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What's one thing Dunbar Vocational Career Acad HS gets right about preparing students for what comes next?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
355
High
DISTRICT 706 · STATE 834
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOLS DIST 299·NCES 170993000588
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School
3000 S King Dr, Chicago, IL 60616 · (773) 534-9000 · Cook County
GRADES 09–12HIGH11-CITYTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL355 STUDENTS
D
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 9% of Illinois public high schools
- FTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Illinois public high schools
Student : Teacher
11.4:1
31 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.4:1 · STATE 13.8:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
97%
344 students
DISTRICT 78% · STATE 56%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 9 | 89 | 25% |
| Grade 10 | 78 | 22% |
| Grade 11 | 88 | 25% |
| Grade 12 | 100 | 28% |
Student demographics
8%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 64% · STATE 69% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
4.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
15.6%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-11.5pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 4% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 16% 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%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School's state test result (4.1% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School this school | 355 | 96.9% | 4.1% |
| Perspectives Chtr - HS of Tech Chicago | 320 | 95.0% | 9.3% |
| North Lawndale Prep Chtr-Collins Chicago | 276 | 94.9% | 4.6% |
| Perspectives Chtr - IIT Campus Chicago | 413 | 93.2% | 10.3% |
| Perspectives Chtr - Joslin Campus Chicago | 313 | 93.0% | 19.1% |
| North Lawndale Prep Chtr - Christ Chicago | 258 | 99.2% | 4.4% |
Matched among Illinois high schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Illinois | In Cook County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 4.1% | #556 of 573 | #153 of 170 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 355 | #404 of 708 | #153 of 206 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 11.4:1 | #70 of 528 | #18 of 173 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 7.6% | #509 of 537 | #158 of 180 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 96.9% | #14 of 578 | #8 of 171 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -19.1% | #61 of 358 | #34 of 101 |
Ranked against other public high schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
355
-46 (-11%) vs 2020
-83% since 1990-91, when it was 2,146
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 355 | 31.3 | 11.4:1 | 97% (344) |
| 2023-24 | 397 | 37 | 10.7:1 | 84% (335) |
| 2022-23 | 511 | 36.5 | 14.0:1 | 89% (453) |
| 2020-21 | 401 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 439 | 28.3 | 15.5:1 | 100% (437) |
| 2015-16 | 737 | 50 | 14.7:1 | 98% (723) |
| 2010-11 | 1,530 | 85 | 18.0:1 | 92% (1,410) |
| 2000-01 | 1,816 | 114 | 15.9:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 2,146 | 140 | 15.3:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School.
Since 2017-18: students down 19% (439 to 355); teachers up 10% (28.3 to 31.3).
About Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School
A low-enrollment high school in Chicago, Illinois, Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is part of Chicago Public Schools Dist 299. Students in grades 9 through 12 attend, and enrollment is 355 students. The typical figure for high schools in Illinois is about 834 students.
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is part of Chicago Public Schools Dist 299, where 622 schools serve 324,396 students.
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School enrolls a student body that is 96% Black. After that, the student body is 3% Hispanic. Census figures show Cook County is about 22% Black. The chance that two students picked at random at Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 8%.
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School's 31.3 full-time-equivalent teachers put its ratio at 11.4:1. That ratio is under the 13.8:1 average for high schools in Illinois. The school's rate of free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is 97%. The 66% average for public schools in Cook County is 31 points lower.
allk12 grades Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School a D. The grade compares the school only with Illinois public high schools, because each state gives its own test.
Given its share of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School would be expected to post about 15.6%. Its actual average proficiency rate on state tests is 4.1%.
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is located in Cook County, where median household income is about $83,498, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 43%, and about 10% of people live in poverty. Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is one of 1,406 public schools in Cook County, which together enroll about 697,934 students.
Of nearby public schools, John J Pershing Magnet Elementary is the closest, at about 0.2 miles. The count of other public schools within five miles is at least 8. In a group of 9 nearby schools with scores, Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School ranks 8th on average proficiency.
The school's federal locale classification is City: Large.
Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, the student count dropped from 401 to 355.
Threads on this page can be about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Alumni can share how the school prepared them.
Cook County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
5,182,090
Census ACS
Median income
$83,498
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
43%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
1,406
697,934 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Chicago Public Schools Dist 299
- Lane Technical High SchoolHigh · 4,604 students
- Taft High SchoolHigh · 4,487 students
- Curie Metropolitan High SchoolHigh · 3,099 students
- Kenwood Academy High SchoolHigh · 2,268 students
- Young Magnet High SchoolHigh · 2,223 students
- Lincoln Park High SchoolHigh · 2,214 students
Other schools in Chicago
- Lane Technical High SchoolHigh · 4,604 students
- Taft High SchoolHigh · 4,487 students
- Curie Metropolitan High SchoolHigh · 3,099 students
- Kenwood Academy High SchoolHigh · 2,268 students
- Young Magnet High SchoolHigh · 2,223 students
- Lincoln Park High SchoolHigh · 2,214 students
Nearby schools
- John J Pershing Magnet Elementary0.2 mi · 439
- YCCS-McKinley-Lakeside Leadership0.4 mi · 103
- Drake Elementary School0.6 mi · 302
- Chicago Military Academy High School0.6 mi · 209
- Urban Prep Chtr Bronzeville High School0.7 mi · 148
- James R Doolittle Academy0.7 mi · 257
Frequently asked questions
About Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High SchoolHow large is Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School?
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School enrolls approximately 355 students in grades 09-12.
Is Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many students per teacher at Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School?
Approximately 11.4:1 students per teacher at Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School.
How diverse is Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School?
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School reports a student body of 1% White, 3% Hispanic, 96% Black, 0% Asian, 0% Two or more.
Is Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School public or private?
Dunbar Vocational Career Academy High School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Chicago Public Schools Dist 299.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.