Garfield Elem School

Garfield Elem School is one of the low-enrollment K-5 schools in Chicago Heights, Illinois, overseen by Chicago Heights SD 170, with 248 students on its rolls from grades K through 5. Enrollment runs roughly 35% leaner than the state mean of about 381.

Garfield Elem School is one of 10 schools operated by Chicago Heights SD 170, a district that caters to 2,674 students overall.

Demographically, Garfield Elem School reports that nearly all students (90%) are Hispanic. Beyond that, the school records 9% Black. The wider county runs roughly 27% Hispanic, putting the school's mix considerably more Hispanic than the area baseline.

On the resource side, The school currently runs with 20 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 12.4:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 13.9:1, putting Garfield Elem School tighter than the state norm the norm. An estimated 98% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Cook County (around 66%), the school's rate is north of typical.

After controlling for student poverty, Garfield Elem School is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 14.7%; this one delivers 29.3%, a residual of +14.6 points.

Across the wider county, the surrounding county (Cook County) shows that the typical household earns roughly $83,498 per year, 43% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. In all, Cook County runs 1406 public schools (combined enrollment of about 697,934 students), of which Garfield Elem School is one.

U S Grant Elem School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.6 miles from this campus. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Garfield Elem School ranks 5th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 32.6%.

Geographically, the school is in a commuter-belt area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Garfield Elem School has edged down 24%, going from 326 students in 2018 to 248 in 2025.

On this page, members of the Garfield Elem School community share and discuss science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.