Columbus Elem School, Chicago IL

Original Research by School Decision on Columbus Elem School

Columbus Elementary School serves prekindergarten through eighth grade on the North Side of Chicago, in the Bucktown area near Leavitt Street. The school enrolls a small student body within a larger district managing hundreds of schools. The student population is predominantly white, with substantial shares of Hispanic and Black students and a small number of Asian students and students of two or more races.

Test results from Illinois state assessments show uneven performance across grade levels and subjects. In English language arts, third and fourth graders score above the median, with third grade at about one-half proficient and fourth grade slightly higher. Results decline sharply in grades five through seven, then recover significantly in eighth grade, where proficiency rises to above one-half. Math results are consistently low. Proficiency in math ranges from about one-quarter to one-third in grades three, four, and eight, but drops substantially in grades five through seven, with only about one-eighth proficient in fifth and sixth grade. Science assessment data are available for grades five and eight only; fifth grade shows about one-quarter proficient while eighth grade reaches about two-fifths. All state tests received full participation. A parent may want to look into what has driven the sharp declines in grades five and six and what instructional changes occurred ahead of the eighth-grade recovery, particularly in math and language arts.

Positioned against other schools in Cook County, Columbus Elementary's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quarter among tested schools countywide. The disparity is notable: the county median is substantially higher, reflecting that many schools in the county outperform Columbus on state tests.

Enrollment is distributed fairly evenly across the school's ten grades, with no single grade serving a substantially larger cohort. Specific counts of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, students receiving special education services, or students designated as English learners are not available in the data provided. The school does not report a Title I status.

Bucktow has become increasingly residential and mixed-use in recent years, with both renovation of older housing stock and new multifamily construction. Housing values in the ZIP code are in the upper-middle range for Chicago, and rents have risen at a modest pace. The area sits within reach of public transit and is within a neighborhood that has seen steady new housing approvals and renovation activity as part of broader growth and stabilization in Chicago after years of decline.

Chicago Public Schools is in the midst of significant structural change. The district adopted a five-year strategic plan in 2024 that emphasizes strengthening neighborhood schools, a shift away from the school-choice and selective-enrollment emphasis that defined the district for decades. Additionally, the district replaced its numeric school ratings with new holistic accountability dashboards in December 2024, changing how parents evaluate schools. The school board is also transitioning from full mayoral appointment to full election, with all seats to be elected by November 2026. For families at Columbus, these shifts reshape how the district allocates resources and how school performance is publicly measured, though they do not change day-to-day school operations.

The school is part of Chicago's larger public infrastructure. The city offers extensive public transit, a major park system including lakefront access, and a diverse set of neighborhoods. CPS has also rolled out Skyline, a comprehensive PreK-12 curriculum that replaced a system where schools acquired materials independently, standardizing instruction across the district's school-managed campuses.

A parent considering Columbus should understand that test performance, particularly in math and the middle grades, trails county norms, while eighth-grade language arts is a relative strength. The school sits in a neighborhood with active housing and community investment, served by established transit and parks, within a district undergoing governance and strategic reorientation toward neighborhood-school investment.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 333%

School 33% · District 38% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 428%

School 28% · District 29% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 514%

School 14% · District 24% · ▼ 10 pts below district

▼ 16 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 614%

School 14% · District 23% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 727%

School 27% · District 27%

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 835%

School 35% · District 23% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 350%

School 50% · District 36% · ▲ 14 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

Grade 452%

School 52% · District 39% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 4 pts above state median · ▲ 12 pts above county median

Grade 523%

School 23% · District 43% · ▼ 20 pts below district

▼ 30 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 631%

School 31% · District 45% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Grade 723%

School 23% · District 46% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 48% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 526%

School 26% · District 29% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 839%

School 39% · District 31% · ▲ 7 pts above district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▲ 12 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.