Balmoral Elem Sch, Crete IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Balmoral Elem Sch

Balmoral Elementary is a small public school in Crete serving children from kindergarten through fifth grade. The school's academics are a substantial concern. On the most recent state testing, proficiency rates across grades three through five were low in both English language arts and math, with performance dipping as students progress through the upper elementary grades. In math, the third-grade proficiency rate stands notably below the midpoint among districts in Will County, and by fifth grade it drops further. English language arts shows slightly better results, particularly in grade five, but overall the school remains in the bottom quartile of county schools on a combined proficiency measure. Science testing in grade five also reflects weak performance.

The student body is diverse. Nearly half the school's enrollment identifies as Black, with a substantial share identifying as Hispanic and smaller shares identifying as white, multiracial, or other backgrounds. Economically, data on free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility was not available, so a parent should ask the school directly about that measure if it matters to their assessment. Special education and English learner population counts were also not reported, and a parent may want to look into further with the school.

The school sits in a modest housing market within Crete. Home values in the broader area are moderate and have appreciated modestly year over year. Rents are available, and the affordability picture reflects a mortgage payment and rental cost both achievable for households with moderate incomes in the region. Crete itself is a small residential village about thirty miles south of downtown Chicago, with a walkable historic downtown along Main Street anchored by restaurants, shops, and civic amenities like the public library. Most daily shopping happens north on U.S. Route 30. The district's recent investment in facility upgrades—new HVAC, electrical systems, water pipes, and bathrooms at Balmoral among other schools, plus a new SmartLabs STEM facility at the elementary level—reflects ongoing effort to improve school conditions and learning environments, though academic gains have not yet materialized in these test results.

The district, Crete-Monee CUSD 201U, serves multiple towns and was pursuing new elementary school construction via a bond referendum in 2021. That plan did not advance; instead the district pivoted to facility renovations using working-cash bonds, a decision that shapes what families with young children can expect in terms of school facilities over the next several years. The high school opened a new athletic stadium complex in September 2025.

Parents evaluating Balmoral should weigh the school's current proficiency levels against their own academic expectations and tolerance for intervention-heavy settings. The building is being modernized, the community is stable, and the diversity is substantial. The low test performance is the school's defining feature and warrants direct conversation with school leadership about instructional priorities, staff turnover, and early-grade support systems before making a placement decision.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 318%

School 18% · District 28% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 42 pts below county median

Grade 418%

School 18% · District 20% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 32 pts below county median

Grade 514%

School 14% · District 16% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 323%

School 23% · District 33% · ▼ 10 pts below district

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

Grade 430%

School 30% · District 34% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 47%

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

Science

Grade 517%

School 17% · District 23% · ▼ 6 pts below district

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

This schoolCrete Monee CUSD 201U, 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.