Aurora Schools Ranked Among Best For Grades K-8: U.S. News

AURORA, IL —Several elementary and middle schools in Aurora have been ranked among others in Illinois, according to a new ranking released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

For the inaugural list, U.S. News published rankings and data on more than 80,000 public elementary and middle schools across the United States.

Schools are ranked at the state and district levels. The best charter schools and best magnet schools ranked as stand-alone categories. In Illinois, 2,038 elementary schools and 1,243 middle schools were scored and included in the list.

U.S. News ranked Young Magnet High School in Chicago as the best middle school in the state and its district, City of Chicago School District 299, according to the new list. Skinner North Elementary School, located in Chicago, is ranked first among elementary schools in the state.

Here’s a look at how other schools in Aurora ranked compared with others in the state:

• 113: Fred Rodgers Magnet Academy, East Aurora District 131
• 733: Jewel Middle School, Aurora West District 129
• 869: Jefferson Middle School, Aurora West District 129
• 1,001: Fearn Elementary School, Aurora West District 129
• 1,101: Goodwin Elementary School, Aurora West District 129
• 1,318: Freeman Elementary School, Aurora West District 129

To determine the rankings, U.S. News used data from the U.S. Department of Education to analyze two areas at each school:

• Math and reading proficiency — or how well students perform on state assessments.
• Math and reading performance — or how well they perform compared with expectations.

The state assessment data used in the rankings is from the 2018-19 school year and, therefore, predates any effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on test-taking.

Schools were also ranked by district. In Aurora West District 129, Fearn Elementary School and Jewel Middle School were ranked first in the district among elementary and middle schools. Among schools in their category in the state, they're ranked 1,001 and 733, respectively.

Here’s how other elementary and middle schools in District 129 measured up. U.S. News separately ranked elementary and middle schools in a district.

• 2nd place: Goodwin Elementary School and Jefferson Middle School
• 3rd place: Freeman Elementary School and Herget Middle School
• 4th place: Greenman Elementary School and Washington Middle School

Fred Rodgers Magnet Academy, in District 131, is also ranked 8th among magnet middle schools and 11th among magnet elementary schools in the state.

Nationally, California has 5,534 ranked elementary schools — the most of any state — followed by Texas at 4,446; New York at 2,211; Florida at 2,128; and Illinois at 2,038 schools.

California also has the most ranked middle schools with 2,319, followed by Texas at 1,942; Illinois at 1,243; New York at 1,219; and Florida at 997.

See the complete list of 2021’s Best K-8 Schools.

Editor's note: This article has been updated to include rankings from East Aurora School District 131, which were previously missing. Patch apologizes for this error.

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