Elwood C C School, Elwood IL - Test Scores & Data

Original Research by School Decision on Elwood C C School

Elwood C C School is a public PreK–8 school in the small village of Elwood, in Will County, roughly 40 miles southwest of Chicago. The school serves a community of modest residential character surrounded by farmland and a massive adjacent industrial and logistics presence at the CenterPoint Intermodal Center, the nation's largest inland port. The school itself sits just north of the village center, adjacent to a village park, so it anchors the civic core rather than sitting on the periphery.

The school's enrollment is small, roughly in the low hundreds, with a student body that is mostly white, with a sizable Hispanic population, a smaller Black population, and very few Asian or multiracial students. Free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility data was not available, so a reader cannot see what portion of families qualify for meal assistance. Special education and English learner enrollment counts were also not reported, so the school's capacity to serve students with individualized needs or language support is not transparent from the data provided.

On state assessments in math and English language arts, the school's results show a clear pattern: third grade outperforms the rest of the school. Third-grade math and ELA both sit well above the school average, with solid proficiency. From fourth grade onward, math proficiency drops and remains below midpoint across the upper elementary and middle grades, with seventh grade reaching its lowest point. ELA follows a somewhat different trajectory, holding steadier through the elementary years but still dipping below midpoint in fifth grade before recovering to notably strong performance in seventh grade. Eighth-grade ELA and math both land near or just below midpoint. Science testing occurs only in fifth and eighth grade; fifth grade scored substantially below midpoint, while eighth grade recovered to above midpoint. Across all grades tested, participation was complete or nearly complete, so the proficiency picture reflects the full cohort.

When positioned against the other districts in Will County, Elwood's overall proficiency index sits above the county median, a meaningful strength. The school does not serve high school grades, so no graduation rate is available; state testing does not extend to prekindergarten or kindergarten, and chronic absenteeism data was not provided.

The district has experienced a significant financial shift. A new power plant came onto the tax roll starting with the 2021 levy, which substantially increased the district's property tax base without raising the rate paid by homeowners. This ongoing advantage has led to taxpayer refund checks being distributed regularly, making the district's fiscal position unusually stable and potentially attractive to families concerned about rising property tax burden. A parent considering Elwood should ask the school directly about how this windfall has been invested in instructional resources, staff, or facilities.

The school's academic profile suggests a need to examine the middle grades more closely. Fourth through sixth grade math proficiency is consistently below where third grade started, and seventh grade hits a significant dip. Whether this reflects curriculum transition, a particular cohort, or sustained instructional challenge would be worth discussing with the school. The strong performance in seventh-grade ELA, by contrast, suggests the school has pockets of strength that may not be uniform across all subject areas or grade transitions. A family considering Elwood should also ask about the available course scope for the upper elementary and middle grades, what supports exist for students not meeting proficiency, and whether the school has identified and is addressing the math trajectory.

Housing in Will County, where Elwood sits, has appreciated at a moderate pace in the recent market and remains affordable relative to the state and nation. The area carries a strong industrial and logistics identity alongside its residential character, so families should expect both proximity to open space and the ambient presence of freight infrastructure.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 365%

School 65% · District 65%

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Grade 453%

School 53% · District 53%

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

Grade 550%

School 50% · District 50%

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 653%

School 53% · District 53%

▲ 29 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 739%

School 39% · District 39%

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

Grade 850%

School 50% · District 50%

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

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 69%

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

Grade 456%

School 56% · District 56%

▲ 8 pts above state median · ▼ 2 pts below county median

Grade 543%

School 43% · District 43%

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

Grade 657%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 774%

School 74% · District 74%

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 3 pts above county median

Grade 854%

School 54% · District 54%

even with state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Science

Grade 540%

School 40% · District 40%

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

Grade 861%

School 61% · District 61%

▲ 21 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

This schoolElwood CCSD 203, 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.