Taft Elementary School, Joliet IL

Original Research by School Decision on Taft Elementary School

Taft Elementary serves kindergarten through fifth grade in Joliet, a large suburban city roughly an hour south and west of Chicago. It is a regular public school within Joliet PSD 86, where families choose from across the district's school network.

The school's academic profile shows strain across math and English language arts. On the most recent state assessment, math proficiency in third grade was below one quarter; by fifth grade it had fallen to under one fifth. English proficiency in third grade was under one quarter, though it rose to above four tenths by fifth grade. Fifth-grade science proficiency sat at roughly one third. These results are substantially below the midpoint among Will County's districts and fall in the bottom quartile of the comparison set. A parent looking at Taft would want to understand the school's instructional approach and any supports in place for early-grade skill-building, since third through fifth are foundational for middle-school content.

The enrollment is relatively modest at around four hundred students spread across kindergarten through fifth grade, with a majority of students identifying as Hispanic and a substantial share identifying as Black or White. Data on free-and-reduced-price lunch eligibility, special education, and English learner enrollment were not available, so a parent interested in whether Taft serves a higher-poverty population or has specialized programming for those groups should ask the school directly.

Joliet itself is a mixed industrial and residential city with longstanding neighborhoods on the east side and newer subdivisions spreading west, anchored by downtown civic amenities and a multimodal transit center. The housing market in the area shows homes typically valued in the mid-range for the region, with rent levels moderate and prices inching upward. The city's economy leans on logistics, manufacturing, healthcare, and gaming employment.

The district recently passed a substantial bond referendum to replace two aging junior highs and expand other buildings, with the new schools slated to open in 2027. That construction activity reflects a district working to address capacity and aging facilities, a context that matters for families considering how the elementary school environment may shift as the district evolves. Taft itself does not appear to be a construction site, but the broader district momentum around facility improvements is worth noting as a sign of district-wide investment.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 332%

School 32% · District 28% · ▲ 4 pts above district

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

Grade 426%

School 26% · District 20% · ▲ 6 pts above district

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

Grade 519%

School 19% · District 16% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

English language arts

Grade 322%

School 22% · District 24% · ▼ 2 pts below district

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

Grade 437%

School 37% · District 26% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Grade 545%

School 45% · District 35% · ▲ 10 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 532%

School 32% · District 21% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

This schoolJoliet PSD 86, 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.