Brownell Elem School

Brownell Elem School is one of the close-knit elementary campuss in Chicago, Illinois, one of the schools within Chicago Public Schools Dist 299, with 165 students on its rolls from grades pre-K through 6. Enrollment runs roughly 57% below the state mean of about 381.

Chicago Public Schools Dist 299 runs 622 schools in total, collectively educating 324,396 students. Brownell Elem School is one of those campuses.

On the student-mix side, Brownell Elem School lists that nearly all students (90%) are Black. Beyond that, the school shows 8% Hispanic. That is considerably more Black than the county at large, where the share is closer to 22%.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 13 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.7:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 13.9:1, putting Brownell Elem School tighter than the state norm the norm. Around 85% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Cook County (around 66%), the school's rate is somewhat above typical.

After controlling for student poverty, Brownell Elem School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 22.2%; this one delivers 20.3%.

In the area at large, ACS estimates for Cook County put median household earnings sit near $83,498, roughly 43% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 10% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Cook County's 1406 public schools (combined enrollment of about 697,934 students), Brownell Elem School is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is YCCS-Progressive Leadership Acad, roughly 0.3 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Brownell Elem School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Brownell Elem School at 3rd of 9; the average score across the group is 12.2%.

Brownell Elem School operates from a metropolitan location.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count contracted 23%: 213 students in 2018 compared to 165 in 2025. Black enrollment moved from 98% to 90% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 25.1:1 in 2018 to 12.7:1 today.

On the community side, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.