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River Forest High School

Public Grades 9-12

337^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 415 Indiana High Schools

Better than 19% of Indiana high schools

Summary

River Forest High School is a public high school serving grades 9–12 in Hobart, Indiana, enrolling 565 students as part of the River Forest Community School Corp, a district serving a high-poverty population in northwest Indiana. The school ranked 337 of 415 Indiana high schools in 2025–2026 (19th percentile, 1 star), and over the past decade it has generally stayed in the bottom fifth of the state, with rank percentiles mostly between 11 and 19. About 72% of students qualified for free or reduced-price lunch in 2024–2025, per-student spending was $12,283, and the student–teacher ratio was 20.1.

The clearest bright spot is graduation: 96.8% of students graduated in 2024–2025, above the state average of 89.7% and near the top among nearby traditional high schools — compare Hobart High School at 94.5%, Portage High School at 94.4%, Merrillville High School at 91.2%, and Thomas A Edison Junior-Senior High School at 84.4%. Biology has also improved, rising from 13.24% proficiency in 2022–2023 to 28.91% in 2025–2026, ahead of Portage and Edison. The school's overall rank also ticked up slightly from the 15th percentile the year before.

Two challenges stand out. First, chronic absenteeism reached 30.9% in 2024–2025, nearly double the state rate of 16.7% and up sharply from 14.8% in 2021–2022 — and it is a big reason test scores may lag. Second, test proficiency is low, especially in math: only 4.96% of 11th graders met SAT math proficiency versus 25.6% statewide, 19.18% at Hobart, and 18.26% at Portage. SAT reading was 31.4% against a 51.9% state figure. Special education students ranked in the 3rd percentile statewide (0 stars), a serious equity concern. Notably, River Forest outperforms its closest demographic peer, Edison, on nearly every measure, but trails Hobart badly despite similar spending and class sizes.

565

Students ?

20.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,283

Per pupil spending ?

72.0%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

3300 Indiana St
Hobart, IN 46342

(219) 962-7551

District: River Forest Community School Corp

Feeder schools for River Forest High School:

Elementary:	Henry S Evans Elementary School
	John I Meister Elementary School
Middle:	River Forest Middle School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

42.1%

White:

26.9%

African American:

24.1%

See top rated Indiana high schools

Compare River Forest High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 14th percentile in 2016 → 19th in 2026

Strengths

✓97% graduate in 4 years — above the Indiana average (90%)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 5 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Indiana average (22% vs 39% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (19th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (31% vs 17% Indiana)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school22%

District avg22%

Indiana avg39%

337^th of 415

Indiana public high schools ?

Bottom 19%▲ up 5 pts since 2016

From bottom 14% (2016) to bottom 19% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

325^th of 374River Forest Community School Corp among Indiana 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	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	18.9	337 of 415	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.9	364 of 429	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.6	354 of 432	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.2	354 of 398	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	10.2	365 of 409	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.8	336 of 388	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.2	329 of 389	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	22.6	321 of 385	16.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	31.6	282 of 380	25.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	21.2	338 of 394	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	38.9	268 of 400	33.0%	★★☆☆☆
2014	19.5	324 of 379	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	30.1	254 of 353	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	25.5	319 of 373	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	12.2	333 of 364	8.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2010	27.7	277 of 362	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	18.6	323 of 364	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	33.4	298 of 360	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	33.2	289 of 354	18.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	29.2	300 of 349	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	15.5	318 of 349	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	38.1	72 of 133	45.9%	★★☆☆☆
2025	33.5	79 of 132	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	32.7	83 of 132	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	21.4	107 of 125	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	43.4	61 of 125	51.2%	★★★☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	17.0	331 of 395	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.2	328 of 387	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	14.7	344 of 392	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.1	337 of 388	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	33.5	125 of 194	35.6%	★★☆☆☆
2025	21.2	150 of 181	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	26.2	142 of 184	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	14.4	154 of 166	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	11.6	154 of 164	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	25.5	304 of 390	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	17.8	327 of 377	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.3	280 of 377	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	16.5	337 of 379	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	18.8	329 of 397	17.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.6	358 of 386	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	16.2	336 of 392	14.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	11.9	350 of 383	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	22.5	86 of 112	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.6	88 of 104	15.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	14.2	282 of 292	3.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	13.7	295 of 298	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	19.5	260 of 289	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	15.8	282 of 285	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	20.1	326 of 387	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.7	329 of 377	12.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.9	326 of 381	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	22.5	314 of 375	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	12.7	343 of 378	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)46th percentile+27 vs school

Hispanic (2026)36th percentile+17 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)23rd percentile+4 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)22nd percentile+3 vs school

Male (2026)17th percentile~ school

Female (2026)16th percentile-3 vs school

White (2026)16th percentile-3 vs school

Special Education (2026)3rd percentile-15 vs school

By subject vs Indiana (2025-2026) ?

