Is South Elgin High School a good school?

South Elgin High School ranks 243 rd of 697 Illinois high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

How many students attend South Elgin High School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 2,844 students attended South Elgin High School.

What is the racial makeup of South Elgin High School?

Students at South Elgin High School are 40% White, 36% Hispanic, 13% Asian, 6% African American, 5% Two or more races.

What schools feed into South Elgin High School?

South Elgin High School is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Bartlett Elementary School Elementary : Clinton Elementary School Elementary : Fox Meadow Elementary School Elementary : Liberty Elementary School Elementary : Nature Ridge Elementary School Elementary : Otter Creek Elementary School Elementary : Wayne Elementary School Elementary : Willard Elementary School Middle : Kenyon Woods Middle School

South Elgin High School

Summary:

South Elgin High School is a public high school serving 2,844 students in grades 9-12 in the School District U-46 in South Elgin, Illinois. The school's statewide ranking has fluctuated over the past 10 years, currently standing at 243rd out of Illinois high schools, and it is rated 3 out of 5 stars by SchoolDigger.

Academically, South Elgin High School performs better than the district and state averages, with 20.7% of 11th-grade students proficient or better in SAT Mathematics and 28.9% proficient or better in SAT English Language Arts. The school also maintains high four-year graduation rates, ranging from 89.3% to 92.9% over the past five years. However, the school's performance varies across different student subgroups, with White and African American students performing relatively well, but Asian and Hispanic students performing weaker. Additionally, the school has experienced a significant increase in chronic absenteeism, rising from 17.5% in 2019-2020 to 51.9% in 2023-2024, which is higher than the district and state averages.

When compared to other high schools in the same district, such as Streamwood High School, Elgin High School, and Larkin High School, South Elgin High School generally outperforms these schools in academic measures and graduation rates. However, the school's chronic absenteeism rate is similar to or higher than these nearby schools. Additionally, South Elgin High School has a lower student-teacher ratio of 16.5, which may contribute to its relatively strong academic performance.

Detail:

Public 9-12

760 E Main St
South Elgin, IL 60177-1702

(847) 289-3760

District: School District U-46

SchoolDigger Rank:
243^rd of 697 Illinois High Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $15,790

Student/teacher ratio: 16.5

Number of students: 2,844

Racial breakdown:

White:

40.1%

Hispanic:

36.4%

Asian:

12.6%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 32.6%

See top rated Illinois high schools

Compare South Elgin High School to nearby high schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details South Elgin High School ranks better than 65.1% of high schools in Illinois. It also ranks 2^nd among 5 ranked high schools in the School District U-46. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 57.31. (See more...)

The four-year cohort graduation rate measures the percentage of students at South Elgin High School who earn a standard high school diploma within four years of starting ninth grade.

The high school dropout rate measures the percentage of students who do not complete their high school education.

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 South Elgin High School has the largest high school student body size in the School District U-46. (See more...)

Compare Details

Teachers

Compare Details

Compare

Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at South Elgin High School is $15,790, which is the lowest among 5 high schools in the School District U-46!

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

South Elgin High School:

SchoolDigger ranks South Elgin High School 243^rd of 697 Illinois public high schools. (See South Elgin High School in the ranking list.)

High School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

Multi-racial students:

English Language Learner students:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Homeless students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Male students:

Asian students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

School District U-46:

SchoolDigger ranks School District U-46 578^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

Read all reviews and ratings detail for South Elgin High School.

What do you think?

Your rating for South Elgin High School?

(Ranking FAQ)

Rank History for South Elgin High School

Compare

Rank History for all students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2007	41.14	410^th	612	33.0%
2008	46.87	386^th	624	38.1%
2009	54.03	329^th	632	47.9%
2010	62.27	264^th	643	58.9%
2011	71.38	200^th	655	69.5%
2012	65.88	223^rd	665	66.5%
2013	68.53	220^th	670	67.2%
2014	71.69	180^th	670	73.1%
2015	44.23	309^th	614	49.7%
2016	44.24	350^th	643	45.6%
2017	61.90	219^th	642	65.9%
2018	50.03	314^th	647	51.5%
2019	59.74	245^th	701	65.0%
2021	74.17	143^rd	688	79.2%
2022	70.65	165^th	699	76.4%
2023	66.40	192^nd	699	72.5%
2024	57.31	243^rd	697	65.1%

See the entire list of Illinois High School Rankings!

Rank History for Multi-racial students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	39.33	92^nd	154	40.3%
2019	48.66	79^th	165	52.1%
2021	22.18	124^th	160	22.5%
2022	67.44	50^th	170	70.6%
2023	49.37	75^th	163	54.0%
2024	39.13	100^th	182	45.1%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for Multi-racial Students!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	43.19	62^nd	151	58.9%
2019	46.84	65^th	183	64.5%
2021	52.07	54^th	189	71.4%
2022	49.18	77^th	205	62.4%
2023	92.30	9^th	217	95.9%
2024	40.10	108^th	248	56.5%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	37.51	194^th	374	48.1%
2019	45.24	168^th	473	64.5%
2021	43.12	187^th	453	58.7%
2022	35.50	267^th	493	45.8%
2023	61.47	125^th	476	73.7%
2024	54.68	149^th	482	69.1%

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

Rank History for Low Socio Economic Status students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	31.80	435^th	585	25.6%
2019	44.73	340^th	639	46.8%
2021	44.67	296^th	611	51.6%
2022	65.15	163^rd	626	74.0%
2023	48.99	298^th	644	53.7%
2024	29.37	447^th	639	30.0%

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

Rank History for Homeless students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2019	83.81	10^th	91	89.0%
2023	50.58	34^th	104	67.3%
2024	46.34	54^th	125	56.8%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for Homeless Students!

