Is Pershing Elementary School a good school?

Pershing Elementary School ranks in the bottom 15.7% of Illinois elementary schools.

How many students attend Pershing Elementary School?

In the 2022-23 school year, 559 students attended Pershing Elementary School.

What is the racial makeup of Pershing Elementary School?

Students at Pershing Elementary School are 66% Hispanic, 18% African American, 11% White, 5% Two or more races.

What schools do graduates of Pershing Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Pershing Elementary School usually go on to attend: Middle : Dirksen Junior High School

Pershing Elementary School

Summary:

Pershing Elementary School is a public elementary school in Joliet, Illinois, serving 559 students in grades K-5. The school is part of the Joliet PSD 86 district, which is ranked 739 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger. Pershing Elementary has consistently ranked in the bottom quarter of Illinois elementary schools, with a 1-star rating for most years.

Pershing Elementary faces significant challenges in serving its student population effectively. The school consistently underperforms compared to the district and state in standardized test scores, with only 13.1% of students proficient or better in ELA and 8.3% in math, far below the district and state averages. Pershing also has a very high chronic absenteeism rate of 34.9%, significantly higher than the state average of 17.6%. Additionally, 93.74% of Pershing students come from low-socioeconomic backgrounds, and the school struggles to support its diverse student groups, ranking in the bottom quarter of Illinois elementary schools for most subgroups.

Comparing Pershing to nearby schools in the Joliet PSD 86 district, such as Thomas Jefferson Elementary and Lynne Thigpen Elementary, highlights the need for a closer examination of the factors contributing to Pershing's underperformance. These nearby schools, while still underperforming compared to state averages, have significantly higher test scores and lower chronic absenteeism rates than Pershing. Addressing the challenges at Pershing, such as resource allocation, instructional practices, and support for students and families, will be crucial for improving educational outcomes and providing Pershing students with the opportunities they deserve.

Detail:

Public K-5

251 N Midland Ave
Joliet, IL 60435-6837

(815) 725-0986

District: Joliet PSD 86

SchoolDigger Rank:
1742^nd of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures: $17,854

Students who attend Pershing Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:

Dirksen Junior High School

Student/teacher ratio: 18.0

Number of students: 559

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

65.7%

African American:

18.1%

White:

11.1%

Free/discounted lunch recipients: 93.7%

See top rated Illinois elementary schools

Compare Pershing Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

Performance Trends

Compare Details Pershing Elementary School ranks worse than 84.3% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 8^th among 15 ranked elementary schools in the Joliet PSD 86 School District. (See more...)

Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 17.76. (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 Pershing Elementary School has the largest elementary school student body size in the Joliet PSD 86 School District. (See more...)

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Teachers

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Finance

Compare Details The average total spent per student at Pershing Elementary School is $17,854. 8 elementary schools in the Joliet PSD 86 School District spend more per student.

Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Pershing Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Pershing Elementary School 1742^nd of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Pershing Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:

English Language Learner students:

Special Education students:

Low Socio Economic Status students:

Female students:

Disabled students:

Male students:

African American students:

Hispanic students:

White students:

Joliet PSD 86:

SchoolDigger ranks Joliet PSD 86 739^th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)

Average Parent Rating:

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Rank History for Pershing Elementary School

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Rank History for all students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2003	54.89	1113^th	2020	44.9%
2004	30.78	1568^th	2030	22.8%
2005	49.75	1236^th	2022	38.9%
2006	45.42	1392^nd	2086	33.3%
2007	36.92	1561^st	2095	25.5%
2008	41.88	1423^rd	2092	32.0%
2009	48.16	1319^th	2120	37.8%
2010	44.80	1397^th	2139	34.7%
2011	51.21	1255^th	2147	41.5%
2012	50.93	1277^th	2166	41.0%
2013	32.06	1551^st	2167	28.4%
2014	40.82	1300^th	2093	37.9%
2015	34.26	1285^th	2052	37.4%
2016	26.02	1533^rd	2046	25.1%
2017	19.42	1701^st	2044	16.8%
2018	17.34	1743^rd	2037	14.4%
2019	20.61	1706^th	2086	18.2%
2021	13.55	1837^th	1948	5.7%
2022	18.67	1714^th	2082	17.7%
2023	17.85	1768^th	2077	14.9%
2024	17.76	1742^nd	2067	15.7%

