schools

Compare Diekman Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Diekman Elementary School ranks worse than 80.1% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 2^nd among 5 ranked elementary schools in the Dolton School District 149. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 20.88. (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: African American (91%), Hispanic (6.3%), two or more races (1%). (See more...)

Compare Details 99.7% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)

Teachers

Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Diekman Elementary School is 22.5. 3 elementary schools in the Dolton School District 149 have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)

Compare Diekman Elementary School employs 13.3 full-time teachers.

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Diekman Elementary School is $20,491, which is the highest among 5 elementary schools in the Dolton School District 149!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Diekman Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Diekman Elementary School 1656^th of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Diekman 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:

Dolton School District 149:

SchoolDigger ranks Dolton School District 149 793^rd of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

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Rank History for Diekman Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	11.28	1764^th	2020	12.7%
2004	11.85	1799^th	2030	11.4%
2005	12.17	1810^th	2022	10.5%
2006	8.65	1920^th	2086	8.0%
2007	5.00	1985^th	2095	5.3%
2008	22.82	1730^th	2092	17.3%
2009	25.21	1718^th	2120	19.0%
2010	8.16	2003^rd	2139	6.4%
2011	13.97	1929^th	2147	10.2%
2012	20.62	1840^th	2166	15.1%
2013	6.75	2090^th	2167	3.6%
2014	4.54	2057^th	2093	1.7%
2015	17.31	1780^th	2052	13.3%
2016	11.47	1934^th	2046	5.5%
2017	12.43	1885^th	2044	7.8%
2018	11.71	1921^st	2037	5.7%
2019	10.86	1993^rd	2086	4.5%
2021	12.72	1870^th	1948	4.0%
2022	14.23	1901^st	2082	8.7%
2023	14.74	1883^rd	2077	9.3%
2024	20.88	1656^th	2067	19.9%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for Special Education students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2019	21.24	1098^th	1194	8.0%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	18.24	1623^rd	1765	8.0%
2019	16.97	1698^th	1816	6.5%
2021	18.94	1415^th	1514	6.5%
2022	21.69	1528^th	1763	13.3%
2023	22.41	1558^th	1808	13.8%
2024	32.55	1251^st	1793	30.2%

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

Rank History for Female students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	13.47	1806^th	1964	8.0%
2019	11.22	1915^th	2019	5.2%
2021	12.13	1611^th	1680	4.1%
2022	12.41	1882^nd	1970	4.5%
2023	17.11	1702^nd	1957	13.0%
2024	21.38	1550^th	1942	20.2%

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

Rank History for Male students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	13.00	1847^th	1972	6.3%
2019	13.46	1877^th	2019	7.0%
2021	13.61	1615^th	1707	5.4%
2022	20.21	1590^th	1977	19.6%
2023	17.43	1701^st	1984	14.3%
2024	24.68	1464^th	1959	25.3%

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

Rank History for African American students at Diekman Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.35	529^th	698	24.2%
2019	25.35	606^th	711	14.8%
2021	29.92	329^th	428	23.1%
2022	35.89	411^th	684	39.9%
2023	36.01	429^th	692	38.0%
2024	46.85	292^nd	655	55.4%

