Best Middle Schools in Illinois

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Find the best Illinois middle schools with SchoolDigger.com! Focused on test scores for accurate rankings, our user-friendly site simplifies your search. Empower your decisions by exploring top-rated schools, only on SchoolDigger.com - the ultimate guide to K-12 schools!

Year after year, SchoolDigger is always the first to publish Illinois test scores and rankings. Other sites use stale test score data that are several years old! Be in the know with the very latest performance metrics.

The list is updated annually upon the release of the ISA and IAR test scores by the Illinois State Board of Education. The most recent update was on Thursday, October 30, 2025.

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School														Students/Teachers											Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)							Ranking (2025 vs 2024)					ID
Rank (of 1368)	School	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	# Students	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Disc Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel from Federal Funds	Total from Federal Funds	Personnel from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Total from State and Local Funds	Average Standard Score (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Rank (2024)	Rank Change from 2024	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	ID
851	Durkin Park Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	8445 S Kolin Ave	Chicago	60652	Cook County	Chicago Public Schools District 299	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(773) 535-2322	679	55	12.4	80.1%	42 (6.2%)	68 (10.0%)	560 (82.5%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.0%)	$18,176			$2,237			$15,939	35.4	29.6	913	62		170993005690
852	Woodland Elementary/Junior High School	Public	PK, KG-8	5800 E 3000 North Rd	Streator	61364	Livingston County	Woodland CUSD 5	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 672-2909	320	31	10.2	41.9%	261 (81.6%)	4 (1.3%)	34 (10.6%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (5.9%)	$27,671			$531			$27,140	35.4	31.8	869	17		173807004848
853	Jasper County Junior High	Public	7-8	1104 W Jourdan St	Newton	62448	Jasper County	Jasper County CUD 1	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(618) 783-4202	176	9	18.8	45.5%	170 (96.6%)	1 (0.6%)	4 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.6%)	$10,395			$410			$9,985	35.4	39.4	757	96		172038002298
854	Walter R Sundling Middle School	Public	6-8	1100 N Smith St	Palatine	60067	Cook County	Palatine CCSD 15	No	(n/a)	No	No	(847) 963-3700	679	61	11.2	47.0%	237 (34.9%)	47 (6.9%)	305 (44.9%)	68 (10.0%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	18 (2.7%)	$20,664			$720			$19,944	35.3	66.7	384	470		173042003160
855	Hillside Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	4804 Harrison St	Hillside	60162	Cook County	Hillside School District 93	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 449-6491	440	38	11.5	60.9%	11 (2.5%)	170 (38.6%)	241 (54.8%)	5 (1.1%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.0%)	$27,486			$1,161			$26,325	35.3	37.9	779	76		171923002210
856	Lincoln Cltrl Center-Montessori Elementary	Public	PK, KG-8	240 Warren Ave	Kankakee	60901	Kankakee County	Kankakee School District 111	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 933-0709	437	25	17.1	84.7%	89 (20.4%)	188 (43.0%)	135 (30.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	24 (5.5%)	$18,848			$1,872			$16,976	35.3	28.6	931	75		172076002365
857	ASPIRA Charter - Haugan Campus	Public, Charter	6-8	3729 W Leland Ave	Chicago	60625	Cook County	Chicago Public Schools District 299	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(773) 303-3549	83	8	10.3	95.2%	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.4%)	81 (97.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$34,151			$280			$33,870	35.2	16.9	1179	322		170993006516
858	Bradley Central Middle School	Public	6-8	260 N Wabash Ave	Bradley	60915	Kankakee County	Bradley School District 61	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 939-3564	364	39	9.3	65.9%	183 (50.3%)	58 (15.9%)	87 (23.9%)	4 (1.1%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (8.5%)	$18,629			$745			$17,885	35.1	39.8	751	107		170693000853
859	Mannheim Middle School	Public	6-8	2600 Hyde Park Ave	Melrose Park	60164	Cook County	Mannheim School District 83	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(847) 455-5020	768	74	10.3	65.4%	57 (7.4%)	14 (1.8%)	676 (88.0%)	10 (1.3%)	2 (0.3%)	1 (0.1%)	8 (1.0%)	$20,782			$839			$19,943	35.1	34.6	825	34		172433002642
860	Brighton Park Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-8	3825 S Washtenaw Ave	Chicago	60632	Cook County	Chicago Public Schools District 299	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(773) 535-7237	298	26	11.4	90.6%	13 (4.4%)	3 (1.0%)	276 (92.6%)	4 (1.3%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	$24,913			$4,487			$20,426	35	47.3	631	229		170993005486

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Other SchoolDigger ranking lists for Illinois

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New! SchoolDigger ranking lists for IL student subgroups:

Female Students Male Students Asian Students African American Students Hispanic Students White Students Multi-racial Students English Language Learner Students Special Education Students Low Socio Economic Status Students Homeless Students Disabled Students Military Connected Students

About our rankings:

Schooldigger calculates school rankings based on IAR English Language Arts, IAR Mathematics, ISA Science test scores released by the Illinois State Board of Education.
These rankings were last updated on October 30, 2025, and are based on the most recent test scores available. We update rankings as we receive new test scores from the Illinois State Board of Education, usually on a yearly basis.
Our sources of data include the National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education and the Illinois State Board of Education.
For more information about our ranking process, please see our Ranking FAQ. Details about our methodology are here.

Educational resources:

Public School Districts and Their Services: A Comprehensive Guide

Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA): Transforming Education in America

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois State Board of Education.