Original Research by School Decision on Spaulding School
Spaulding School serves pre-kindergarten students in Midlothian, a small, settled post-war suburb southwest of Chicago in Cook County. The school enrolls a small group of children, with a student body that is roughly half Hispanic, a quarter white, and the remainder split among Black, Asian, Native American, and multiracial students.
Because Spaulding serves only pre-kindergarten, it does not administer state assessments or produce the academic outcome data that are available for elementary and secondary schools. Similarly, graduation rates, proficiency measures, and chronic absenteeism metrics do not apply to this grade level. The school operates as a regular public school within Midlothian School District 143, which covers pre-kindergarten through eighth grade across the village.
The district itself has recently navigated enrollment pressure. Over the past few years, the district's total enrollment has declined, which prompted a staffing retrenchment in early 2026 when the district reduced junior high social studies teachers from four back to two, a shift that signals tighter budgets and fewer available resources across the system. At the same time, the district introduced a new literacy curriculum district-wide starting in the 2023-2024 school year following a spring pilot, so families in the elementary and middle grades experience an updated approach to reading instruction.
Midlothian itself is a compact, fully built-out residential community where most housing dates to the 1950s and 1960s suburban boom. The median home value in the zip code is modest by regional standards, and the market has shown slight uptick but overall stability. Residents mostly commute into the wider Chicago metro for work, as the village economy leans on retail, healthcare, and logistics along major arterial roads rather than a cluster of local employers. The Metra Rock Island District station at 147th Street provides rail access to downtown Chicago, and Pace buses connect the village to neighboring communities.
The village maintains parks, a public library with its own tax levy, and a small but present civic life centered on the Recreation Center and neighborhood parks. Development is largely infill rather than large-scale new construction, and the community is working through flood mitigation as a priority.
Spaulding School serves as the entry point into this district and village for families with young children. Without state data to review, parents interested in the school may want to connect directly with the principal and district office to understand classroom philosophy, teacher experience, the literacy curriculum implementation at this level, and how pre-kindergarten transitions into the elementary grades under the district's current enrollment and staffing circumstances.
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