See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for English Language Learner students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	47.20	325^th	718	54.7%
2019	38.94	470^th	743	36.7%
2021	34.32	383^rd	537	28.7%
2022	38.46	471^st	768	38.7%
2023	31.08	612^th	788	22.3%
2024	33.38	579^th	826	29.9%

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

Rank History for Special Education students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	30.76	515^th	763	32.5%
2019	21.01	1112^th	1194	6.9%
2021	20.20	608^th	640	5.0%
2022	20.91	1071^st	1113	3.8%
2023	23.10	976^th	1156	15.6%
2024	19.19	1092^nd	1195	8.6%

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

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

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.42	1322^nd	1765	25.1%
2019	35.57	1225^th	1816	32.5%
2021	21.58	1344^th	1514	11.2%
2022	31.37	1248^th	1763	29.2%
2023	29.19	1355^th	1808	25.1%
2024	28.27	1364^th	1793	23.9%

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

Rank History for Female students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	19.02	1640^th	1964	16.5%
2019	23.61	1591^st	2019	21.2%
2021	12.31	1605^th	1680	4.5%
2022	22.03	1533^rd	1970	22.2%
2023	18.82	1650^th	1957	15.7%
2024	19.88	1594^th	1942	17.9%

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

Rank History for Disabled students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile	SchoolDigger Rating
2023	28.48	673^rd	907	25.8%
2024	25.19	723^rd	886	18.4%

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

Rank History for Male students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	17.74	1715^th	1972	13.0%
2019	20.43	1669^th	2019	17.3%
2021	13.97	1606^th	1707	5.9%
2022	16.09	1758^th	1977	11.1%
2023	17.95	1680^th	1984	15.3%
2024	17.08	1677^th	1959	14.4%

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

Rank History for African American students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.59	525^th	698	24.8%
2019	20.43	665^th	711	6.5%
2021	25.64	389^th	428	9.1%
2022	32.33	467^th	684	31.7%
2023	31.92	493^rd	692	28.8%
2024	27.16	537^th	655	18.0%

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

Rank History for Hispanic students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	29.10	703^rd	938	25.1%
2019	36.80	606^th	955	36.5%
2021	21.57	683^rd	742	8.0%
2022	26.85	757^th	954	20.6%
2023	26.49	778^th	970	19.8%
2024	25.93	750^th	959	21.8%

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

Rank History for White students at Pershing Elementary School

Year	Avg Standard Score	Statewide Rank	Total # Ranked Elementary Schools	IL State Percentile
2018	10.77	1396^th	1463	4.6%
2019	16.49	1304^th	1462	10.8%
2024	26.45	1081^st	1392	22.3%

See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary 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: 3)

50%

Reviews:

by a teacher
Saturday, June 8, 2019

Great school if your child plans a career in crime. Very poor academic achievement in all areas. Nearly all students receive some governmental assistance or payment. Illegal alien children make up nearly 40 percent of the student body, and teachers spend 100 percent of their time with these limited English speaking students. Close Quote

