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John R Lewis Middle School

Q: Is John R Lewis Middle School a good school?

John R Lewis Middle School ranks 953 rd of 1368 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

953^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,368 Illinois Middle Schools

Better than 30% of Illinois middle schools

Summary

John R Lewis Middle School is a public middle school located in Waukegan, Illinois, serving grades 6-8 with a total enrollment of 762 students. The school is part of the Waukegan CUSD 60 district, which is ranked 760 out of 811 districts in Illinois and has a 0-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Despite the school's higher-than-average spending per student, John R Lewis Middle School consistently ranks in the bottom half of Illinois middle schools, with proficiency rates on state assessments significantly below the state averages in both English Language Arts and Math. The school's performance has been declining over the past few years, and it struggles to support the academic achievement of various student subgroups, particularly English Language Learners. Additionally, the school has high rates of chronic absenteeism, which may be contributing to its poor academic outcomes.

In comparison, nearby schools like Deer Path Middle School East and Deer Path Middle School West, which are part of the Lake Forest School District 67, consistently rank in the top 10% of Illinois middle schools. Similarly, Woodland Middle School, which is part of the Woodland CCSD 50 district, performs better than John R Lewis Middle School. These comparisons suggest that the challenges faced by John R Lewis Middle School may be unique and require targeted interventions and support to improve student outcomes.

721

Students ?

11.2

Student/teacher ratio ?

$23,464

Per pupil spending ?

74.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

600 S Lewis Ave
Waukegan, IL 60085-6102

(224) 303-2560

District: Waukegan CUSD 60

Students who attend John R Lewis Middle School usually attend:

High:

Waukegan High School

Feeder schools for John R Lewis Middle School:

Elementary:	Carman-Buckner Elementary School
	Clearview Elementary School
	Lyon Magnet Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

78.9%

African American:

14.0%

White:

3.6%

See top rated Illinois middle schools

Compare John R Lewis Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 35th percentile in 2015 → 30th in 2025

Strengths

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Waukegan CUSD 60

✓Small classes — about 11 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Illinois average (29% vs 46% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (34% vs 25% Illinois)

!Ranking has slipped — down 5 percentile points since 2015

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school29%

District avg21%

Illinois avg46%

953^rd of 1,368

Illinois public middle schools ?

Bottom 30%▼ down 5 pts since 2015

From bottom 35% (2015) to bottom 30% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Illinois Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 5Middle Schools in the Waukegan CUSD 60

760^th of 811Waukegan CUSD 60 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	28.7	953 of 1368	30.3%	★★☆☆☆
2024	27.5	952 of 1363	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	26.8	969 of 1367	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	32.4	867 of 1369	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2021	37.7	681 of 1241	45.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	31.1	928 of 1356	31.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	25.6	963 of 1293	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	24.6	990 of 1293	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	29.4	909 of 1294	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	33.4	840 of 1302	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2014	18.7	1127 of 1322	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	16.2	1200 of 1367	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	11.1	1263 of 1365	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	14.8	1198 of 1344	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	13.9	1177 of 1327	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	23.8	1065 of 1318	19.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	16.3	1112 of 1293	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	29.1	994 of 1287	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	37.0	904 of 1272	28.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	29.6	897 of 1209	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	18.4	975 of 1204	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2003	42.1	752 of 1185	36.5%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	30.7	415 of 574	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	36.9	333 of 548	39.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.4	283 of 569	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2022	41.2	280 of 573	51.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	41.4	194 of 385	49.6%	★★★☆☆
2019	38.0	334 of 565	40.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	31.1	370 of 511	27.6%	★☆☆☆☆

Disabled

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	27.3	537 of 694	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	30.5	462 of 639	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	30.8	472 of 674	30.0%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	22.6	444 of 483	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	24.1	454 of 486	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	24.6	452 of 480	5.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	31.7	369 of 454	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	55.2	60 of 277	78.3%	★★★★☆
2019	31.2	288 of 339	15.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	34.8	206 of 285	27.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	26.8	916 of 1248	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.1	878 of 1251	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	25.6	930 of 1275	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.4	872 of 1286	32.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	29.7	701 of 1017	31.1%	★★☆☆☆
2019	26.0	968 of 1276	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.8	950 of 1226	22.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	34.2	423 of 669	36.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	33.0	427 of 643	33.6%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.8	459 of 661	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	40.9	365 of 662	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	51.8	198 of 517	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	40.4	362 of 639	43.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	32.5	420 of 590	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Homeless

