Cooper Middle School, Buffalo Grove IL

Original Research by School Decision on Cooper Middle School

Cooper Middle School serves grades six through eight in Buffalo Grove, a northwest suburban village straddling Lake and Cook counties. The school enrolls a student body that is roughly four-fifths white, with meaningful representation from Hispanic and Asian populations. Residential housing in the zip code hovers in the mid-range for the region, and the community is the sort of quiet, family-oriented suburb organized around shopping centers, parks, and subdivisions rather than a central downtown.

State testing data for grades six, seven, and eight show proficiency rates that sit solidly at the midpoint when compared to other districts in Cook County. In eighth-grade English language arts, proficiency runs in the low to mid-60s, the strongest performance on record. Sixth and seventh grade English shows the mid-50s to just under 50, respectively. Math proficiency is lower across all grades, ranging from the low 40s in sixth grade to the mid-40s by eighth. Science proficiency in eighth grade runs in the high 50s. Participation rates on state assessments are consistently in the high 90s, indicating reliable test administration. The data reflects middle school performance in a school that has brought roughly 700 students through grades six to eight in a standard configuration.

One matter parents may want to look into further with the school: the school is currently at or above full capacity. The district's Map Design Committee, launched in early 2026 to redraw school attendance boundaries for the first time in roughly two decades, identified Cooper Middle as one of three schools (along with Kilmer Elementary and London Middle) that are operating above desired capacity on the east side of the district, while several west-side schools have unfilled seats. Any boundary changes would not take effect before the 2027-28 school year at the earliest, but families should track the district's process if enrollment or assignment is a concern.

The broader district context includes substantial facility investment. The district closed a bond referendum that funded district-wide air conditioning, secured entrances, and full-day kindergarten classroom renovation, with construction continuing through summer 2025 in what the district describes as one of its most significant facility rounds. These upgrades touch the learning environment families encounter when they visit.

Buffalo Grove itself is undergoing moderate redevelopment. Population has remained relatively flat since the early 2000s, but projects including The Clove (a mixed-use center with retail and housing replacing the former Town Center), Bison Crossing (a redevelopment of former auto dealership land with apartments and a Tesla service center), and Link Crossing (new single-family homes and townhomes built around a creek greenway) are reshaping the village's character. Schools sit on separated campuses within residential subdivisions, and the community is car-dependent; the Buffalo Grove Metra station offers transit into Chicago, and Pace bus routes provide local mobility.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 640%

School 40% · District 24% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 23 pts above county median

Grade 748%

School 48% · District 35% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 845%

School 45% · District 32% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 22 pts above state median · ▲ 28 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 653%

School 53% · District 38% · ▲ 16 pts above district

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

Grade 747%

School 47% · District 40% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

Grade 864%

School 64% · District 51% · ▲ 13 pts above district

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

Science

Grade 858%

School 58% · District 45% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 31 pts above county median

This schoolWheeling CCSD 21, 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.