Rank History for Female students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	50.95	299^th	620	51.8%
2019	55.24	268^th	665	59.7%
2021	71.55	157^th	639	75.4%
2022	69.44	172^nd	658	73.9%
2023	60.39	232^nd	656	64.6%
2024	54.19	257^th	664	61.3%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	52.76	135^th	428	68.5%
2024	32.75	236^th	429	45.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for Military Connected students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2022	43.55	13^th	26	50.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for Military Connected Students!

Rank History for Male students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	46.69	333^rd	619	46.2%
2019	61.77	207^th	675	69.3%
2021	72.48	142^nd	653	78.3%
2022	68.58	163^rd	664	75.5%
2023	69.56	157^th	668	76.5%
2024	58.33	225^th	668	66.3%

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

Rank History for Asian students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	20.54	112^th	132	15.2%
2019	32.58	96^th	130	26.2%
2021	38.63	89^th	135	34.1%
2022	44.39	88^th	141	37.6%
2023	42.80	86^th	134	35.8%
2024	27.21	101^st	137	26.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for Asian Students!

Rank History for African American students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	41.70	127^th	253	49.8%
2019	38.30	154^th	299	48.5%
2021	56.83	75^th	281	73.3%
2022	64.77	66^th	294	77.6%
2023	64.92	65^th	301	78.4%
2024	48.75	105^th	299	64.9%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	30.17	209^th	291	28.2%
2019	34.49	204^th	317	35.6%
2021	35.37	195^th	317	38.5%
2022	52.04	138^th	335	58.8%
2023	39.72	186^th	333	44.1%
2024	27.69	248^th	336	26.2%

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

Rank History for White students at South Elgin High School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked High Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	47.47	256^th	548	53.3%
2019	59.79	179^th	552	67.6%
2021	77.90	105^th	553	81.0%
2022	66.74	150^th	560	73.2%
2023	69.15	150^th	557	73.1%
2024	64.95	155^th	554	72.0%

See the entire list of Best Illinois High Schools for White 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: 4)

100%

by a parent
Thursday, March 8, 2012

My son went from a private elementary to public high at south Elgin. He has adjusted very well, loves the school and what it has to offer, and is on the honor roll. The school is up to date with their technology, teachers are all highly educated and informed, and the students he hangs out with, seem very well behaved, eager to learn, and seem from good family backgrounds, no matter what the economic background they come from. So far pleased with the school. Close Quote

Enrollment information for South Elgin High School

Compare

Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
2006	607	71	62	210	1	n/a	n/a	5	956
2007	980	110	103	352	1	n/a	n/a	9	1555
2008	1335	167	179	463	1	n/a	n/a	12	2157
2009	1498	189	201	524	2	n/a	n/a	24	2438
2010	1600	171	216	541	2	n/a	n/a	38	2568
2011	1564	155	238	679	8	3	71	0	2718
2012	1539	153	231	672	9	2	76	0	2682
2013	1533	136	239	686	5	0	73	0	2672
2014	1538	150	250	708	18	2	77	0	2743
2015	1499	170	253	753	22	2	85	0	2784
2016	1445	162	262	780	11	1	104	0	2765
2017	1388	168	274	789	14	2	98	0	2733
2018	1357	156	278	765	13	2	102	0	2673
2019	1324	131	296	791	14	1	109	0	2666
2020	1306	135	294	853	14	0	117	0	2719
2021	1313	128	354	945	11	1	128	0	2880
2022	1239	149	372	1032	11	0	139	0	2942
2023	1141	160	357	1034	18	1	133	0	2844

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 South Elgin High School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2006	956	58.0	16.5	23.2
2007	1555	78.0	19.9	25.1
2008	2157	97.0	22.2	22.5
2009	2438	130.8	18.6	25.9
2010	2568	141.7	18.1	28.1
2011	2718	132.3	20.5	28.4
2012	2682	138.4	19.3	28.5
2013	2672	153.9	17.3	34.2
2014	2743	146.5	18.7	34.5
2015	2784	151.0	18.4	35.8
2016	2765	147.0	18.8	31.9
2017	2733	144.9	18.8	33.2
2018	2673	139.7	19.1	32.4
2019	2666	141.2	18.8	32.7
2020	2719	153.5	17.7	35.4
2021	2880	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	2942	164.8	17.8	28.4
2023	2844	172.1	16.5	32.6

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 South Elgin High School

Compare

Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
2006	956	58.0	16.5	23.2
2007	1555	78.0	19.9	25.1
2008	2157	97.0	22.2	22.5
2009	2438	130.8	18.6	25.9
2010	2568	141.7	18.1	28.1
2011	2718	132.3	20.5	28.4
2012	2682	138.4	19.3	28.5
2013	2672	153.9	17.3	34.2
2014	2743	146.5	18.7	34.5
2015	2784	151.0	18.4	35.8
2016	2765	147.0	18.8	31.9
2017	2733	144.9	18.8	33.2
2018	2673	139.7	19.1	32.4
2019	2666	141.2	18.8	32.7
2020	2719	153.5	17.7	35.4
2021	2880	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	2942	164.8	17.8	28.4
2023	2844	172.1	16.5	32.6

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.

Immunization Rates