The top reported proficiency rate is 76% in English language arts. The lowest is 62% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Bower Elem School
Bower Elementary School is a regular public elementary school serving kindergarten through fifth grade in Warrenville, located in Community Unit School District 200, which spans Wheaton and Warrenville. The school serves a small enrollment for an elementary school by suburban standards, with steady grades across the primary years and a diverse student body.
The student composition reflects Warrenville's character: a majority white enrollment, alongside substantial shares of Hispanic students and smaller populations of Asian and Black students. Free-or-reduced-price lunch eligibility data was not available, limiting a full picture of economic disadvantage at the school. Special education and English learner counts also were not reported in the available data.
On the Illinois Assessment of Readiness in math and English language arts, Bower shows an uneven performance across grades. In third-grade math, proficiency runs strong. By fourth grade, math proficiency drops noticeably. Fifth grade sees math proficiency decline further, settling at a below-median level. In English language arts, the pattern is different: third grade reaches a healthy proficiency level, fourth grade dips considerably, but fifth grade rebounds substantially. Science proficiency in fifth grade, the only tested grade in that subject, comes in below median. Illinois changed its proficiency cut scores for the 2024-25 assessment year, so year-to-year comparisons are not yet available; a parent may want to look into longer-term trend data with the school directly. Placed against other schools in DuPage County that serve similar grade spans, Bower's overall proficiency index across tested subjects and grades falls in the top quartile of the county's schools, a genuine strength.
The school sits in River Road in Warrenville, a far-west Chicago suburb in the DuPage County I-88 corridor. Warrenville has been growing steadily in recent years, with active redevelopment in its historic Old Town around City Hall and the public library. The Cantera business district to the south is the city's dominant employer hub. A strong network of forest preserves and the Illinois Prairie Path runs through town, offering an off-road trail network that shapes the character of the area. The housing market in the zip code is active; home values have been appreciating modestly, and the rental market is tightening as several new multifamily projects have come online, recently doubling the rental stock.
Bower is part of a district making a significant structural shift. In November 2024, voters approved the largest bond referendum in CUSD 200 history, funding major upgrades to three middle schools (Edison, Franklin, and Monroe) with construction beginning in summer 2025. The district structured repayment over a longer period to reduce interest costs and lower taxpayers' annual burden, a lasting tax-policy change affecting property owners. For families at Bower, this signals district investment in aging school facilities and a commitment to middle-school infrastructure, even as the immediate renovation work will not touch the elementary schools.
Bower's position in the county is an asset, and its third and fifth grade results in English language arts suggest real strength in those cohorts. The fourth-grade weakness in both subjects warrants conversation with the school about curriculum, instruction, or student factors in that year. Warrenville itself is a stable, growing suburb with good parks and trail access, moderate housing costs, and family-oriented development underway. The school fits families seeking a small elementary school in a community-minded suburban town with active redevelopment and solid tax-supported district spending.
See more original research from School Decision →