Kevin Hoffman 
REBOOT STAFF
Jan 23, 2015
Updated rankings for the best school districts in Illinois were recently released by SchoolDigger.com, a website that compiles various data on the nation’s public schools. Of the state’s 863 public school districts, 747 were ranked. SchoolDigger determines a district’s ranking by averaging the rank percentile of each school within a given district. Individual schools are ranked using the most recent reported test scores for Math and English. From SchoolDigger’s methodology:
District rankings are calculated as follows: for each district, we determine a Rank Score by averaging the rank percentile of the schools within each district.
For instance, take this example of one district:
School
Rank
Rank Percentile
Lincoln Elementary
15th of 100 Elementary Schools
.85
Jefferson Elementary
25th of 100 Elementary Schools
.75
Jackson High School
5th of 50 High Schools
.90
Average rank percentage (Rank Score):
.8333
This calculation is made for all districts, and then the list of districts is sorted by Rank Score. The district with the highest score is ranked #1.
While schools and districts should not be judged solely on test scores, SchoolDigger states its mission is to provide parents with the information they need to make the best decision for their children, which includes data on a district’s surrounding neighborhood ranging from average home prices to crime rates. The following infographic lists the top 50, and below the infographic is a list with each ranked school in the district. Click on the links to see a detailed overview of that particular school. You also can see how the 2013-14 rankings compare to the previous academic year here.
Click on the links to see statistics on enrollment, test scores, teacher-student ratio as well as information about the district’s neighborhood.
1. Bartelso School District 57
Ranked schools:
Bartelso Elementary School
2. Lisbon Ccsd 90
Ranked schools:
Lisbon Grade School
3. New Trier Township Hsd 203
Ranked schools:
New Trier Township High School
4. Butler School District 53
Ranked schools:
Brook Forest Elementary School
Butler Junior High School
5. Lincolnshire-Prairieview School District 103
Ranked schools:
Half Day School
Daniel Wright Junior High School
6. Northbrook/Glenview School District 30
Ranked schools:
Willowbrook Elementary School
Wescott Elementary School
Maple School
7. Kenilworth School District 38
Ranked schools:
The Joseph Sears School
8. Adlai E Stevenson Hsd 125
Ranked schools:
Adlai E. Stevenson High School
9. Avoca School District 37
Ranked schools:
Avoca West Elementary School
Marie Murphy School
10. Wilmette School District 39
Ranked schools:
McKenzie Elementary School
Central Elementary School
Harper Elementary School
Romona Elementary School
Wilmette Junior High School
11. Northfield Township Hsd 225
Ranked schools:
Glenbrook North High School
Glenbrook South High School
12. Hinsdale Ccsd 181
Ranked schools:
Clarendon Hills Middle School
Elm Elementary School
Hinsdale Middle School
Madison Elementary School
Monroe Elementary School
Oak Elementary School
Prospect Elementary School
The Lane Elementary School
Walker School
13. Lake Forest Chsd 115
Ranked schools:
Lake Forest High School
14. Chsd 128
Ranked schools:
Libertyville High School
Vernon Hills High School
15. Township Hsd 113
Ranked schools:
Deerfield High School
Highland Park High School
16. Fairview School District 72
Ranked schools:
Fairview South Elementary School
17. Glencoe School District 35
Ranked schools:
Central School
West School
18. River Forest School District 90
Ranked schools:
Lincoln Elementary School
Roosevelt School
Willard Elementary School
19. Oak Grove School District 68
Ranked schools:
Oak Grove Elementary School
20. Sunset Ridge School District 29
Ranked schools:
Sunset Ridge Elementary School
21. Western Springs School District 101
Ranked schools:
Field Park Elementary School
Forest Hills Elementary School
John Laidlaw Elementary School
McClure Junior High School
22. Lake Forest School District 67
Ranked schools:
Cherokee Elementary School
Deer Path Middle School West
Everett Elementary School
Sheridan Elementary School
23. Aptakisic-Tripp Ccsd 102
Ranked schools:
Earl Pritchett School
Aptakisic Junior High School
Tripp School
24. Lake Bluff Education Service District 65
