Beta You're viewing our redesigned school page. Prefer the classic layout?

Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School

Q: Is Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School a good school?

Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School ranks 182 nd of 1368 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

182^nd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,368 Illinois Middle Schools

Better than 87% of Illinois middle schools

Summary

Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School is a public middle school in Oak Park, Illinois, serving 981 students in grades 6-8. The school is part of the Oak Park Education Service District 97, which is ranked 85 out of 811 school districts in Illinois and has a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School consistently ranks among the top 20-30% of Illinois middle schools in terms of overall academic performance, with a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. The school's proficiency rates in English Language Arts (73.5%) and Mathematics (54.9%) are significantly higher than the state averages. Notably, the school's African American, Hispanic, and White student subgroups all rank in the top 20% of Illinois middle schools in their respective categories, indicating strong academic achievement across diverse student populations. However, the school's Low Socioeconomic Status (SES) student subgroup lags behind, ranking in the bottom 40-50% of Illinois middle schools.

Compared to nearby schools, Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School outperforms most in academic achievement, with higher proficiency rates in ELA and Mathematics across all grade levels. The school's performance is particularly impressive when compared to schools in the Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview 89 and Chicago Public Schools District 299, which have significantly lower proficiency rates. However, the school's performance is on par with or slightly lower than the nearby Roosevelt School in River Forest, which is a top-performing school in the state.

947

Students ?

12.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$22,663

Per pupil spending ?

20.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

325 S Kenilworth Ave
Oak Park, IL 60302-3597

(708) 524-3050

District: Oak Park Education Service District 97

Students who attend Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School usually attend:

High:

Oak Park & River Forest High School

Feeder schools for Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School:

Elementary:	Abraham Lincoln Elementary School
	Oliver W Holmes Elementary School
	Whittier Elementary School
	William Hatch Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

45.7%

African American:

19.7%

Hispanic:

18.0%

See top rated Illinois middle schools

Compare Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 89th percentile in 2015 → 87th in 2025

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Illinois average (62% vs 46% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 13% of Illinois middle schools

Worth a look

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school62%

District avg63%

Illinois avg46%

182^nd of 1,368

Illinois public middle schools ?

Top 13%▼ down 2 pts since 2015

See the entire ranking list of Illinois Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 2Middle Schools in the Oak Park Education Service District 97

85^th of 811Oak Park Education Service District 97 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

