Lincoln Elem School vs Washington-McKinley Elem Sch

Lincoln Elem School and Washington-McKinley Elem Sch sit 0.6 miles apart in Chicago Heights, Illinois, yet carry a meaningful rating gap: Lincoln Elem School scores 8.8/10 against Washington-McKinley Elem Sch's 8.0/10 — a 0.8-point difference. That gap translates directly into state rank: Lincoln Elem School places #155 of 3,813 Illinois schools, putting it in the top 5% statewide, while Washington-McKinley Elem Sch ranks #465 of 3,813, still a strong top-13% finish but a significant step down.

The sharpest divide between the two schools is academic proficiency. Lincoln Elem School earns a 9.2/10 academic score versus Washington-McKinley Elem Sch's 7.1/10 — a 2.1-point gap that reflects a concrete difference in tested achievement. Growth tells a different story: both schools are nearly identical here, with Lincoln Elem School at 9.5/10 and Washington-McKinley Elem Sch at 9.4/10. That near-parity on growth means Washington-McKinley is advancing students at roughly the same rate as Lincoln; the academic gap reflects where students start and currently test, not how quickly the school moves them forward.

Both schools serve similarly high-need populations: Lincoln Elem School reports 96% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, and Washington-McKinley Elem Sch comes in at 99% — a negligible difference that places both firmly in high-poverty contexts. The structural difference is size and staffing. Lincoln Elem School enrolls 86 students with an 8.6:1 student-teacher ratio, while Washington-McKinley Elem Sch serves 279 students at an 11.2:1 ratio. Lincoln's smaller enrollment means fewer than 90 kids share the building, and each teacher carries roughly three fewer students on average.

Both schools cover the same grade span — PK through 5 — so families do not gain or lose any grade-level access by choosing one over the other. The decision comes down to academic track record versus school size and community scale. Lincoln Elem School's top-5% state rank and 2.1-point academic score advantage are hard data points in its favor; Washington-McKinley Elem Sch's larger enrollment may offer a broader peer community and comparable growth performance at a school three times the size.