Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Summary:

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School is a public charter elementary school located in Chicago, Illinois, serving grades K-8 with a total enrollment of 524 students. The school is part of the Chicago Public Schools District 299, which is ranked 688 out of 813 districts in Illinois and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School outperforms the Chicago Public Schools District 299 and the state of Illinois in English Language Arts (ELA) proficiency across all grade levels, with 41% of students proficient or better in 2023-2024, compared to 30.5% for the district and 41.2% for the state. In Mathematics, the school also outperforms the district but lags behind the state average, with 20.6% of students proficient or better. The school's performance in Science is particularly strong, with 56.9% of students proficient or better, significantly higher than the district's 36.8% and the state's 53.2%. However, the school's performance for Special Education students is concerning, ranking in the bottom 10% of Illinois elementary schools, and the school has struggled with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 22.6% to 34.1% in recent years.

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School generally outperforms the nearby traditional public schools, such as Hoyne Elementary School and Bradwell Community Arts & Sci Elementary School, in academic achievement, particularly in ELA and Science. However, the nearby LEARN Charter - South Chicago Campus, another charter school, has shown stronger academic performance than Great Lakes Academy in recent years, especially in ELA. The school's higher per-student spending and lower student-teacher ratio may contribute to its stronger academic performance, but the school still faces challenges in addressing equity and inclusion for certain student subgroups.


Detail:

Public, Charter K-8

 8401 S Saginaw Ave
       Chicago, IL  60617-2029


(773) 503-3040

District: Chicago Public Schools District 299

SchoolDigger Rank:
1152nd of 2,067 Illinois Elementary Schools

Per Pupil Expenditures:  $18,162 Help


Student/teacher ratio:  14.7 Help
Number of students:  535

Racial breakdown:

African American:
90.8%
Hispanic:
7.1%
Two or more races:
1.3%
more

Free/discounted lunch recipients:  87.3% Help


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Performance Trends
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Compare Details Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School ranks worse than 55.7% of elementary schools in Illinois. It also ranks 105th among 452 ranked elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 39.85. (See more...)
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Compare Details Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School ranks better than 66.6% of middle schools in Illinois. (See more...)
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Compare Details In 2024 the calculated Average Standard Score was 59.49. (See more...)
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Chronic absenteeism in a school refers to a situation where students repeatedly miss school, with the threshold often defined as missing 10% or more of school days for any reason, excused or unexcused.
Student Body
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Compare Details Racial makeup is: African American (90.8%), Hispanic (7.1%), two or more races (1.3%). (See more...)
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Compare Details 87.3% of students are receiving a free or discounted lunch. (See more...)
Teachers
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Compare Details The student/teacher ratio at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School is 14.7. 329 elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299 have better student/teacher ratios. (See more...)
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Compare Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School employs 36.3 full-time teachers.
Finance
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Compare Details The average total spent per student at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School is $18,162. 353 elementary schools in the Chicago Public Schools District 299 spend more per student.
Schooldigger 2024 Rankings:

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School:

SchoolDigger ranks Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School 1152nd of 2067 Illinois public elementary schools. (See Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Elementary School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Male students:
African American students:

SchoolDigger ranks Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School 455th of 1363 Illinois public middle schools. (See Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School in the ranking list.)

Middle School Test Score Ratings by Student Subgroup:


Special Education students:
Low Socio Economic Status students:
Female students:
Disabled students:
Male students:
African American students:


Chicago Public Schools District 299:

SchoolDigger ranks Chicago Public Schools District 299 688th of 813 Illinois school districts. (See district ranking list.)


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Rank History for Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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Rank History for all elementary school students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 50.96 930th 2037 54.3%
2019 29.30 1468th 2086 29.6%
2021 21.11 1542nd 1948 20.8%
2022 33.62 1305th 2082 37.3%
2023 32.50 1332nd 2077 35.9%
2024 39.85 1152nd 2067 44.3%
See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for elementary school Special Education students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2019 40.37 620th 1194 48.1%
2022 22.42 1011th 1113 9.2%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for elementary school Low Socio Economic Status students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 59.24 579th 1765 67.2%
2019 43.78 996th 1816 45.2%
2021 31.35 1083rd 1514 28.5%
2022 44.66 912th 1763 48.3%
2023 49.89 815th 1808 54.9%
2024 58.36 592nd 1793 67.0%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for elementary school Female students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 43.21 1073rd 1964 45.4%
2019 21.64 1649th 2019 18.3%
2021 18.74 1413th 1680 15.9%
2022 29.17 1346th 1970 31.7%
2023 32.33 1258th 1957 35.7%
2024 38.89 1105th 1942 43.1%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for elementary school Male students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 61.91 674th 1972 65.8%
2019 44.04 1054th 2019 47.8%
2021 21.40 1366th 1707 20.0%
2022 38.70 1124th 1977 43.1%
2023 32.14 1274th 1984 35.8%
2024 39.79 1090th 1959 44.4%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for elementary school African American students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Elementary Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2018 85.94 43rd 698 93.8%
2019 66.84 134th 711 81.2%
2021 53.49 117th 428 72.7%
2022 62.39 157th 684 77.0%
2023 65.92 137th 692 80.2%
2024 73.75 90th 655 86.3%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Data source: test scores: Illinois State Board of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