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 Diekman Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Total
1988	178	215	1	16	1	n/a	n/a	411
1989	143	254	2	10	n/a	n/a	n/a	409
1990	116	281	5	12	2	n/a	n/a	416
1991	55	335	2	8	2	n/a	n/a	402
1992	35	363	0	10	0	n/a	n/a	408
1993	32	370	0	8	0	n/a	n/a	410
1994	28	431	0	8	0	n/a	n/a	467
1995	16	661	1	18	0	n/a	n/a	696
1996	16	661	1	18	0	n/a	n/a	696
1997	5	653	4	13	0	n/a	n/a	675
1998	5	644	0	12	0	n/a	n/a	661
1999	1	585	0	10	0	n/a	n/a	596
2000	2	612	0	10	0	n/a	n/a	624
2001	1	551	0	6	0	n/a	n/a	558
2002	1	565	0	7	0	n/a	n/a	573
2003	1	565	0	7	0	n/a	n/a	573
2004	1	525	0	4	0	n/a	n/a	530
2005	3	409	0	8	0	n/a	n/a	420
2006	0	372	0	9	0	n/a	n/a	381
2007	0	363	0	20	0	n/a	n/a	383
2008	0	317	0	17	0	n/a	n/a	334
2009	0	317	0	12	0	n/a	n/a	329
2010	2	325	0	7	0	n/a	n/a	334
2011	3	307	0	4	0	0	1	315
2012	1	306	0	5	1	0	0	313
2013	1	351	0	3	2	1	0	358
2014	3	393	0	4	1	0	0	401
2015	6	383	0	7	1	0	0	397
2016	4	367	0	12	2	0	0	385
2017	3	342	0	11	3	0	0	359
2018	2	371	0	8	1	0	0	382
2019	2	348	0	10	0	0	0	360
2020	2	357	0	8	0	0	0	367
2021	2	329	0	9	1	0	0	341
2022	1	348	0	12	1	0	0	362
2023	0	297	1	17	1	0	2	318
2024	3	274	1	19	1	0	3	301

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 Diekman Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	411	18.9	21.7	n/a
1989	409	19.5	20.9	n/a
1990	416	20.5	20.2	n/a
1991	402	20.0	20.1	n/a
1992	408	17.9	22.7	n/a
1993	410	20.0	20.5	n/a
1994	467	21.0	22.2	n/a
1995	696	29.0	24.0	n/a
1996	696	29.0	24.0	n/a
1997	675	26.9	25.1	n/a
1998	661	29.0	22.8	n/a
1999	596	32.0	18.6	n/a
2000	624	32.0	19.5	n/a
2001	558	27.0	20.7	n/a
2002	573	29.0	19.8	62.3
2003	573	29.0	19.8	62.3
2004	530	27.0	19.6	77.4
2005	420	27.0	15.6	83.3
2006	381	23.0	16.6	78
2007	383	22.0	17.4	71
2008	334	17.0	19.6	79.6
2009	329	17.0	19.4	65
2010	334	18.0	18.5	76.6
2011	315	16.0	19.6	81.3
2012	313	16.0	19.5	98.1
2013	358	23.1	15.4	97.8
2014	401	20.0	20.0	99.3
2015	397	21.0	18.9	98.5
2016	385	19.0	20.2	100
2017	359	22.0	16.3	99.2
2018	382	22.0	17.3	99.7
2019	360	21.0	17.1	100
2020	367	18.0	20.3	100
2021	341	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	362	16.0	22.6	97.5
2023	318	18.0	17.6	96.9
2024	301	13.3	22.5	99.7

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 Diekman Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	411	18.9	21.7	n/a
1989	409	19.5	20.9	n/a
1990	416	20.5	20.2	n/a
1991	402	20.0	20.1	n/a
1992	408	17.9	22.7	n/a
1993	410	20.0	20.5	n/a
1994	467	21.0	22.2	n/a
1995	696	29.0	24.0	n/a
1996	696	29.0	24.0	n/a
1997	675	26.9	25.1	n/a
1998	661	29.0	22.8	n/a
1999	596	32.0	18.6	n/a
2000	624	32.0	19.5	n/a
2001	558	27.0	20.7	n/a
2002	573	29.0	19.8	62.3
2003	573	29.0	19.8	62.3
2004	530	27.0	19.6	77.4
2005	420	27.0	15.6	83.3
2006	381	23.0	16.6	78
2007	383	22.0	17.4	71
2008	334	17.0	19.6	79.6
2009	329	17.0	19.4	65
2010	334	18.0	18.5	76.6
2011	315	16.0	19.6	81.3
2012	313	16.0	19.5	98.1
2013	358	23.1	15.4	97.8
2014	401	20.0	20.0	99.3
2015	397	21.0	18.9	98.5
2016	385	19.0	20.2	100
2017	359	22.0	16.3	99.2
2018	382	22.0	17.3	99.7
2019	360	21.0	17.1	100
2020	367	18.0	20.3	100
2021	341	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	362	16.0	22.6	97.5
2023	318	18.0	17.6	96.9
2024	301	13.3	22.5	99.7

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.

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