The top reported proficiency rate is 39% in English language arts. The lowest is 14% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Crete Elementary School
Crete Elementary School serves kindergarten through fifth grade in a residential village in southern Will County, about a short distance south of Chicago. The school has a moderate enrollment, with roughly equal numbers of students across its six grades. The student body is diverse by race and ethnicity, with a substantial majority who are Black, a meaningful share who are Hispanic, a smaller number who are white, and a small number from other backgrounds. Data on free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility was not available, so a reader assessing the school's socioeconomic composition would need to ask the school directly.
On the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) in early 2025, the school's proficiency results were low across all tested grades and subjects. In third grade, about one in four students in math and roughly one in three in English language arts reached proficiency. Performance declined notably in fourth grade, where roughly one in nine reached proficiency in math and roughly one in three in English language arts. Fifth grade saw a rebound in language arts, where roughly half reached proficiency, but math proficiency fell further, with only about one in twelve students reaching the standard. Science proficiency in fifth grade was also quite low at around one in five. The school's participation rate on these assessments was consistently high, suggesting these results reflect the performance of students actually tested rather than gaps from non-participation. Testing methods changed between school years, making year-to-year trend analysis unreliable; a parent may want to look into whether the school has internal assessments or other data showing whether performance has improved since these low results.
When compared against other districts in Will County using a proficiency index that pools performance across tested subjects and grades, Crete Elementary falls into the bottom quartile. This reflects both its own low proficiency rates and the fact that other schools and districts in the county are performing substantially higher.
The broader Crete-Monee Community Unit School District (which includes Crete, Monee, University Park, and parts of Park Forest) has undertaken meaningful physical improvements. A multi-year facility modernization has renovated water, electrical, HVAC, and bathroom systems at Crete Elementary and three other buildings, funded through working cash bonds approved in 2020. That work directly affects the condition of the building and spaces where Crete Elementary students learn. The district also opened a new multi-sport stadium complex at the high school in September 2025. In 2021, the district placed a bond referendum on the ballot for two new elementary schools but subsequently pivoted to the facility renovation approach instead, meaning the older elementary buildings remain in use rather than being replaced.
The village of Crete itself is a small, tree-lined residential community about a short distance from Chicago, with a walkable downtown core along Main Street featuring local restaurants, shops, and a brewery. Most everyday shopping requires driving north to the Route 30 corridor. The local real estate market is modest in price for the region and has shown modest growth, with housing values moving upward at a pace consistent with the state benchmark. Residents who work outside the village typically commute south into the broader Chicago suburbs or to nearby Governors State University in adjacent University Park.
For a family considering Crete Elementary, the central question is academic performance. The proficiency data shows substantially below-average results, particularly in math, and a reader would want to understand from the school directly whether recent internal assessments or instructional changes suggest the trajectory is moving upward. The building itself will be in improved physical condition because of the district's renovation work. The school serves a diverse student population in a quiet residential setting with a fairly compact village feel.
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