Jack Benny Middle School, Waukegan IL

Original Research by School Decision on Jack Benny Middle School

Jack Benny Middle School serves grades six through eight in Waukegan, a mid-sized industrial port city on Lake Michigan about 36 miles north of downtown Chicago. The school's enrollment is modest for a middle school, distributed across the three grade levels served. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with Asian, Black, and smaller populations of White, multiracial, and Native American students also present. The school sits within Waukegan Community Unit School District 60, which operates five middle schools across the city.

Test results from the most recent state assessment cycle tell a story of significant academic challenge. In sixth-grade math, about one in seven students scored proficient or above. Seventh-grade math showed similar results. By eighth grade, the proficiency rate dropped sharply, with fewer than one in ten students meeting the standard. English language arts results were somewhat stronger but still weak: sixth grade saw roughly one in four students proficient, while seventh and eighth grades showed slightly lower proficiency. Science proficiency in eighth grade was around one in four. Across all three grades where data are reported, proficiency rates place this school in the bottom quartile among middle schools in Lake County when measured by an overall proficiency index. Student participation in testing was very high, generally above 98 percent, so these numbers represent how students performed when they took the assessments, not a reflection of incomplete testing.

The data provided does not include graduation rates, since this is a middle school. State testing data for grades below sixth were not available. Information about chronic absenteeism, special education enrollment, English learner populations, and free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility was not provided. Program offerings beyond standard coursework were not described in available materials.

Waukegan itself is a working city with a historic downtown, lakefront access, and a concentration of employment in manufacturing, healthcare, transportation, and retail. The median home value in the local area is moderate for the Chicago region, and rents are correspondingly lower. The city has been pursuing downtown and lakefront revitalization for more than a decade, with mixed-use development and housing projects underway, though progress was disrupted by the 2008 downturn and environmental remediation needs. The Waukegan Metra station offers commuter rail access to downtown Chicago.

A parent evaluating this school should recognize that test performance here is notably low. The school appears to serve a student population facing substantial academic gaps, and available state data show limited proficiency across math, reading, and science. A parent may want to look into the school's reading intervention programs, math support structures, and any tutoring or after-school offerings that might help students close performance gaps. It would also be worth asking the school directly about its curriculum approach, how it works with families on homework and study skills, and what progress trends staff have observed in recent years.

See more original research from School Decision →

Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 615%

School 15% · District 12% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

Grade 715%

School 15% · District 14% · ▲ 1 pts above district

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

Grade 88%

School 8% · District 11% · ▼ 4 pts below district

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

English language arts

Grade 624%

School 24% · District 21% · ▲ 3 pts above district

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

Grade 717%

School 17% · District 18% · ▼ 1 pts below district

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

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 26% · ▼ 3 pts below district

▼ 31 pts below state median · ▼ 38 pts below county median

Science

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 21% · ▲ 2 pts above district

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

This schoolWaukegan CUSD 60, 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.