The top reported proficiency rate is 53% in English language arts. The lowest is 47% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Hal E Clark Middle School
Hal E Clark Middle School serves grades five through eight and sits within the Lake Central School Corporation in St. John, a rapidly growing suburban community southeast of Chicago. The school is one of several district buildings spread across town, and there is no centralized downtown to anchor the area; residential subdivisions, a noted network of bicycle and pedestrian trails, and over twenty parks define the local landscape. The town’s population has been climbing steadily, housing supply is tight, and a new South Shore Line commuter station recently opened, reinforcing St. John’s role as a commuter suburb for families working in the Chicago metropolitan area.
Clark is a regular public school with an enrollment that is sizable for a middle school serving four grades. The student body is predominantly white, with a notable Hispanic share and smaller Black and multiracial populations. Just over a fifth of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a rate that suggests a relatively affluent overall community but still a meaningful segment of families with economic need. The school does not report data on students with individualized education plans or English learner status, so a parent seeking clarity on special education or language support services would want to ask the school directly about those offerings.
State testing results from the ILEARN assessment place Clark well above the typical middle school in Lake County. In an overall proficiency index that averages performance across tested subjects and grades, the school sits in the top quartile among the county’s districts. In English language arts, roughly half of students scored at the proficient-or-above level. In mathematics, the share was slightly lower at just under half. Science proficiency, tested in a single grade, came in near the same range, and social studies, also tested in one grade, reached a similar mark. The pattern is one of the solid but uneven achievement: across all four subjects tested, the school lands north of the middle of the pack in its county, and in some subjects notably so. A parent looking at these results should see a school where a slight majority of students meet state benchmarks in literacy and social studies, while math and science lag a few points behind.
Because Clark is a middle school and does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to consider. The school does not appear to offer career or dual-credit pathways, which would typically be housed at the high school level. No data on chronic absenteeism or discipline was available, so a parent interested in school climate and attendance patterns would want to follow up with the school for that information.
For a family moving into the area, a practical note from the district: elementary school boundaries within Lake Central were recently updated. Which elementary school a child attends depends on where a family lives within the district, and the district provides a boundary map. That is a lasting change that matters for homebuyers and renters alike.
In sum, Clark is a large suburban middle school in a fast-growing commuter community. Its test scores are above the county median in every subject, and its overall performance places it among the stronger schools in Lake County. The student body is not highly diverse but is not monolithic either. The surrounding housing market is expensive and tight, reflecting strong demand. Families who value a school that performs well relative to its local peers, in a suburban setting with parks and trail access, will find Clark a straightforward fit. Those with a child who needs special education or English learner services will want to get specific details directly from the school, since those figures were not reported.
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