Original Research by School Decision on Scales Mound High School
Scales Mound High School serves grades 9 through 12 in a very small school that houses all PreK–12 students under one roof in a tiny historic village in northwestern Illinois. The school's enrollment is small, with the high school portion numbering around 70 students. Across all four grades, the cohort is predominantly white, with a small multiracial population and a handful of Asian and Hispanic students. The data on free and reduced price lunch eligibility and on students with special education or English learner status was not available.
No state assessment results or graduation rate data were reported for the school. This absence of data typically reflects either that the school does not administer these assessments or that results fall below the threshold for public reporting, which in Illinois often applies to very small schools. A parent may want to contact the school directly to understand what proficiency assessments and graduation tracking the district does use.
The school sits in Scales Mound, a village of roughly a couple of hundred people on the northwestern edge of Illinois in the Driftless Area. The place is historically preserved, with the entire village encompassed by a National Register historic district. Workforce demographics are blue-collar: production, office and administrative support, and construction are the most common occupations, and most working residents commute out to factories in nearby towns including Warren, Galena, Dubuque, and Freeport. The village has been stable in population for years, with no major new residential development underway. The school itself is the largest employer in the village and functions as its civic center, housing students from PreK through grade 12 under a single structure that serves as a daily anchor for community life.
The median household income in the surrounding county is solid, and housing remains affordable relative to income. Home values in the area are modest compared to state and national averages, and mortgage costs are proportionally lower.
The district brief turned up no recent facility projects, referendum campaigns, or curriculum changes with clear staying power. Board minutes and news showed routine staffing and operational actions but nothing that would reshape the school environment or academic offerings in the near term. A parent interested in understanding the school's course offerings, graduation requirements, or academic support services would benefit from reaching out to the school directly, as that information was not available in public reporting.
See more original research from School Decision →