Sandridge Elem School, Lynwood IL

Original Research by School Decision on Sandridge Elem School

Sandridge Elementary School serves students from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade in Lynwood, a car-dependent village about twenty-five miles south of Chicago along the Indiana border. The school sits within Sandridge School District 172, a single-building district that was annexed into the City of Lynwood in early 2023, shifting the school's municipal affiliation after decades as an unincorporated operation.

The enrollment is small, distributed across all grade bands from early childhood through middle school. The student body is predominantly Black, with smaller populations of Hispanic, multiracial, Asian, and white students. Data on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility and English learner status were not available.

State assessment results in math and English language arts paint a picture of substantial academic challenges. Proficiency rates across grade levels are consistently low. In math, third grade shows the strongest performance, while fourth through sixth grades fall to single-digit proficiency. Seventh grade shows a modest uptick, and eighth grade performance sits below fifth and sixth grades. In ELA, the pattern is similar: third grade performs highest, fourth and fifth grades dip sharply, sixth grade remains low, and seventh and eighth grades show somewhat higher rates than the middle elementary years but still well below national or state benchmarks. In science, where the school assesses fifth and eighth grades, proficiency is extremely low. On the proficiency index measuring overall performance across tested subjects and grades, Sandridge sits in the bottom quartile among Cook County's districts. Participation rates in testing are generally strong, suggesting the low scores reflect actual student performance rather than testing gaps. A parent may want to look into further detail with the school about the factors behind these results and what interventions are in place.

Lynwood itself is a primarily residential community blending suburban neighborhoods with remaining farmland. It is car-dependent with low walkability and lacks an established traditional downtown; civic and school life sit on separated suburban sites. The village functions as a bedroom community where most residents commute outside for work. Housing in the area is moderately valued, with recent new construction appearing as single-family subdivisions such as Wellington Court. The regional real estate market shows normal listing supply and modest demand, and residential rents have risen over the past year.

The school is a regular public elementary school, not a charter or magnet, and serves a defined attendance area within its small district. Data on special education enrollment, staff levels, and specific program offerings beyond the standard K–8 curriculum were not available. The school's website location was not provided, limiting access to detailed information about classroom instruction, enrichment programs, or extracurricular activities that might supplement core academics.

For a family considering this school, the primary consideration is the low proficiency data across subjects and grades, which suggests students are not meeting Illinois state standards at the rates seen in higher-performing districts. The school's small size and single-building district structure mean fewer specialized programs or course choices than larger districts offer. The surrounding community is quiet and family-oriented but car-dependent and lacking dense neighborhood amenities. A parent would benefit from direct conversations with school leadership about curriculum supports, any recent or planned initiatives to improve achievement, and how the school identifies and serves students who are falling behind.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 328%

School 28% · District 28%

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

Grade 45%

School 5% · District 5%

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 55%

School 5% · District 5%

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

Grade 64%

School 4% · District 4%

▼ 20 pts below state median · ▼ 13 pts below county median

Grade 721%

School 21% · District 21%

▼ 8 pts below state median · even with county median

Grade 812%

School 12% · District 12%

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 327%

School 27% · District 27%

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Grade 43%

School 3% · District 3%

▼ 45 pts below state median · ▼ 37 pts below county median

Grade 510%

School 10% · District 10%

▼ 43 pts below state median · ▼ 36 pts below county median

Grade 610%

School 10% · District 10%

▼ 40 pts below state median · ▼ 32 pts below county median

Grade 736%

School 36% · District 36%

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

Grade 827%

School 27% · District 27%

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

Science

Grade 52%

School 2% · District 2%

▼ 34 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

Grade 810%

School 10% · District 10%

▼ 30 pts below state median · ▼ 17 pts below county median

This schoolSandridge SD 172, 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.