Bernard J Ward Elem School
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 51 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 42 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Illinois schools, those numbers are about 51 and 38. Reading and writing scores are up about 25 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 29 points.
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyWhat this means: About 37% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 27% typical for Illinois schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Illinois's top nor bottom 10%.
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25About Bernard J Ward Elem School
Bernard J Ward Elem School operates as a medium-sized elementary-level community in Bolingbrook, Illinois, one of the schools within Valley View CUSD 365U. Current enrollment sits at 363 students spanning grades K through 5.
Within Valley View CUSD 365U, which oversees 20 schools and 14,710 students, Bernard J Ward Elem School is one campus in the system.
On demographics, Bernard J Ward Elem School shows that Hispanic students make up the majority at 63%; the rest breaks down as 20% Black, 6% multiracial, 5% Asian, 5% White. By comparison, Will County as a whole is about 20% Hispanic, so the school skews noticeably more Hispanic than its surroundings.
Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 31 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 11.8:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 13.9:1, putting Bernard J Ward Elem School tighter than the state norm the norm. Around 77% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. By comparison, Will County runs at roughly 44%, so the school's eligibility rate is meaningfully above the surrounding baseline.
After controlling for student poverty, Bernard J Ward Elem School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 26.8%; this one delivers 37.5%.
In the surrounding community, the surrounding county (Will County) reports that median household earnings sit near $109,984, roughly 38% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 6%. In all, Will County runs 209 public schools (combined enrollment of about 113,008 students), of which Bernard J Ward Elem School is one.
Nearest neighbor: John R Tibbott Elem School, around 0.9 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 9 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Bernard J Ward Elem School ranks 8th on composite proficiency, behind the local average of 42.2%.
The campus sits in an inner-city setting.
Over the past 7-year window. Bernard J Ward Elem School's enrollment has declined 21% since 2018, when it stood at 459 (now 363). Over the same period, the Hispanic share ticked down from 70% to 63%.
In the discussion threads here, the feed for Bernard J Ward Elem School typically covers open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Will County at a glance
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