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	18.2	54 of 58	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	24.0	66 of 70	5.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	35.2	33 of 53	37.7%	★★☆☆☆
2019	53.3	13 of 36	63.9%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	30.3	886 of 1229	27.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	32.8	825 of 1219	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	31.5	869 of 1234	29.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	41.0	656 of 1221	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	47.2	461 of 1019	54.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	31.9	869 of 1217	28.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.3	897 of 1161	22.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	30.4	851 of 1271	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	27.1	887 of 1264	29.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	28.6	892 of 1292	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.2	758 of 1286	41.1%	★★☆☆☆
2021	40.3	555 of 1048	47.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	37.3	767 of 1296	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	28.0	868 of 1223	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Illinois percentile	Rating
2025	22.0	665 of 812	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	23.0	684 of 802	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.9	587 of 805	27.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	31.3	566 of 781	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	25.2	541 of 548	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	24.7	700 of 792	11.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	26.7	473 of 602	21.4%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Hispanic (2025)37th percentile+6 vs school

Male (2025)33rd percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)28th percentile~ school

African American (2025)28th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2025)27th percentile-4 vs school

Disabled (2025)23rd percentile-8 vs school

Special Education (2025)18th percentile-12 vs school

English Language Learner (2025)8th percentile-22 vs school

Homeless (2025)7th percentile-23 vs school

By subject vs Illinois (2024-2025) ?

