Waltham Elementary School, Utica IL

Original Research by School Decision on Waltham Elementary School

Waltham Elementary School sits in Utica, a small riverside village in LaSalle County that draws steady tourism to Starved Rock and its state parks. The school serves pre-K through grade eight and enrolls a modest population of students from the area. The student body is predominantly white, with small shares of Hispanic, Asian, and other students. Demographic data on free and reduced-price lunch eligibility and special populations were not available.

The school's academic profile shows a marked pattern: stronger performance in elementary grades and English language arts, with a steeper decline in math proficiency as students move into middle school. In third and fourth grade, math proficiency runs in the mid-to-upper range. By fifth grade, math proficiency drops sharply, staying low through sixth grade before recovering in seventh. Eighth grade math proficiency falls again to the lowest levels on the school's assessment results. English language arts tells a different story—third and fourth grade performance is moderate, but sixth, seventh, and eighth grades show notably stronger results. In fifth grade science, proficiency is below the midpoint, while eighth grade science sits at a moderate level. All tested grade levels showed near or full participation in state assessments.

Against the districts in LaSalle County, Waltham's overall proficiency index falls in the top quartile, a genuine strength in the peer set. The school does not serve high school grades, so no graduation rate is available.

The district faces concrete capacity constraints that affect the school environment. Voters rejected a building referendum in spring 2025 that would have added classroom space, a preschool wing, and a multipurpose facility. In December 2025, the school board declined to pursue a scaled-down referendum and instead extended its lease on portable classrooms, meaning families contend with modular classroom placement as the school manages rising enrollment in pre-K and special-needs programming. For a parent evaluating the school, this is a material factor: the physical plant remains under pressure, and growth in early childhood and services-heavy enrollment is reshaping the building's operational character.

The school draws from Utica itself, a community in recovery and reinvention. The village rebuilt its downtown around a pedestrian-oriented Mill Street after an F3 tornado in 2004, and now anchors its economy to tourism tied to Starved Rock. Housing in the broader county is moderately affordable relative to state and national benchmarks, with median home values in the mid-range and relatively steady market activity. Population growth in Utica has been modest since 2020.

Waltham Elementary's strength lies in its top-quartile standing within the county and in demonstrated solid proficiency across tested grades and subjects, particularly in elementary-grade reading and middle-grade language arts. The middle school transition in mathematics is a trend parents should monitor closely when the school first serves a child at fifth grade and beyond. The unresolved facility constraints—portable classrooms and ongoing enrollment pressure—are a practical consideration that may affect class sizes, routines, and the learning environment, especially as pre-K programs expand.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Grade 467%

School 67% · District 67%

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 524%

School 24% · District 24%

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

Grade 627%

School 27% · District 27%

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 768%

School 68% · District 68%

▲ 40 pts above state median · ▲ 34 pts above county median

Grade 816%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 357%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 57%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 562%

School 62% · District 62%

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 680%

School 80% · District 80%

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 795%

School 95% · District 95%

▲ 43 pts above state median · ▲ 50 pts above county median

Grade 888%

School 88% · District 88%

▲ 35 pts above state median · ▲ 38 pts above county median

Science

Grade 541%

School 41% · District 41%

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 58%

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

This schoolWaltham CCSD 185, 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.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 7Lower-income83%Higher-income89%5 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 7Lower-income50%Higher-income69%19 pp gap