Gary Elem School, Chicago IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Gary Elem School

Gary Elem School serves students from third through eighth grade in a Chicago neighborhood on the West Side, near the boundary between the Pilsen and Lower West Side communities. The school is part of Chicago Public Schools, the nation's second-largest district and one currently undergoing meaningful structural change in governance and educational approach.

The student body at Gary Elem is overwhelmingly Latino, drawn almost entirely from a single neighborhood. The enrollment spans six grade levels, with a relatively stable distribution across grades. Free-or-reduced-price-lunch data was not available, but neighborhood composition suggests a significant proportion of families qualify for need-based supports.

On state assessments administered in spring 2025, Gary Elem's proficiency rates in math and English language arts fall substantially below the median for Cook County schools. In math, proficiency ranges from a low across grade five to higher achievement in fourth grade. English language arts proficiency is more evenly distributed across grades, with seventh-grade students showing somewhat higher rates. Science testing covers only fifth and eighth grades under Illinois assessment policy; proficiency in both grades remains low. Across all tested grades and subjects, the school's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quartile among Cook County schools. These results reflect the academic challenge facing the school and the student population it serves. A parent may want to look into the school's approach to instructional support, intervention, and any recent changes in curriculum or teaching strategy. The district rolled out Skyline, its first comprehensive PreK-12 curriculum, starting in 2022, and all CPS schools have access to it at no cost; a conversation with school leadership about how this curriculum is being implemented at Gary Elem could illuminate the instructional picture.

Test participation rates were consistently high across grades and subjects, showing that the school is effectively administering assessments and that low proficiency reflects genuine academic gaps rather than assessment avoidance.

The neighborhood around the school has modest housing values and rents compared to countywide medians. Homeownership appears accessible in the immediate area, and the community remains stable. The school is situated within a walkable urban neighborhood with access to Chicago's transit network, though the broader Cook County housing market shows supply pressure and declining demand in the current cycle.

Chicago's shift toward neighborhood-school investment is relevant here. The district's five-year strategic plan, adopted in 2024, signals a move away from school choice and toward strengthening schools where families live. CPS also replaced its old numeric school ratings with holistic dashboards in December 2024, a change that affects how schools like Gary Elem are evaluated by families and the public. Additionally, Chicago is transitioning to a fully elected school board by November 2026, shifting governance from mayoral appointment. These systemwide changes create both opportunity and uncertainty for neighborhood schools.

Gary Elem is a neighborhood school serving a concentrated, predominantly Latino student population with apparent economic need. Its test results show substantial proficiency gaps that will require deliberate instructional work. The school's fit depends on whether a family is committed to neighborhood schooling, accepts the current achievement profile as a starting point for improvement efforts, and sees value in being part of a school-improvement process alongside district-level investment in neighborhood schools.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 324%

School 24% · District 38% · ▼ 14 pts below district

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 433%

School 33% · District 29% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 56%

School 6% · District 24% · ▼ 18 pts below district

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

Grade 612%

School 12% · District 23% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 12 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 729%

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

even with state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 813%

School 13% · District 23% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 325%

School 25% · District 36% · ▼ 11 pts below district

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

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 39%

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

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 43% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 14 pts below county median

Grade 628%

School 28% · District 45% · ▼ 17 pts below district

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 15 pts below county median

Grade 739%

School 39% · District 46% · ▼ 8 pts below district

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

Grade 827%

School 27% · District 48% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Science

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 29% · ▼ 11 pts below district

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

Grade 820%

School 20% · District 31% · ▼ 11 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below 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.