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	85.2	182 of 1368	86.7%	★★★★☆
2024	82.3	208 of 1363	84.7%	★★★★☆
2023	72.7	302 of 1367	77.9%	★★★★☆
2022	74.8	281 of 1369	79.5%	★★★★☆
2021	83.0	159 of 1241	87.2%	★★★★☆
2019	51.5	601 of 1356	55.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	48.6	621 of 1293	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2017	65.5	377 of 1293	70.8%	★★★★☆
2016	75.1	264 of 1294	79.6%	★★★★☆
2015	87.8	142 of 1302	89.1%	★★★★☆
2014	80.1	221 of 1322	83.3%	★★★★☆
2013	78.4	256 of 1367	81.3%	★★★★☆
2012	74.3	325 of 1365	76.2%	★★★★☆
2011	72.3	373 of 1344	72.2%	★★★★☆
2010	73.7	351 of 1327	73.5%	★★★★☆
2009	72.6	363 of 1318	72.5%	★★★★☆
2008	76.1	282 of 1293	78.2%	★★★★☆
2007	74.2	308 of 1287	76.1%	★★★★☆
2006	71.4	374 of 1272	70.6%	★★★★☆
2005	74.4	333 of 1209	72.5%	★★★★☆
2004	67.1	445 of 1204	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2003	79.4	233 of 1185	80.3%	★★★★☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	76.4	79 of 574	86.2%	★★★★☆
2024	65.4	114 of 548	79.2%	★★★★☆
2023	58.6	157 of 569	72.4%	★★★★☆
2022	51.7	206 of 573	64.0%	★★★☆☆
2021	65.5	70 of 385	81.8%	★★★★☆
2019	42.7	292 of 565	48.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	34.1	344 of 511	32.7%	★★☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	63.3	74 of 186	60.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	25.1	165 of 201	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	17.9	181 of 209	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	64.5	150 of 694	78.4%	★★★★☆
2024	67.3	118 of 639	81.5%	★★★★☆
2023	76.8	72 of 674	89.3%	★★★★☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2024	73.2	51 of 486	89.5%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	83.2	172 of 1248	86.2%	★★★★☆
2024	80.5	203 of 1251	83.8%	★★★★☆
2023	74.5	256 of 1275	79.9%	★★★★☆
2022	74.0	270 of 1286	79.0%	★★★★☆
2021	79.8	155 of 1017	84.8%	★★★★☆
2019	49.5	606 of 1276	52.5%	★★★☆☆
2018	49.7	588 of 1226	52.0%	★★★☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	89.2	48 of 669	92.8%	★★★★★
2024	85.4	56 of 643	91.3%	★★★★★
2023	86.8	44 of 661	93.3%	★★★★★
2022	82.8	66 of 662	90.0%	★★★★★
2021	85.5	37 of 517	92.8%	★★★★★
2019	51.1	272 of 639	57.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	40.3	343 of 590	41.9%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	40.3	711 of 1229	42.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	37.9	733 of 1219	39.9%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.4	857 of 1234	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	32.2	835 of 1221	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	64.1	220 of 1019	78.4%	★★★★☆
2019	19.2	1072 of 1217	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.4	1008 of 1161	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	84.2	159 of 1271	87.5%	★★★★☆
2024	82.0	185 of 1264	85.4%	★★★★☆
2023	67.6	325 of 1292	74.8%	★★★★☆
2022	72.4	275 of 1286	78.6%	★★★★☆
2021	78.9	158 of 1048	84.9%	★★★★☆
2019	52.0	550 of 1296	57.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	46.6	600 of 1223	50.9%	★★★☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	70.3	67 of 204	67.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	74.3	48 of 184	73.9%	★★★★☆
2023	55.5	85 of 194	56.2%	★★★☆☆
2022	66.6	63 of 195	67.7%	★★★☆☆
2021	82.7	15 of 97	84.5%	★★★★☆
2019	49.6	89 of 179	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2018	39.5	97 of 164	40.9%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	89.5	72 of 812	91.1%	★★★★★
2024	79.9	116 of 802	85.5%	★★★★☆
2023	65.6	178 of 805	77.9%	★★★★☆
2022	51.3	228 of 781	70.8%	★★★★☆
2021	67.3	79 of 548	85.6%	★★★★☆
2019	50.3	268 of 792	66.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	36.5	342 of 602	43.2%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	86.5	85 of 884	90.4%	★★★★★
2024	82.1	127 of 875	85.5%	★★★★☆
2023	66.5	246 of 895	72.5%	★★★★☆
2022	73.8	176 of 898	80.4%	★★★★☆
2021	80.6	106 of 813	87.0%	★★★★☆
2019	42.3	525 of 905	42.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	47.3	452 of 889	49.2%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Hispanic (2025)93rd percentile+6 vs school

Special Education (2025)91st percentile+4 vs school

White (2025)90th percentile+4 vs school

English Language Learner (2024)90th percentile+5 vs school

Male (2025)87th percentile~ school

African American (2025)86th percentile~ school

Female (2025)86th percentile~ school

Disabled (2025)78th percentile-8 vs school

Multi-racial (2025)67th percentile-20 vs school

Asian (2025)60th percentile-26 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)42nd percentile-45 vs school

By subject vs Illinois (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts74%+20 vs state

Science58%+12 vs state

Mathematics55%+16 vs state

1.0

3 ratings · 3 written reviews

5★0

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★3

Rate Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School

Have first-hand experience? A quick rating - and a sentence or two about what stands out (teachers, academics, safety, communication) - helps other families know what to expect.

Takes about a minute. We email you a link to verify your review - your address is never shown publicly.

