Summary
Longfellow Elementary School is a public elementary school in Rock Island, Illinois, serving around 250 students in grades PK-6. Despite its relatively small size, the school has consistently underperformed compared to the Rock Island School District and the state of Illinois in key academic metrics.
Longfellow Elementary has struggled with low proficiency rates in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics, with only 13.7% and 14.5% of its students meeting or exceeding standards in these subjects, respectively, in the 2024-2025 school year. This is significantly lower than the district and state averages. The school also faces challenges with high chronic absenteeism, ranging from 25.4% to 34.9% over the past few years, and a high percentage of students from low-income families, with 63.2% to 84.26% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Notably, the school's performance is particularly low for certain student subgroups, such as Hispanic students, English Language Learners, and students with disabilities.
Interestingly, despite Longfellow Elementary's low performance, the school spends a relatively high amount per student, ranging from $14,584 to $15,817 per year, which is higher than the state average. Additionally, the school has a relatively low student-teacher ratio, ranging from 12.1 to 13.8 over the past few years, suggesting that the issue may not be solely a lack of funding or staffing, but rather how the resources are being utilized. Compared to nearby schools in the Rock Island School District 41, such as Frances Willard Elementary and Denkmann Elementary, Longfellow's performance is significantly lower, with these nearby schools having higher academic proficiency rates, lower chronic absenteeism, and better overall rankings.
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