13 HG, Lockport Schools Among Best For Grades K-8: U.S. News

HOMER GLEN-LOCKPORT, IL — Several elementary and middle schools in Homer Glen and Lockport have been ranked among the best in Illinois, according to a brand-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.

For middle schools, U.S. News ranked Homer Junior High School as 206th in the state, Oak Prairie Junior High School in Homer Glen was ranked No. 219, Hadley Middle School in Homer Glen was ranked 264th, Kelvin Grove Middle School in Lockport was No. 531 and Fairmont School in Lockport was ranked 641st.

Elementary schools in Homer Glen and Lockport were also included in the rankings. Here's how they measured up:

• 196: Reed Elementary School in Homer Glen
• 235: Luther J. Schilling School in Homer Glen
• 409: William E. Young School in Homer Glen
• 412: William J. Butler School in Lockport
• 467: Ludwig Elementary School in Lockport
• 914: Goodings Grove School in Homer Glen
• 1141: Milne Grove Elementary School in Lockport
• 1439: Taft Grade School in Lockport

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.

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.

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