Photo: Teemu08 · CC BY-SA 3.0Lake Forest’s public schools outscore 94% of Illinois districts
In Lake Forest, 57% of tested students are proficient in math, above the Illinois average (26%). The grade covers the two public school districts serving Lake Forest, from kindergarten through graduation, on state tests and graduation. Each state writes its own tests, so this is the one TownRatings grade compared within Illinois, not nationally.
From Illinois state tests taken in spring 2021, when nearly all of students in the tested grades sat them, and the class of 2023’s four-year graduation rate, as reported to the U.S. Department of Education.
Lake Forest’s schools, in brief
Against towns with similar incomes
Among the 42 Illinois towns with household incomes within a quarter of Lake Forest’s, its schools beat 60%, lower than their 94% against all the state’s districts. The grade ↓
Lake Forest runs its own schools through grade 8, then shares
Deer Path Middle Sch West (7–8) is Lake Forest’s own. From grade 9, students attend the Lake Forest Community High School District 115 with Lake Bluff, North Chicago, Shields and West Deerfield: Lake Forest High School in Lake Forest. The high school’s own results earn an A+, the highest on the path. See the path ↓
Above the state on both counts
Reading proficiency is 49% and math 57% across both districts in spring 2021, against 30% and 26% statewide; 98% of the class of 2023 graduated in four years, against 88%. Test scores ↓
Spending and class size
Lake Forest Community High School District 115 spends $43,306 per student and Lake Forest School District 67 $31,053, against $21,567 across Illinois (FY2024). Neither counts toward the grade. Districts ↓
Written from the figures on this page. Tests are from 2020–21, graduation from the class of 2023; each school’s own letter uses 2020–21 results.
What’s behind Lake Forest’s grade
A: better than 94% of Illinois school districts, #29 of 768 Illinois towns. Test scores and graduation are both above the Illinois average; graduation is the stronger of the two.
Where will my kid go?
Pick a grade. These are the public schools that serve Lake Forest, with each school’s own grade.
Pre-K in Lake Forest
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Kindergarten in Lake Forest · depends on your address
Cherokee Elem School
Grades K–4 · 343 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Everett Elem School
Grades K–4 · 308 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
1st grade in Lake Forest · depends on your address
Cherokee Elem School
Grades K–4 · 343 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Everett Elem School
Grades K–4 · 308 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
2nd grade in Lake Forest · depends on your address
Cherokee Elem School
Grades K–4 · 343 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Everett Elem School
Grades K–4 · 308 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
3rd grade in Lake Forest · depends on your address
Cherokee Elem School
Grades K–4 · 343 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Everett Elem School
Grades K–4 · 308 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
4th grade in Lake Forest · depends on your address
Cherokee Elem School
Grades K–4 · 343 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Everett Elem School
Grades K–4 · 308 students · 11:1 students per teacher
Sheridan Elem School
Grades PK–4 · 265 students · 11:1 students per teacher
5th grade in Lake Forest
Deer Path Middle Sch East
Grades 5–6 · 375 students · 10:1 students per teacher
6th grade in Lake Forest
Deer Path Middle Sch East
Grades 5–6 · 375 students · 10:1 students per teacher
7th grade in Lake Forest
Deer Path Middle Sch West
Grades 7–8 · 361 students · 9:1 students per teacher
8th grade in Lake Forest
Deer Path Middle Sch West
Grades 7–8 · 361 students · 9:1 students per teacher
9th grade in Lake Forest
Lake Forest High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,359 students · 10:1 students per teacher
10th grade in Lake Forest
Lake Forest High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,359 students · 10:1 students per teacher
11th grade in Lake Forest
Lake Forest High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,359 students · 10:1 students per teacher
12th grade in Lake Forest
Lake Forest High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,359 students · 10:1 students per teacher
Lake Forest runs its own schools through grade 8 (Lake Forest School District 67). From grade 9, students attend the Lake Forest Community High School District 115, shared with Lake Bluff, North Chicago, Shields and West Deerfield. Its elementary school is in Lake Forest. Parts of Lake Forest (5% and 3% of its land) are served by Rondout School District 72 and Libertyville Community High School District 128 instead. To confirm the school for a specific address, ask the district.
Two districts serve Lake Forest
Spending and class size are shown but don’t count toward the grade. Each district’s own page has every school.
Well above the state in reading
Lake Forest vs. its neighbors
Schools grades for the Illinois towns that share Lake Forest’s borders.
| Town | Schools | Main districts |
|---|---|---|
| Lake Forest | A | Lake Forest School District 67 PK–8 · Lake Forest Community High School District 115 9–12 |
| Shields | B+ | Lake Forest School District 67 PK–8 · North Chicago School District 187 PK–12 · Lake Bluff Elementary School District 65 PK–8 |
| Moraine | A | North Shore School District 112 PK–8 · Township High School District 113 9–12 |
| Highland Park | A | North Shore School District 112 PK–8 · Township High School District 113 9–12 |
| Mettawa | — | Hawthorn Community Consolidated School District 73 PK–8 · Lincolnshire-Prairieview School District 103 PK–8 · Rondout School District 72 K–8 |
| Lake Bluff | A+ | Lake Bluff Elementary School District 65 PK–8 · Lake Forest Community High School District 115 9–12 |
| Highwood | A | North Shore School District 112 PK–8 · Township High School District 113 9–12 |
| Bannockburn | A+ | Bannockburn School District 106 K–8 · Township High School District 113 9–12 |
| Lincolnshire | A+ | Lincolnshire-Prairieview School District 103 PK–8 · Adlai E. Stevenson High School District 125 9–12 |
2 of the 8 neighbors share Lake Forest Community High School District 115 with Lake Forest for grades 9–12, so their letters differ mainly through the lower grades.
Every school in Lake Forest
5 schools. Each public school’s letter compares its own 2020–21 reading and math results with Illinois’s other public schools (the newest school-level results we have).
Questions about Lake Forest’s schools
Are Lake Forest’s schools good?
By Illinois’s own tests, yes: the public schools Lake Forest children attend outscore 94% of Illinois’s school districts on tests and graduation, an A Schools grade, #29 of 768 Illinois towns. Among towns with similar incomes they beat 60%. Tests are from 2020–21, graduation from the class of 2023.
What school district is Lake Forest in?
Two districts: Lake Forest School District 67 runs grades PK–8, and Lake Forest Community High School District 115 runs grades 9–12, shared with Lake Bluff, North Chicago, Shields and West Deerfield.
Where do Lake Forest kids go to high school?
Lake Forest High School, with 1,359 students; its own test results earn an A+.
What is Lake Forest’s graduation rate?
98% of the class of 2023 in Lake Forest Community High School District 115 graduated in four years, against 88% across Illinois.
How much does Lake Forest spend per student?
$43,306 in Lake Forest Community High School District 115 and $31,053 in Lake Forest School District 67 (FY2024), against $21,567 across Illinois. Spending doesn’t count toward the grade.
Parents talk
What Lake Forest families are saying about school.
Looking for colleges? Colleges near Lake Forest → They have their own page.
School data: state test results (2020–21, with participation) and four-year graduation rates (class of 2023) reported to the U.S. Department of Education (EDFacts via ED Data Express); each school’s own letter uses its 2020–21 results (EDFacts via the Urban Institute); schools and enrollment from NCES (2024–25; private schools 2023–24); spending from the Census Bureau’s school finance survey (FY2024). The School Grade is our own summary, graded within Illinois. Stars are from neighbors.