North Prairie Jr High

Set in Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, North Prairie Jr High is a tight-knit middle school, overseen by Winthrop Harbor SD 1. It enrolls 240 students across grades 5 through 8. Compared to the state average of about 462 students per school, that is 48% smaller than typical.

Within Winthrop Harbor SD 1, which oversees 2 schools and 586 students, North Prairie Jr High is one campus in the system.

For racial and ethnic makeup, North Prairie Jr High logs that the largest single group is White at 50%, but no single group is in the majority. Beyond that, the school reports 31% Hispanic, 10% Black, 6% multiracial, 3% Asian. The wider county runs roughly 61% White, putting the school's mix noticeably less White than the area baseline.

Looking at the economic backdrop, The school lists 24 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 10.0:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.0:1 average. An estimated 55% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, North Prairie Jr High performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 40.0%, the actual is 51.2%, a residual of +11.2 points.

In the surrounding community, the surrounding county (Lake County) records that the typical household earns roughly $110,416 per year, 48% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 6%. North Prairie Jr High is one of 214 public schools in Lake County (combined enrollment of about 118,032 students).

The closest other public school is Westfield School, roughly 0.6 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 7 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), North Prairie Jr High ranks 1st on composite proficiency, higher than the local average of 20.2%.

The school occupies a commuter-belt site.

Looking at the recent track record. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at North Prairie Jr High has contracted 7%, going from 259 students in 2018 to 240 in 2025. Over the same period, the White share ticked down from 60% to 50%. Class-load math has pulled in: from 12.9:1 in 2018 to 10.0:1 in 2025.

On this page, members of the North Prairie Jr High community share and discuss enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. The community welcomes input from current and former families.