Rank History for Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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Rank History for all middle school students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 18.62 1051st 1241 15.3%
2022 57.02 488th 1369 64.4%
2023 61.80 423rd 1367 69.1%
2024 59.49 455th 1363 66.6%
See the entire list of Illinois Elementary School Rankings!

Rank History for middle school Special Education students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 58.21 163rd 781 79.1%
2023 60.49 207th 805 74.3%
2024 73.14 157th 802 80.4%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Special Education Students!

Rank History for middle school Low Socio Economic Status students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 26.10 806th 1019 20.9%
2022 73.88 185th 1221 84.8%
2023 79.67 133rd 1234 89.2%
2024 69.40 248th 1219 79.7%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Low Socio Economic Status Students!

Rank History for middle school Female students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 55.04 470th 1286 63.5%
2023 58.52 440th 1275 65.5%
2024 49.64 557th 1251 55.5%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Female Students!

Rank History for middle school Disabled students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2023 63.13 139th 674 79.4%
2024 70.20 107th 639 83.3%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Disabled Students!

Rank History for middle school Male students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2022 56.87 459th 1286 64.3%
2023 62.70 383rd 1292 70.4%
2024 66.25 342nd 1264 72.9%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for Male Students!

Rank History for middle school African American students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Year Avg Standard Score Statewide Rank Total # Ranked Middle Schools IL State Percentile SchoolDigger Rating
2021 44.41 169th 385 56.1%
2022 91.29 28th 573 95.1%
2023 86.86 34th 569 94.0%
2024 86.40 32nd 548 94.2%
See the entire list of Best Illinois Elementary Schools for African American Students!

Data source: test scores: Illinois State Board of Education, rankings: SchoolDigger.com

As you review the school rankings data, please be aware that some of the information from certain demographics is missing. The reason for this omission is that the data has been redacted from the source data itself due to low population samples in these specific demographic groups.

Redacting data from low population samples is a necessary step to ensure the reliability and accuracy of the results, as small sample sizes may not be representative of the broader population. Additionally, this measure helps protect the privacy of individuals belonging to these demographic groups.

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School Test Scores
Tests: 
  
Grades: 
  
Years: 
  
Group by: 
District Scores:
State Scores:    
  
Subgroup: 









Data source: Illinois State Board of Education

Review counts

All ratings (Avg rating: 5)
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Enrollment information for Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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Year White African American Asian Hispanic American Indian Pacific Islander Two or More Races Not Specified Total
2015 0 111 0 13 0 0 1 0 125
2016 0 177 0 21 0 0 0 0 198
2017 0 225 0 25 0 0 1 0 251
2018 0 261 0 32 0 0 1 0 294
2019 0 298 0 39 0 0 1 0 338
2020 1 351 0 48 0 0 14 0 414
2021 0 404 0 56 1 0 5 0 466
2022 1 440 0 45 1 0 3 0 490
2023 0 472 0 49 1 0 2 0 524
2024 2 486 0 38 1 0 7 1 535

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Enrollment/Ethnicity

For more information about how the Department of Education defines ethnicity, see Defining Race and Ethnicity Data, National Center for Education Statistics

Students eligible for free or discounted lunch at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2015 125 8.0 15.6 95.2
2016 198 14.0 14.1 91.4
2017 251 5.0 50.2 90
2018 294 15.2 19.3 87.1
2019 338 22.0 15.3 85.8
2020 414 29.0 14.2 76.6
2021 466 n/a n/a n/a
2022 490 39.5 12.4 86.3
2023 524 36.0 14.5 87
2024 535 36.3 14.7 87.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Students eligible for discounted/free lunch:

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) provides low-cost or free meals to students in U.S. public and nonprofit private schools based on household income. Those with incomes below 130% of the poverty line receive free lunch, while those between 130% and 185% qualify for reduced-price lunch. The percentage of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch serves as a marker for poverty, as it reflects the socioeconomic status of families in a given school or district. A higher FRPL rate typically indicates a higher concentration of low-income families, suggesting that the school or district may face additional challenges in providing adequate resources and support for student success.