Tap a star to rate

What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, December 6, 2018

The students are not disciplined and are extremely rude & disrespectful to the teachers and other students. It seems that no one is in charge or wants to take responsibility for leadership of the school environment, and the worst behaviors are tolerated, as though someone forgot that a school is a place for learning. We have seen and heard terrible things there. It seems like the leaders there spend all of their time discussing buzzword topics like diversity, race, inclusion, equity, gender, rather than doing the actual business of teaching students their subjects and how to behave. This is not a serious learning environment. Close Quote

by a citizen
Thursday, February 9, 2017

From the community's perspective, we see students who are very poorly managed outside. There is constant profanity of the most vulgar kind at high volumes throughout the day, after school, and at student events. This occurs in the presence of staff, administrators, and an Oak Park police officer assigned to the school. Students play on a concrete field they call the "prison yard" they and the balls run into busy traffic. The reports from inside the school that we have heard match much of what we see outside, and more increasingly over the past ten years. If your children are considering attending, it would be best to observe the school during different times of day, both inside and out, and after school. The lunch time is the worst, from what we can see. Our rating is based on what we see daily, and have heard from others who have attended. Close Quote

by a citizen
Thursday, December 29, 2016

Student management at Brooks leaves much to be desired. Students outside the building scream strings of the vilest profanity (males and females) at all hours of the school day and into the evening. Students play sports in the street, run in front of cars, chase balls in traffic--all the while staff, administrators, and a police officer look on and do nothing. If this is what is occurring outside, it is hard to imagine that classroom instruction is any more ordered or respectful. Close Quote

