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Western Junior High School

Public Grades 6-8
542nd
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,368 Illinois Middle Schools
Better than 60% of Illinois middle schools
Summary

Western Junior High School is a public middle school serving grades 6-8 in Kinderhook, Illinois, with 148 students. The school is part of the Western CUSD 12 district, which is ranked 484 out of 811 districts in the state and has a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Western Junior High School has shown relatively strong academic performance in English Language Arts (ELA), with 53.9% of students proficient or better in the 2024-2025 school year, compared to the state average of 53.1%. However, the school's mathematics performance has been weaker, with only 28.1% of students proficient or better, compared to the state average of 38.5%. The school's low socioeconomic status (SES) students and special education populations have performed well, ranking in the top 30% and 50% of Illinois middle schools, respectively.

Compared to the nearby Pikeland Community School, which is a larger middle school in Pittsfield, Illinois, Western Junior High School has consistently outperformed it on academic measures. For example, in the 2024-2025 school year, only 27.3% of Pikeland Community School students were proficient or better in ELA, compared to 53.9% at Western Junior High School. However, Western Junior High School has experienced relatively high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 21.4% to 26.3% over the past few years, which could be an area of concern for the school.

146
Students ?
13.8
Student/teacher ratio ?
$15,734
Per pupil spending ?
55.5%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 300 Chaney St
       Kinderhook, IL  62345

(217) 432-8324

District: Western CUSD 12


Students who attend Western Junior High School usually attend:

High:    Western High School

Feeder schools for Western Junior High School:

Elementary:    Western Barry Elementary
Racial breakdown:

White:
94.5%
Two or more races:
2.7%
Hispanic:
2.1%
more
 See top rated Illinois middle schools

 Compare Western Junior High School to nearby middle schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 69th percentile in 2022 → 60th in 2025
Strengths
Above the Illinois median (60th percentile)
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped from its 69th-percentile peak (2022) to 60th (2025)
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
!Mathematics scores 10 pts below the Illinois average
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school47%
District avg47%
Illinois avg46%
542nd of 1,368
Illinois public middle schools ?
Top 40%▲ up 19 pts since 2015
From bottom 42% (2015) to top 40% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Illinois Middle Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
484th of 811Western CUSD 12 among Illinois districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202555.7542 of 136860.4%★★★☆☆
202453.5549 of 136359.7%★★★☆☆
202355.4513 of 136762.5%★★★☆☆
202261.7428 of 136968.7%★★★☆☆
202143.7594 of 124152.1%★★★☆☆
201945.8681 of 135649.8%★★☆☆☆
201838.4763 of 129341.0%★★☆☆☆
201747.2633 of 129351.0%★★★☆☆
201657.3478 of 129463.1%★★★☆☆
201537.5761 of 130241.6%★★☆☆☆
201444.4759 of 132242.6%★★☆☆☆
201332.6985 of 136727.9%★☆☆☆☆
201225.91101 of 136519.3%★☆☆☆☆
201142.1897 of 134433.3%★★☆☆☆
201042.9886 of 132733.2%★★☆☆☆
200945.6837 of 131836.5%★★☆☆☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202474.677 of 63987.9%★★★★☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202555.3510 of 124859.1%★★★☆☆
202455.7475 of 125162.0%★★★☆☆
202359.1432 of 127566.1%★★★☆☆
202264.4366 of 128671.5%★★★★☆
202144.1518 of 101749.1%★★☆☆☆
201940.6730 of 127642.8%★★☆☆☆
201843.3682 of 122644.4%★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202563.0358 of 122970.9%★★★★☆
202453.9468 of 121961.6%★★★☆☆
202366.7280 of 123477.3%★★★★☆
202281.0109 of 122191.1%★★★★★
202152.6376 of 101963.1%★★★☆☆
201944.0650 of 121746.6%★★☆☆☆
201848.0548 of 116152.8%★★★☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202554.9518 of 127159.2%★★★☆☆
202451.6520 of 126458.9%★★★☆☆
202349.7565 of 129256.3%★★★☆☆
202258.2441 of 128665.7%★★★☆☆
202137.6602 of 104842.6%★★☆☆☆
201951.4558 of 129656.9%★★★☆☆
201828.0870 of 122328.9%★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202446.0331 of 80258.7%★★★☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202533.3615 of 88430.4%★★☆☆☆
202430.8616 of 87529.6%★☆☆☆☆
202333.5607 of 89532.2%★★☆☆☆
202244.6474 of 89847.2%★★☆☆☆
202128.1591 of 81327.3%★☆☆☆☆
201928.5672 of 90525.7%★☆☆☆☆
201820.8752 of 88915.4%★☆☆☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Disabled (2024)88th percentile+28 vs school
Low Socio Economic Status (2025)71st percentile+10 vs school
Male (2025)59th percentile~ school
Female (2025)59th percentile~ school
Special Education (2024)59th percentile~ school
White (2025)30th percentile-30 vs school
By subject vs Illinois (2024-2025) ?
Science60%+15 vs state
English Language Arts54%~ state avg
Mathematics28%-10 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Western Junior High School

Western Junior High School ranks 542nd of 1368 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Students at Western Junior High School are 95% White, 3% Two or more races, 2% Hispanic.

In the 2024-25 school year, 146 students attended Western Junior High School.

Students who attend Western Junior High School usually go on to attend Western High School


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Latest Illinois data All new data »
2024–25 school spending dataOct 30, 2025
2024–25 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesOct 30, 2025
2024–25 ACT, IAR, ISA & PreACT Secure test scoresOct 30, 2025
2023–24 school spending dataOct 30, 2024


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.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.





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