Evidence-based Reading and Writing31%-21 vs state

Biology29%

Mathematics5%-21 vs state

★

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Schools Near River Forest High School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	ILEARN English Language Arts (2026)				ILEARN Math (2026)				ILEARN Science (2026)		ILEARN Biology (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 6th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 7th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 8th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts All Grades	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math 7th Grade	ILEARN Math 8th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Biology End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
River Forest High School	Public	9-12	3300 Indiana St	Hobart	46342	Lake County	River Forest Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(219) 962-7551	565	28	20.1	72.0%	152 (26.9%)	136 (24.1%)	238 (42.1%)	7 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	32 (5.7%)	18.9	337^th of 415 public high schools	18.8%		15.9	364^th of 429 public high schools	15.2%	27	31.4	5.0											28.9	$12,283	$332	$11,952
Gary Career Center	Public	6-12	1800 E 35th Ave	Gary	46409	Lake County	Gary Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(219) 962-7571	0	14	.0	—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Thomas A Edison Junior-Senior High School	Public	6-12	3304 Parkside Ave	Lake Station	46405	Lake County	Lake Station Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(219) 962-8531	595	32	18.4	71.8%	204 (34.3%)	100 (16.8%)	262 (44.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	28 (4.7%)	13	360^th of 415 public high schools	13.3%		15.1	372^nd of 429 public high schools	13.3%	12	24.7	3.5	5.5	17.1	16.9	13.9	9.1	9.8	6.2	8.4	18.0	18.0	22.8	$12,023	$790	$11,233
Options New Vistas High School	Public, Charter	9-12	5201 US Highway 6	Portage	46368	Porter County	Options Charter Schools	Yes	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(219) 850-4448	0			—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	13.1	359^th of 415 public high schools	13.5%					(n/a)	30.8	0.0
Hobart High School	Public	9-12	2211 E Tenth St	Hobart	46342	Lake County	School City of Hobart	No	No	No	No	(219) 942-8521	1,320	66	20.1	51.3%	780 (59.1%)	120 (9.1%)	355 (26.9%)	16 (1.2%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	47 (3.6%)	52.6	177^th of 415 public high schools	57.3%		50.9	200^th of 429 public high schools	53.4%	23	55.7	19.2											33.5	$12,431	$881	$11,550
Gary Middle College	Public, Charter	9-12	131 East 5th Ave	Gary	46402	Lake County	Gary Middle College	Yes	No	No	Yes	(219) 888-7120	202	10	14.9	26.2%	5 (2.5%)	175 (86.6%)	16 (7.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (3.0%)	7	401^st of 415 public high schools	3.4%		4.9	414^th of 429 public high schools	3.5%	13	9.4	3.1												$11,562	$2,542	$9,020
Merrillville High School	Public	9-12	276 E 68th Pl	Merrillville	46410	Lake County	Merrillville Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(219) 650-5307	2,115	139	15.2	47.3%	125 (5.9%)	1,476 (69.8%)	386 (18.3%)	15 (0.7%)	3 (0.1%)	1 (0.0%)	109 (5.2%)	23.7	324^th of 415 public high schools	21.9%		28.3	311^th of 429 public high schools	27.5%	13	32.3	11.1											29.6	$12,245	$663	$11,582
PACE Virtual Academy	Public	6-12	6450 US Highway 6	Portage	46368	Porter County	Portage Township Schools	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(219) 762-6511	0			—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	9.8	381^st of 415 public high schools	8.2%					(n/a)	20.3	3.4			0.0	9.5			0.0	4.8			18.8
Portage High School	Public	9-12	6450 US Hwy 6	Portage	46368	Porter County	Portage Township Schools	No	No	No	No	(219) 764-6026	2,163	123	17.5	40.5%	1,049 (48.5%)	397 (18.4%)	598 (27.6%)	21 (1.0%)	4 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	94 (4.3%)	37.9	265^th of 415 public high schools	36.1%		34.1	291^st of 429 public high schools	32.2%	26	45.7	18.3											22.7	$12,579	$1,194	$11,385
Excel Center - Gary	Public, Charter	9-12	4610 W Ridge Road	Gary	46408	Lake County	Excel Center - Gary	Yes	No	No	No	(219) 789-5236	125	8	15.6	3.2%	13 (10.4%)	84 (67.2%)	20 (16.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (5.6%)								(n/a)														$6,052	$594	$5,458

Frequently Asked Questions about River Forest High School

What district is River Forest High School in?

River Forest Community School Corp

Is River Forest High School a good school?

River Forest High School ranks in the bottom 18.8% of Indiana high schools.

How many students attend River Forest High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 565 students attended River Forest High School.

What schools feed into River Forest High School?

River Forest High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Henry S Evans Elementary School
Elementary : John I Meister Elementary School
Middle : River Forest Middle School

What is the racial makeup of River Forest High School?

Students at River Forest High School are 42% Hispanic, 27% White, 24% African American, 6% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

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Latest Indiana data All new data »

2024–25 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 20, 2026

2023–24 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 19, 2026

2025–26 ILEARN & SAT test scoresSep 25, 2026

2024–25 graduation ratesJan 5, 2026

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Indiana Department 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.