Hammond Elem School, Chicago IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Hammond Elem School

Hammond Elementary School is a small public school serving preK through eighth grade in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago. Its enrollment of about two hundred students makes it one of the district's smallest schools. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a small Black population and very few white students. The school's racial composition reflects its neighborhood, a densely Hispanic area on the city's southwest side.

Academic performance at Hammond falls well below the Chicago Public Schools average. State test results from the 2024-25 school year show proficiency rates that are consistently low across grades and subjects. In English language arts, only the fifth grade reaches about half of students meeting standards; in all other tested grades, proficiency ranges from low teens to low thirties. Math performance is more concerning. Third and fourth graders have proficiency rates in the mid-teens. Fifth grade fares somewhat better, just under a third of students proficient. By sixth, seventh, and eighth grades, math proficiency drops sharply, with eighth grade showing zero students meeting standards on the state assessment. Science results, tested in grades five and eight, also show weak performance. When looking at the school against other Cook County districts' schools, Hammond's overall proficiency index places it in the bottom quarter of schools that serve similar grade bands. This is not a school where test scores are a strength.

The school sits in a neighborhood with modest home values and rents. Housing in the 60623 zip code where Hammond is located trends toward the lower end of the Chicago range. A majority of students likely qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, though the district did not report that figure. The neighborhood has seen population churn and economic pressure, though it remains a functioning residential and commercial area with access to CTA transit.

Hammond is a regular, non-magnet, non-charter school, which means admission is neighborhood-based. Students walk or take the bus from the surrounding area. The school offers a standard K-8 curriculum and operates within Chicago Public Schools' broader district system. The district rolled out a universal PreK-12 curriculum called Skyline across all subjects beginning in 2021-2022, so Hammond uses those standardized instructional materials alongside any school-level approaches.

The school operates in a district that is undergoing significant change. The Chicago Board of Education is transitioning to a fully elected body, completing the shift in November 2026. More directly relevant to school choice, the district adopted a strategic plan in 2024 called "Together We Rise" that emphasizes strengthening neighborhood schools and moving away from the school-choice model that has long defined CPS. This signals that Hammond, as a neighborhood school, may receive renewed attention and investment from the district even as individual test results remain weak. The district also replaced its old numeric school ratings with new accountability dashboards in late 2024, moving beyond test scores alone to broader measures of school experience and resources.

For families committed to neighborhood schooling or without access to selective-enrollment or magnet options, Hammond is the assigned school. A parent may want to look into the school's approach to reading and math intervention, its staffing and teacher retention, and the specific supports it offers students who are not yet meeting grade-level standards. The combination of very low test results, a small school size, and concentrated economic need means Hammond requires strong on-the-ground instruction and responsive support systems to help students catch up. The school's strengths or weaknesses in those areas are not visible in the data provided here.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 316%

School 16% · District 38% · ▼ 22 pts below district

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

Grade 415%

School 15% · District 29% · ▼ 14 pts below district

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

Grade 529%

School 29% · District 24% · ▲ 6 pts above district

even with state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 611%

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

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

Grade 718%

School 18% · District 27% · ▼ 9 pts below district

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

Grade 80%

School 0% · District 23% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 333%

School 33% · District 36% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 415%

School 15% · District 39% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 33 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 43% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 622%

School 22% · District 45% · ▼ 23 pts below district

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

Grade 746%

School 46% · District 46% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

Grade 819%

School 19% · District 48% · ▼ 29 pts below district

▼ 35 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Science

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 29% · ▼ 5 pts below district

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

Grade 811%

School 11% · District 31% · ▼ 21 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 16 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.