English Language Arts34%-19 vs state

Science30%-16 vs state

Mathematics21%-17 vs state

★

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Schools Near John R Lewis 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
John R Lewis Middle School	Public	6-8	600 S Lewis Ave	Waukegan	60085	Lake County	Waukegan CUSD 60	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(224) 303-2560	721	64	11.2	74.1%	26 (3.6%)	101 (14.0%)	569 (78.9%)	9 (1.2%)	7 (1.0%)	1 (0.1%)	8 (1.1%)	28.7	953^rd of 1368 public middle schools	30.3%		27.5	952^nd of 1363 public middle schools	30.2%	1		29.9		33.2	31.8	38.2	34.5		19.6	20.4	23.5	21.2	94.6	81.9	96.3	96.3	95.5	95.1	95.6	69.6	$23,464	$1,526	$21,938
Robert E Abbott Middle School	Public	6-8	1319 Washington St	Waukegan	60085	Lake County	Waukegan CUSD 60	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(224) 303-2360	585	49	11.9	71.1%	14 (2.4%)	37 (6.3%)	523 (89.4%)	4 (0.7%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (0.9%)	12.3	1269^th of 1368 public middle schools	7.2%		14.8	1232^nd of 1363 public middle schools	9.6%	37		16.8		21.5	16.0	26.8	21.8		7.7	8.6	7.4	7.9	94.4	95.9	95.9	95.9	94.7	94.7	95.3	57.2	$21,327	$1,293	$20,034
Miguel Juarez Middle School	Public	6-8	201 N Butrick St	Waukegan	60085	Lake County	Waukegan CUSD 60	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(224) 303-2660	651	61	10.6	69.6%	14 (2.2%)	66 (10.1%)	543 (83.4%)	10 (1.5%)	5 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	12 (1.8%)	12	1276^th of 1368 public middle schools	6.7%		10.9	1317^th of 1363 public middle schools	3.4%	41		16.6		15.0	10.3	19.0	14.4		11.5	12.4	8.0	10.8	94.7	96.3	96.3	96.3	95.6	95.1	95.5	69.6	$22,276	$1,596	$20,680
Neal Math Science Academy	Public	6-8	1905 Argonne Dr	North Chicago	60064	Lake County	North Chicago School District 187	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(847) 689-6313	601	39	15.4	98.8%	13 (2.2%)	202 (33.6%)	365 (60.7%)	5 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (2.5%)	14.3	1225^th of 1368 public middle schools	10.5%		16.1	1196^th of 1363 public middle schools	12.3%	29		21.3		24.4	17.2	25.7	22.3		6.9	9.7	12.4	9.8	99.3	99.1	99.1	99.1	99.4	98.1	99.6	96.4	$19,603	$1,141	$18,461
Edith M Smith Middle School	Public	6-8	930 New York St	Waukegan	60085	Lake County	Waukegan CUSD 60	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(224) 303-2760	493	44	11.2	72.2%	19 (3.9%)	53 (10.8%)	403 (81.7%)	3 (0.6%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	11 (2.2%)	9.4	1324^th of 1368 public middle schools	3.2%		14.5	1237^th of 1363 public middle schools	9.2%	87		14.6		8.7	12.9	17.2	13.0		4.7	10.0	5.7	6.7	96.7	96.1	96.1	96.1	95.2	94.4	95.9	63.3	$22,545	$1,300	$21,244
Jack Benny Middle School	Public	6-8	1401 Montesano Ave	Waukegan	60087	Lake County	Waukegan CUSD 60	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(224) 303-2470	475	38	12.5	62.1%	19 (4.0%)	47 (9.9%)	357 (75.2%)	34 (7.2%)	7 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.3%)	15.5	1206^th of 1368 public middle schools	11.8%		13.8	1252^nd of 1363 public middle schools	8.1%	46		22.3		24.0	16.7	22.3	20.9		14.7	14.8	7.7	12.2	95.5	96.1	96.1	96.1	96.1	93.8	95.3	72.9	$21,158	$1,607	$19,551
Viking School	Public	6-8	4460 Old Grand Ave	Gurnee	60031	Lake County	Gurnee School District 56	No	(n/a)	No	No	(847) 336-2108	461	39	11.8	54.4%	88 (19.1%)	108 (23.4%)	216 (46.9%)	17 (3.7%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	30 (6.5%)	19.1	1138^th of 1368 public middle schools	16.8%		25.6	990^th of 1363 public middle schools	27.4%	148		34.1		25.4	16.1	34.7	25.8		6.8	7.5	16.6	10.7	95.2	95.8	95.8	95.8	96.4	95.2	96.8	82.7	$19,652	$740	$18,912
Lake Bluff Middle School	Public	6-8	31 E Sheridan Pl	Lake Bluff	60044	Lake County	Lake Bluff Education Service District 65	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(847) 234-9407	305	31	9.9		218 (71.5%)	3 (1.0%)	47 (15.4%)	22 (7.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (4.6%)	92.2	89^th of 1368 public middle schools	93.5%		90.1	115^th of 1363 public middle schools	91.6%	26		72.5		72.5	84.6	90.3	82.2		54.1	62.6	69.9	62.0	99.7	99.3	99.3	99.3	99.7	99.0	99.3	95.2	$26,114	$512	$25,602
Woodland Middle School	Public	6-8	7000 Washington St	Gurnee	60031	Lake County	Woodland CCSD 50	No	(n/a)	No	No	(847) 856-3421	1,541	133	11.5	37.8%	556 (36.1%)	147 (9.5%)	587 (38.1%)	157 (10.2%)	6 (0.4%)	2 (0.1%)	86 (5.6%)	49.2	634^th of 1368 public middle schools	53.7%		48.6	608^th of 1363 public middle schools	55.4%	26		40.2		55.7	51.3	47.7	51.4		23.2	33.4	29.2	28.7	99.9	99.8	99.8	99.8	99.8	99.7	99.9	98.0	$24,741	$391	$24,351
Deer Path Middle School East	Public	5-6	300 S Waukegan Rd	Lake Forest	60045	Lake County	Lake Forest School District 67	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(847) 615-4470	375	38	9.8		316 (84.3%)	4 (1.1%)	17 (4.5%)	12 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (6.9%)								(n/a)	62.8		82.7	89.4			86.1	74.0	73.5			73.8	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.2	99.5	47.0	$27,072	$423	$26,648

Frequently Asked Questions about John R Lewis Middle School

What is the racial makeup of John R Lewis Middle School?

Students at John R Lewis Middle School are 79% Hispanic, 14% African American, 4% White, 1% Asian, 1% Two or more races.

What district is John R Lewis Middle School in?

Waukegan CUSD 60

How many students attend John R Lewis Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 721 students attended John R Lewis Middle School.

Is John R Lewis Middle School a good school?

John R Lewis Middle School ranks 953^rd of 1368 Illinois middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What high school do graduates of John R Lewis Middle School attend?

Students who attend John R Lewis Middle School usually go on to attend Waukegan High School

Rate John R Lewis Middle School!

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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.