John S Clark Elem School, Waukegan IL

Original Research by School Decision on John S Clark Elem School

John S Clark Elementary sits in Waukegan, a mid-sized industrial port city on Lake Michigan about 36 miles north of downtown Chicago. The school serves kindergarten through fifth grade and enrolls a student body that is predominantly Hispanic, with substantial Asian representation and smaller populations of Black, white, Native American, and multiracial students. The school is compact, with fewer than 250 students across all grades.

On state assessments in 2024-25, the school showed uneven performance. In reading, third graders met the proficiency mark at the same rate as their math peers, while fourth graders performed notably lower in reading than in math. Fifth graders stood out with stronger reading results, roughly in line with state standards. In math, third and fourth graders showed modest proficiency, while fifth graders fell noticeably below them. Science testing was administered only to fifth graders, where proficiency rates matched those in fifth-grade math. Across the tested grades and subjects, the school's overall proficiency index falls below the midpoint when compared to other districts in Lake County. State assessment results for sixth, seventh, and eighth grades are not available because the school does not serve those grades.

The school's tested students participated at high rates, with nearly universal participation in reading and math assessments, suggesting the data reflects the full enrolled population.

The Waukegan housing market has moderately valued homes, roughly at the county median. Monthly rent is in the low range for the region, making the area accessible for renters and first-time homebuyers. The neighborhood employment base centers on manufacturing, transportation and warehousing, healthcare, and administrative work, with major employers including Abbott Laboratories, AbbVie, and Naval Station Great Lakes nearby. The city is connected to downtown Chicago by Metra rail service.

Waukegan CUSD 60, the parent district, is undergoing significant restructuring of its high school, which affects where secondary students attend and how grade levels are distributed across two campuses. The district has also expanded recruitment efforts for teachers to fill bilingual and specialized-learner positions, reflecting ongoing staffing challenges that can affect classroom experience. A parent weighing this elementary school may want to look further into the school's current instructional approaches to reading and math, particularly in the lower grades, and understand how the school is working to close gaps between grade levels.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 31% · ▲ 12 pts above district

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

Grade 449%

School 49% · District 24% · ▲ 25 pts above district

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

Grade 539%

School 39% · District 19% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · even with county median

English language arts

Grade 343%

School 43% · District 27% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

Grade 439%

School 39% · District 24% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▼ 10 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 559%

School 59% · District 32% · ▲ 27 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 539%

School 39% · District 19% · ▲ 20 pts above district

▲ 2 pts above state median · ▼ 10 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.