Ranked schools:
Lake Bluff Elementary School
Lake Bluff Middle School
25. Northbrook School District 28
Ranked schools:
Greenbriar Elementary School
Meadowbrook Elementary School
Northbrook Junior High School
Westmoor Elementary School
26. Lyons Township Hsd 204
Ranked schools:
Lyons Township High School
27. Deerfield School District 109
Ranked schools:
Wilmot Elementary School
Walden Elementary School
South Park Elementary School
Kipling Elementary School
Charles J Caruso Middle School
Alan B Shepard Middle School
28. Northbrook Education Service District 27
Ranked schools:
Shabonee School
Wood Oaks Junior High School
29. Riverside-Brookfield Township School District 208
Ranked schools:
Riverside Brookfield Township High School
30. Giant City Ccsd 130
Ranked schools:
Giant City Elementary School
31. Lagrange Highlands School District 106
Ranked schools:
Highlands Elementary School
Highlands Middle School
32. Kildeer Countryside Ccsd 96
Ranked schools:
Country Meadows Elementary School
Ivy Hall Elementary School
Kildeer Countryside Elementary School
Prairie Elementary School
Twin Groves Middle School
Woodlawn Middle School
33. Prairieview-Ogden Ccsd 197
Ranked schools:
Prairieview-Ogden Junior High School
Prairieview-Ogden North Elementary
Prairieview-Ogden South Elementary
34. Pleasantdale School District 107
Ranked schools:
Pleasantdale Middle School
Pleasantdale Elementary School
35. Libertyville School District 70
Ranked schools:
Adler Park School
Butterfield School
Copeland Manor Elementary School
Highland Middle School
Rockland Elementary School
36. Hinsdale Township Hsd 86
Ranked schools:
Hinsdale Central High School
Hinsdale South High School
37. Albers School District 63
Ranked schools:
Albers Elementary School
38. Cypress School District 64
Ranked schools:
Cypress Elementary School
39. Tri Valley Central Unified School District 3
Ranked schools:
Tri-Valley High School
Tri-Valley Middle School
40. Gower School District 62
Ranked schools:
Gower Middle School
Gower West Elementary School
41. Arlington Heights School District 25
Ranked schools:
Dryden Elementary School
Greenbrier Elementary School
Ivy Hill Elementary School
Olive-Mary Stitt School
Patton Elementary School
South Middle School
Thomas Middle School
Westgate Elementary School
Windsor Elementary School
42. County Of Woodford School
Ranked schools:
Metamora High School
43. Winnetka School District 36
Ranked schools:
Carleton W Washburne School
Crow Island Elementary School
Greeley Elementary School
Hubbard Woods Elementary School
The Skokie School
44. Mount Prospect School District 57
Ranked schools:
Fairview Elementary School
Lincoln Middle School
Lions Park Elementary School
45. Benjamin School District 25
Ranked schools:
Benjamin Middle School
Evergreen Elementary School
46. Morton Central Unified School District 709
Ranked schools:
Grundy Elementary School
Jefferson Elementary School
Lettie Brown Elementary School
Lincoln Elementary School
Morton High School
Morton Junior High School
47. Palos Ccsd 118
Ranked schools:
Palos East Elementary School
Palos South Middle School
Palos West Elementary School
48. Hononegah Chd 207
Ranked schools:
Hononegah High School
49. Barrington Central Unified School District 220
Ranked schools:
Arnett C Lines Elementary School
Barbara B Rose Elementary School
Barrington High School
Barrington Middle School-Prairie Cmps
Barrington Middle School Station
Countryside Elementary School
Grove Avenue Elementary School
Hough Street Elementary School
North Barrington Elementary School
Roslyn Road Elementary School
Sunny Hill Elementary School
50. Prairie Crossing Charter School
Ranked schools:
Prairie Crossing Charter School
The rest of the Illinois school district rankings can be viewed here.
NEXT ARTICLE: The 25 best-run public high schools in Illinois
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Want to tell your elected officials what you think of the state of government in Illinois? Use our Sound Off tool!Kevin Hoffman is a Reboot Illinois staff writer who graduated from the University of Iowa with a degree in journalism, political science and international studies. He believes keeping citizens informed and politicians in check is the best way to improve Illinois and bring about common sense reform. Follow us on Facebook.