Mahadev Maitri Foundation
US Initiatives
Elementary Schools

Best Elementary Schools
in CUSD 200

This page covers 13 elementary schools in CUSD 200. Rankings use a composite of neighborhood opportunity, class sizes, and per-student investment — signals available consistently from federal data across all US public schools. Schools in this district score near the national median on neighborhood opportunity. Use these rankings as a starting point; pair them with school visits and conversations with local parents before making any enrollment decision.

13
Schools Ranked
Illinois
State
None
Charter Schools
RankingsHow We RankFAQAbout Data

Elementary Schools Rankings

Showing 10 of 13
1
rank
Hawthorne Elem School
Grades KG–05161 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (8.4:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
64
/100
Student:Teacher
8.4:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
29%
Low economic need
2
rank
Emerson Elem School
Grades KG–05268 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (11.4:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
61
/100
Student:Teacher
11.4:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
29%
Low economic need
3
rank
Lowell Elem School
Grades KG–05257 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (11.1:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
61
/100
Student:Teacher
11.1:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
30%
Low economic need
4
rank
Bower Elem School
Grades KG–05403 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (9.4:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
60
/100
Student:Teacher
9.4:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
42/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
33%
Low economic need
5
rank
Longfellow Elem School
Grades KG–05329 students
Ranked for: above-average investment ($20,401/student)
59
/100
Student:Teacher
14.0:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
18%
Low economic need
6
rank
Washington Elementary School
Grades KG–05385 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (12.6:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
59
/100
Student:Teacher
12.6:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
37%
Low economic need
7
rank
Madison Elem School
Grades PK–05359 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (12.7:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
58
/100
Student:Teacher
12.7:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
42/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
26%
Low economic need
8
rank
Pleasant Hill Elem School
Grades KG–05575 students
Ranked for: above-average investment ($20,401/student)
58
/100
Student:Teacher
13.9:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
50/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
41%
Near nat'l 52.2%
9
rank
Whittier Elem School
Grades KG–05414 students
Ranked for: small class sizes (13.3:1) · above-average investment ($20,401/student)
58
/100
Student:Teacher
13.3:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
42/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
12%
Low economic need
10
rank
Carl Sandburg Elem School
Grades KG–05400 students
Ranked for: above-average investment ($20,401/student)
57
/100
Student:Teacher
14.4:1
Below nat'l 15.4:1
Opportunity
48/100
Near nat'l median
Per-Pupil Spend
$20,401
Above nat'l avg
Free Lunch
35%
Low economic need
3 more elementary schools in CUSD 200 not shown here.
View all schools in CUSD 200
How We Rank Elementary Schools

Each school receives a composite score (0–100) built from 4 federal data signals, weighted to reflect what matters most at the elementary school level. All signals are normalised against national benchmarks so a school's score reflects its standing across the entire US, not just within this district.

Neighborhood Opportunity
40%
Harvard Opportunity Atlas score for the school's neighbourhood. Higher means children from this area historically achieve stronger economic outcomes.
Student-Teacher Ratio
30%
Lower ratio = smaller classes = more individual attention per child. Normalised against national range.
Per-Pupil Expenditure
20%
Annual district spending per enrolled student from the NCES F-33 Finance Survey. Compared against national average.
Free Lunch Rate
10%
Percentage of students qualifying for free/reduced-price lunch. Used as a neighbourhood economic-context signal.
Test scores are excluded: they are not published as consistent open federal data across all states, making reliable cross-district comparison impossible with this signal alone.
District at a Glance
13
Elementary Schools
20
Total Schools
64
#1 Score
59
Avg Score
StateIllinois →
District profileCUSD 200 →
Top Ranked Elementary School
1
Other School Levels
Compare CUSD 200 with neighbouring districts
⇄ Compare districts
Frequently Asked Questions
About This Data

All figures on this page come directly from US federal open datasets: NCES Common Core of Data (enrollment, school characteristics, student-teacher ratios), NCES F-33 Finance Survey (per-pupil expenditure), Harvard Opportunity Atlas (neighbourhood opportunity scores). Federal data is published on an annual cycle and may not reflect the very latest school-year changes. Rankings reflect available data and should be used as a starting point — not a substitute for visiting schools or consulting district resources directly. What this ranking does not measure: teacher quality, classroom culture, extracurricular programmes, school safety, or parent and student satisfaction.