Student/Teacher Ratio Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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Compare
Year # Students Full-time Teachers Student/Teacher ratio % Free/Discounted Lunch
2015 125 8.0 15.6 95.2
2016 198 14.0 14.1 91.4
2017 251 5.0 50.2 90
2018 294 15.2 19.3 87.1
2019 338 22.0 15.3 85.8
2020 414 29.0 14.2 76.6
2021 466 n/a n/a n/a
2022 490 39.5 12.4 86.3
2023 524 36.0 14.5 87
2024 535 36.3 14.7 87.3

Data source: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Dept of Education.

About Student-Teacher Ratio

Student/teacher ratio is calculated by dividing the total number of students by the total number of full-time equivalent teachers. Please note that a smaller student/teacher ratio does not necessarily translate to smaller class size. In some instances, schools hire teachers part time, and some teachers are hired for specialized instruction with very small class sizes. These and other factors contribute to the student/teacher ratio. Note: For private schools, Student/teacher ratio may not include Pre-Kindergarten.
Finances

Per Pupil Expenditures for Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

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YearExpenditures from Federal FundsExpenditures from State and Local FundsTotal Expenditures Per Pupil (All Funds)
2019 $631 (4.9%) $12,314 (95.1%) $12,945
2020 $442 (3.4%) $12,427 (96.6%) $12,869
2021 $752 (5.9%) $11,996 (94.1%) $12,748
2022 $752 (5.9%) $11,996 (94.1%) $12,748
2023 $1,793 (9.8%) $16,522 (90.2%) $18,315
2024 $1,643 (9.0%) $16,518 (90.9%) $18,162

Data source: Illinois Department of Education
Pre and Post Pandemic Data

Impact of COVID-19 on Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

The coronavirus has had a profound impact on education in America. Learning shifted online overnight, attendance numbers dwindled, and enrollment decreased. SchoolDigger.com is making it easier for you to better assess how COVID-19 has impacted your school. Through the collection of pre-pandemic (2019) and current data, SchoolDigger.com is sharing test scores, enrollment numbers and school demographics from schools across the country – and we make it easy to see how impacted schools compare locally and statewide.

Rankings

Rank
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Rank
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Ranks 1468th of 2086 Elementary schoolsRanks 1332nd of 2077 Elementary schools
 6.2%

Test Scores

% proficient
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
% proficient
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
3rd Grade English Language Arts (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)44.118
 26.1%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Chicago Public Schools District 299)39.419.7
 19.7%
   3rd Grade English Language Arts (Illinois)36.428.8
 7.6%
3rd Grade Mathematics (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)28.819.6
 9.2%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Chicago Public Schools District 299)32.920.9
 12%
   3rd Grade Mathematics (Illinois)40.633
 7.6%
4th Grade English Language Arts (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)14.844.6
 29.8%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Chicago Public Schools District 299)23.225
 1.8%
   4th Grade English Language Arts (Illinois)36.735.4
 1.3%
4th Grade Mathematics (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)9.89.1
 0.7%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Chicago Public Schools District 299)24.116.4
 7.7%
   4th Grade Mathematics (Illinois)33.527.7
 5.8%
5th Grade English Language Arts (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)24.125.5
 1.4%
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Chicago Public Schools District 299)24.124.1
   5th Grade English Language Arts (Illinois)37.935.2
 2.7%
5th Grade Mathematics (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)13.75.5
 8.2%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Chicago Public Schools District 299)20.715
 5.7%
   5th Grade Mathematics (Illinois)29.825.6
 4.2%
5th Grade Science (Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School)36.427.3
 9.1%
   5th Grade Science (Chicago Public Schools District 299)40.739.2
 1.5%
   5th Grade Science (Illinois)54.452.4
 2%

Student Body

Number of students
Pre-pandemic (2018-2019)
Number of students
Post pandemic (2022-2023)
Change (%)
Total Students338524
 55%
African American298472
 58.4%
American Indian01
Asian00
Hispanic3949
 25.6%
Pacific Islander00
White00
Two or More Races12
 100%
% Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients85.8%87%
 1.2%


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Frequently Asked Questions about Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School

Students at Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School are 91% African American, 7% Hispanic, 1% Two or more races.

Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary School ranks 1152nd of 2067 Illinois elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

In the 2023-24 school year, 535 students attended Great Lakes Academy Charter Elementary 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.





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