Bridge Elem School, Chicago IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Bridge Elem School

Bridge Elementary School serves grades pre-K through 8 in the Portage Park neighborhood on Chicago's Northwest Side. The school enrolls a student population that is majority Hispanic, with substantial white enrollment and smaller populations of Asian, Black, and multiracial students. The school sits within Chicago Public Schools District 299, which has recently undergone significant governance and instructional changes that shape the landscape for families choosing a CPS school.

On state testing, Bridge's results show weakness in math and mixed strength in English language arts. In math across grades three through eight, proficiency rates cluster in the low range, with grades three and four performing slightly better than upper grades. Grade five is notably weaker, with less than a quarter of students meeting proficiency. English language arts performance is more varied. Lower grades three and four sit in the upper-low range. Grade five stands out significantly higher, with more than three-fifths of students proficient. Grades six, seven, and eight hold in the low-to-mid range. Science testing, available for grades five and eight only, shows grade five approaching half proficiency and grade eight in the low-to-mid range. Across tested subjects and grades, the school's overall proficiency index places it below the midpoint among the county's districts.

The school's enrollment is stable at about 1,100 students spread fairly evenly across pre-K through eighth grade. Specific data on free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility, English learner status, and special education enrollment are not publicly reported; a parent may want to reach out to the school directly about the populations served and supports available. State assessment participation rates are consistently high or near-universal, showing the school's strong participation in testing.

Bridge sits in a neighborhood with moderate housing values and rents. The local real estate market reflects broader Cook County patterns: inventory is tight, demand is softer than inventory supply, and homes are moving more slowly than a year ago. Rent growth remains above mortgage payment growth, keeping the rent-versus-buy calculus tilted toward ownership for those who can afford it. The school's location on Chicago's Northwest Side is accessible via the CTA's transit network, which includes 24/7 train service on some lines and extensive bus routes.

The school is positioned as a neighborhood school within a district that has publicly committed to strengthening neighborhood-based enrollment as a strategic priority, moving away from the school-choice and selective-enrollment model that has defined CPS for decades. Whether this shift will affect feeder patterns, program offerings, or resource allocation at Bridge remains to be seen. Chicago Public Schools has also introduced a new PreK-12 curriculum called Skyline across all subjects, replacing a system where schools selected materials independently; this provides uniform instructional content but is still in phased adoption.

CPS governance has shifted with the first election of school board members in November 2024, and a fully elected board will take office in 2026. Parents now have a direct vote in setting district policy, a structural change for families considering the system's direction.

State assessment data does not yet show trend lines for this school, so it is not possible to characterize whether performance is improving, declining, or stable. Beyond test results, information on attendance, discipline, staffing, course offerings at the middle school grades, and special programs is not available in the data reviewed. A prospective parent should contact the school to understand its curriculum implementation, after-school offerings, student support systems, and any specialized programs or language services.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 340%

School 40% · District 38% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 6 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 437%

School 37% · District 29% · ▲ 8 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 522%

School 22% · District 24% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 628%

School 28% · District 23% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 729%

School 29% · District 27% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 23% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 337%

School 37% · District 36% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▼ 7 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 443%

School 43% · District 39% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 561%

School 61% · District 43% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

Grade 642%

School 42% · District 45% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 46% · ▼ 4 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 48% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Science

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 29% · ▲ 18 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 843%

School 43% · District 31% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

This schoolChicago Public Schools Dist 299, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.