Schools Near Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				ISA Science (2025)		IAR English Language Arts (2025)					IAR Mathematics (2025)					% Polio (2024)	% Measles (2024)	% Mumps (2024)	% Rubella (2024)	% Hepatitis B (2024)	% Varicella (2024)	% DTP (2024)	% Meningococcal (2024)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	ISA Science 5th Grade	ISA Science 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 5th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 6th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 7th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts All Grades	IAR Mathematics 5th Grade	IAR Mathematics 6th Grade	IAR Mathematics 7th Grade	IAR Mathematics 8th Grade	IAR Mathematics All Grades	% Polio All Grades	% Measles All Grades	% Mumps All Grades	% Rubella All Grades	% Hepatitis B All Grades	% Varicella All Grades	% DTP All Grades	% Meningococcal All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School	Public	6-8	325 S Kenilworth Ave	Oak Park	60302	Cook County	Oak Park Education Service District 97	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 524-3050	947	74	12.7	20.8%	433 (45.7%)	187 (19.7%)	170 (18.0%)	24 (2.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	118 (12.5%)	85.2	182^nd of 1368 public middle schools	86.7%		82.3	208^th of 1363 public middle schools	84.7%	26		57.5		76.4	71.8	72.6	73.5		56.2	59.0	50.0	54.9	99.7	99.7	99.7	99.7	99.6	99.5	99.7	99.0	$22,663	$1,088	$21,575
Percy Julian Middle School	Public	6-8	416 S Ridgeland Ave	Oak Park	60302	Cook County	Oak Park Education Service District 97	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 524-3040	927	78	11.8	18.0%	506 (54.6%)	135 (14.6%)	138 (14.9%)	26 (2.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	108 (11.7%)	80.1	249^th of 1368 public middle schools	81.8%		69.5	351^st of 1363 public middle schools	74.2%	102		53.6		69.1	67.9	70.1	69.1		51.1	48.2	52.8	50.7	98.5	98.6	98.6	98.6	99.3	98.5	99.2	96.2	$17,464	$1,119	$16,345
Forest Park Middle School	Public	6-8	925 Beloit Ave	Forest Park	60130	Cook County	Forest Park School District 91	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 366-5742	186	21	8.8	53.8%	29 (15.6%)	103 (55.4%)	40 (21.5%)	3 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (5.9%)	54.7	561^st of 1368 public middle schools	59.0%		54	540^th of 1363 public middle schools	60.4%	21		57.4		45.1	52.3	78.1	59.4		21.6	29.9	23.4	25.3	97.8	98.9	98.9	98.9	98.9	97.8	98.9	94.0	$34,696	$1,224	$33,472
Roosevelt School	Public	5-8	7560 Oak Ave	River Forest	60305	Cook County	River Forest School District 90	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 366-9230	625	61	10.3		398 (63.7%)	36 (5.8%)	81 (13.0%)	41 (6.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	67 (10.7%)	95.2	51^st of 1368 public middle schools	96.3%		96	45^th of 1363 public middle schools	96.7%	6	63.3	71.9	85.1	85.5	84.7	84.4	84.9	72.0	69.5	80.8	67.3	72.8	98.9	98.9	98.9	98.9	98.9	98.9	98.9	78.3	$21,788	$328	$21,461
Lincoln Middle School	Public	6-8	6432 16th St	Berwyn	60402	Cook County	Berwyn North School District 98	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 795-2475	793	55	14.4	83.4%	38 (4.8%)	97 (12.2%)	641 (80.8%)	9 (1.1%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	6 (0.8%)	56.1	536^th of 1368 public middle schools	60.8%		52.4	565^th of 1363 public middle schools	58.5%	29		52.2		58.4	58.1	64.0	60.1		19.0	28.2	28.4	25.4	96.7	97.4	97.4	97.4	97.5	96.7	97.5	95.7	$18,128	$1,067	$17,061
West 40 Regional Safe School Middle Prg	Public	6-8	415 Lexington St	Maywood	60153	Cook County	Region 06 West Cook ISC 2	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(708) 449-4284	0	7	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Elm Middle School	Public	6-8	7607 W Cortland St	Elmwood Park	60707	Cook County	Elmwood Park CUSD 401	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 452-3550	615	46	13.3	63.1%	207 (33.7%)	20 (3.3%)	368 (59.8%)	8 (1.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	11 (1.8%)	60.8	479^th of 1368 public middle schools	65.0%		59	463^rd of 1363 public middle schools	66.0%	16		51.0		49.1	70.5	76.0	65.8		20.5	27.3	37.0	28.6	99.4	98.2	98.2	98.2	97.1	96.6	100.0	93.7	$16,961	$854	$16,107
Irving Middle School	Public	5-8	805 S 17th Ave	Maywood	60153	Cook County	Maywood-Melrose Park-Broadview 89	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(708) 450-2015	515	41	12.5	64.3%	2 (0.4%)	324 (62.9%)	176 (34.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (2.5%)	15.4	1210^th of 1368 public middle schools	11.5%		20	1098^th of 1363 public middle schools	19.4%	112		10.9		31.5	28.9	24.7	28.2		8.7	16.4	5.2	9.9	97.1	97.3	97.3	97.3	97.5	96.7	97.5	93.2	$23,479	$1,648	$21,831
Unity Junior High School	Public	7-8	2115 S 54th Ave	Cicero	60804	Cook County	Cicero School District 99	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 863-8268	1,919	125	15.3	66.6%	15 (0.8%)	32 (1.7%)	1,865 (97.2%)	3 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.2%)	21.4	1088^th of 1368 public middle schools	20.5%		23.9	1025^th of 1363 public middle schools	24.8%	63		25.2			27.6	31.4	29.5			18.2	15.1	16.7	99.5	99.6	99.6	99.6	99.4	99.2	99.6	99.6	$21,680	$1,953	$19,727
Freedom Middle School	Public	6-8	3016 Ridgeland Ave	Berwyn	60402	Cook County	Berwyn South School District 100	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(708) 795-5800	504	47	10.7	81.7%	20 (4.0%)	23 (4.6%)	441 (87.5%)	10 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (2.0%)	34.7	867^th of 1368 public middle schools	36.6%		34.8	822^nd of 1363 public middle schools	39.7%	45		35.0		39.5	33.9	52.5	41.6		13.2	23.5	24.7	20.7	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	98.0	$18,233	$1,928	$16,306

Frequently Asked Questions about Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School

How many students attend Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 947 students attended Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School.

What district is Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School in?

Oak Park Education Service District 97

What high school do graduates of Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School attend?

Students who attend Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School usually go on to attend Oak Park & River Forest High School

What is the racial makeup of Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School?

Students at Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School are 46% White, 20% African American, 18% Hispanic, 12% Two or more races, 3% Asian, 1% Not Specified.

Is Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School a good school?

Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School ranks 182^nd of 1368 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Rate Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School!

Other helpful SchoolDigger resources...

Compare to nearby schools

ILIllinois Middle School Rankings

ILIllinois District Rankings

Schools in Oak Park, IL

Sign up for updates!

Be the first to know when there is an update for Gwendolyn Brooks Middle School!

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.