Original Research by School Decision on Fenton High School
Fenton High School is a comprehensive public high school of medium size in Bensenville, a mixed-use village on the O'Hare perimeter that blends residential neighborhoods with significant logistics and industrial activity. The school serves grades nine through twelve and draws students from a community experiencing steady reinvestment and population growth, with an influx of younger professionals attracted by proximity to the airport and the district's reputation.
The student body at Fenton is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial white minority and smaller Asian, Black, and multiracial populations. The school does not report free-or-reduced-price lunch rates or counts of students with IEPs or English learners in available data, so a reader interested in the socioeconomic makeup or special-population services should ask the school directly. State assessment results and four-year graduation data were not available in the data reviewed, which is not unusual for individual schools in Illinois; state testing in most grades is conducted but results are often reported by district rather than by school. A parent or resident may want to contact the district office or the school's website for those outcome metrics.
The district itself is engaged in an ongoing conversation about capital modernization. Two substantial building referendums failed in 2022, marking the district's first major capital campaign in decades. A scaled-down referendum appeared on the ballot in March 2024. In the interim, the district has moved forward by issuing non-referendum bonds to construct a new STEM wing at the Bensenville campus, with groundbreaking expected in summer 2024 and completion anticipated for fall 2025. This modernization is meaningful because the existing building dates to the 1950s, and the STEM wing will update science and technology learning spaces. The repeated referendum activity signals that the building's condition and aging infrastructure are a live topic for families and taxpayers.
Bensenville itself is positioned as a growth market. Home values in the area have risen in recent years, and the local median home price hovers in the mid-range for DuPage County; rental availability has been steady. The village's economy is anchored by O'Hare-adjacent warehousing, logistics, and light manufacturing, with a compact walkable downtown along the Metra Milwaukee District West line. Civic life includes the Redmond Recreational Complex, which houses ice arenas (home to the Chicago Steel and a Chicago Blackhawks practice facility), an aquatic center, and sports fields. The Bensenville Community Public Library and the historic Center Theatre are also civic anchors. Transportation connections via Metra and Pace bus service link residents to central Chicago and neighboring job centers.
The school has not posted recent state academic data in the sources reviewed, so prospective families cannot see proficiency rates, trend lines, or how Fenton ranks within the county's school district comparison set. This is a notable gap, and a parent or resident interested in comparing academic performance across DuPage schools should request that information from the school or the district directly. What can be said is that the district's capital investment in STEM facilities and the community's choice to return to voters with a scaled-down referendum suggest that academic modernization and facility quality remain priorities for the district.
Fenton serves a neighborhood-based attendance area in a village that is actively recruiting young families and professionals to the area. The school's role as a single secondary institution in a smaller district means it functions as the community's hub for high school sports, activities, and identity. For families already in or considering Bensenville, Fenton is the natural choice; for families evaluating the broader DuPage market, visiting the school and speaking with administrators about recent academic data, program breadth, and the timeline and scope of the STEM wing project would clarify what the school offers and where it stands.
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