Original Research by School Decision on Prospect High School
Prospect High School is the only public high school located within Mount Prospect itself, serving the entire village along with Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Rolling Meadows, Wheeling, and Elk Grove Village as part of Township High School District 214. The school enrolls a student body of roughly typical size for its grade band, with the school's demographics skewing toward a white majority student population, alongside a substantial Asian enrollment and meaningful Hispanic representation. The school serves grades nine through twelve.
Mount Prospect is a mature northwest Chicago suburb, roughly twenty to twenty-three miles from downtown and adjacent to O'Hare. The village is notably diverse, with a sizable share of foreign-born residents and a mixed-use downtown surrounded by single-family homes, newer condos, and apartments. Downtown has seen active redevelopment in recent years, with new mixed-use projects and mid-rise residential buildings adding hundreds of units, though the village as a whole is expected to experience slight population decline through the coming decade due to suburban maturation. Housing values in the surrounding area are moderate relative to the national benchmark; rental costs have remained essentially flat recently. The median home listing price has risen modestly, and the local housing market shows moderate supply but weaker demand. The downtown core is highly walkable with a concentrated civic anchor in shops, the Metra station, library, and parks; outside downtown, the village is typical car-oriented suburb.
At the district level, Township High School District 214 has undergone significant curriculum and schedule changes. All six district high schools, including Prospect, shifted to a modified block schedule starting in 2024-25, with classes running 8:20 a.m. to 3:10 p.m. and zero-hour periods beginning at 7:20 a.m. The district has also expanded its career pathways model substantially, building out what it calls a "diploma-plus" framework with 40 academic and career pathways that include capstone experiences and opportunities to earn postsecondary credentials and early college credits before graduation. More than a substantial portion of recent graduating classes have left the district with meaningful early college credits already earned, reshaping what a high school diploma represents for workforce and college entry.
A major factor for any family considering the district is an upcoming buildings and grounds referendum. The district is weighing its first tax-increase referendum in more than five decades, with a possible November ballot question. Initial planning contemplated a very large facilities package, but the board subsequently cut its potential ask roughly in half. The most expensive remaining option would fund building updates across the district and would raise annual taxes on a middle-value home by a modest amount. The outcome will directly shape property tax bills for years for residents across the entire district territory.
State assessment data were not available, so the school's proficiency performance cannot be characterized here. A graduation rate and chronic absenteeism data were also not provided. Without those metrics, a parent looking for specific evidence of student outcomes and attendance patterns would need to request that information directly from the school or district. The school's website may offer additional program details, course offerings, or recent achievement highlights that this data did not capture.
See more original research from School Decision →