by a parent
Friday, November 30, 2018

Great teachers Close Quote

Enrollment information for Pershing Elementary School

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Year	White	African American	Asian	Hispanic	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Not Specified	Total
1988	315	71	8	34	3	n/a	n/a	0	431
1989	315	80	11	25	2	n/a	n/a	0	433
1990	319	80	6	33	n/a	n/a	n/a	0	438
1991	308	90	7	44	0	n/a	n/a	0	449
1992	275	88	6	49	0	n/a	n/a	0	418
1993	284	78	3	41	1	n/a	n/a	0	407
1994	225	90	1	52	1	n/a	n/a	0	369
1995	251	98	6	64	0	n/a	n/a	0	419
1996	251	98	6	64	0	n/a	n/a	0	419
1997	225	104	6	74	1	n/a	n/a	0	410
1998	269	115	5	84	0	n/a	n/a	0	473
1999	241	111	4	77	1	n/a	n/a	0	434
2000	211	129	3	85	1	n/a	n/a	0	429
2001	221	121	2	139	2	n/a	n/a	0	485
2002	217	128	9	141	7	n/a	n/a	0	502
2003	217	128	9	141	7	n/a	n/a	0	502
2004	183	150	7	164	8	n/a	n/a	0	512
2005	151	163	13	169	6	n/a	n/a	0	502
2006	135	155	14	187	3	n/a	n/a	10	504
2007	102	169	15	197	1	n/a	n/a	35	519
2008	122	160	10	203	1	n/a	n/a	38	534
2009	108	169	17	261	0	n/a	n/a	39	594
2010	95	158	9	210	0	n/a	n/a	36	508
2011	102	151	8	235	0	0	43	0	539
2012	109	176	8	257	0	0	45	0	595
2013	118	172	12	288	1	0	41	0	632
2014	122	148	11	283	2	0	42	0	608
2015	117	110	9	288	2	0	34	0	560
2016	124	118	10	309	2	0	40	0	603
2017	94	108	6	285	1	0	86	0	580
2018	105	125	7	306	1	0	44	0	588
2019	77	122	5	311	0	0	21	0	536
2020	84	130	1	285	0	0	26	0	526
2021	69	123	1	346	0	0	34	0	573
2022	57	116	2	331	0	0	30	0	536
2023	62	101	1	367	0	0	28	0	559

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 Pershing Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	431	19.4	22.2	n/a
1989	433	21.0	20.6	n/a
1990	438	19.9	22.0	n/a
1991	449	19.0	23.6	n/a
1992	418	19.0	22.0	n/a
1993	407	17.0	23.9	n/a
1994	369	15.0	24.6	n/a
1995	419	19.0	22.1	n/a
1996	419	19.0	22.1	n/a
1997	410	18.0	22.8	n/a
1998	473	19.5	24.3	n/a
1999	434	21.0	20.7	n/a
2000	429	21.0	20.4	n/a
2001	485	21.0	23.1	n/a
2002	502	23.0	21.8	46.8
2003	502	23.0	21.8	46.8
2004	512	24.0	21.3	62.9
2005	502	24.0	20.9	68.5
2006	504	26.0	19.4	75.9
2007	519	25.0	20.8	74.8
2008	534	23.0	23.2	68.3
2009	594	28.0	21.2	75.3
2010	508	29.0	17.5	77.5
2011	539	27.0	19.9	74.2
2012	595	27.0	22.0	70.3
2013	632	34.8	18.1	69.3
2014	608	29.0	20.9	n/a
2015	560	31.0	18.0	99.5
2016	603	31.0	19.4	100
2017	580	31.0	18.7	99
2018	588	30.6	19.2	99.5
2019	536	30.9	17.3	99.4
2020	526	32.8	15.9	99
2021	573	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	536	29.9	17.9	92.7
2023	559	31.0	18.0	93.7

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 Pershing Elementary School

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Year	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/Teacher ratio	% Free/Discounted Lunch
1988	431	19.4	22.2	n/a
1989	433	21.0	20.6	n/a
1990	438	19.9	22.0	n/a
1991	449	19.0	23.6	n/a
1992	418	19.0	22.0	n/a
1993	407	17.0	23.9	n/a
1994	369	15.0	24.6	n/a
1995	419	19.0	22.1	n/a
1996	419	19.0	22.1	n/a
1997	410	18.0	22.8	n/a
1998	473	19.5	24.3	n/a
1999	434	21.0	20.7	n/a
2000	429	21.0	20.4	n/a
2001	485	21.0	23.1	n/a
2002	502	23.0	21.8	46.8
2003	502	23.0	21.8	46.8
2004	512	24.0	21.3	62.9
2005	502	24.0	20.9	68.5
2006	504	26.0	19.4	75.9
2007	519	25.0	20.8	74.8
2008	534	23.0	23.2	68.3
2009	594	28.0	21.2	75.3
2010	508	29.0	17.5	77.5
2011	539	27.0	19.9	74.2
2012	595	27.0	22.0	70.3
2013	632	34.8	18.1	69.3
2014	608	29.0	20.9	n/a
2015	560	31.0	18.0	99.5
2016	603	31.0	19.4	100
2017	580	31.0	18.7	99
2018	588	30.6	19.2	99.5
2019	536	30.9	17.3	99.4
2020	526	32.8	15.9	99
2021	573	n/a	n/a	n/a
2022	536	29.9	17.9	92.7
2023	559	31.0	18.0	93.7

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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