Aurora Schools Among Best in DuPage, Kane Counties: Chicago Magazine

With less of an emphasis on test scores, Chicago Magazine has released its 2016 list of the best Chicago and suburban public schools.

Both elementary and high schools in Aurora, including both Kane and DuPage counties, fared well.

In DuPage, Metea Valley High School ranked No. 4 on a list of the five best high schools in the county. MVHS has an enrollment of 2,799 and spends $7,183 per pupil. It has a graduation rate of 97 percent.

Lisle High School ranked No. 1 in the top 5 high schools in DuPage County. It has an enrollment of 532 and spends $10,994 per pupil. The graduation rate is 94 percent.

The top five high schools in DuPage County are:

1. Lisle High School in Lisle
2. Wheaton North High School in Wheaton
3. Hinsdale Central High School in Hinsdale
4. Metea Valley High School in Aurora
5. Naperville Central High School in Naperville

No Aurora elementary schools in DuPage County made the list. But over in Kane County, not only did one make the list, it topped it.

Coming in at No. 1 for the top 10 elementary schools in Kane County is Fred Rogers Magnet Academy. According to the report, a $660,000 grant from the Dunham Fund, a local philanthropic foundation, allows every student access to a new laptop to use in class and at home.

The school has a total enrollment of 431 students in grades third through eighth and spends $6,569 per pupil. The attendance rate is 94 percent.

The top 10 elementary schools in Kane County are:

1. Fred Rodgers Magnet Academy (S) in Aurora
2. Bell-Graham Elementary School in St. Charles
3. Fox Ridge School in St. Charles
4. Wild Rose Elementary School in St. Charles
5. Grace McWayne Elementary School in Batavia
6. Corron Elementary School in South Elgin
7. Glenbrook Elementary School† in Streamwood
8. Munhall Elementary School in St. Charles
9. Ferson Creek School in St. Charles
10. Lincoln Elementary School in St. Charles

(S) selective enrollment
†Located in a neighboring county but part of a Kane County–based district

No Aurora high schools in Kane County made the list.

For this year’s public school rankings, the magazine “talked to top professionals and educators inside and outside the school system, researched a wide array of new and improved metrics, drilled down deeper on the numbers, and asked the independent research nonprofit RTI International to crunch the data to generate the fairest possible results.”

Suburban Elementary Schools

Spending per pupil 20 percent
PARCC attainment (adjusted) 50 percent
5Essentials 20 percent
Attendance 10 percent

Suburban High Schools

Spending per pupil 10 percent
Freshmen on Track 5 percent
PARCC attainment (adjusted) 20 percent
ACT attainment (adjusted) 30 percent
5Essentials 20 percent
Graduation rate 10 percent
Attendance 5 percent

See the full rankings at Chicago Magazine.