Washington-McKinley Elem Sch

Set in Chicago Heights, Illinois, Washington-McKinley Elem Sch is a tight-knit K-5 school, run under Chicago Heights SD 170. It educates 286 students across grades pre-K through 5. That puts it 25% leaner than the typical public school in Illinois, which averages around 381 students.

Chicago Heights SD 170 runs 10 schools in total, collectively educating 2,674 students. Washington-McKinley Elem Sch is one of those campuses.

Looking at the student body, Washington-McKinley Elem Sch logs that 67% of the student body identifies as Hispanic. The remainder consists of 29% Black, 4% White. By comparison, Cook County as a whole is about 27% Hispanic, so the school skews meaningfully more Hispanic than its surroundings.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, Washington-McKinley Elem Sch has 25 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 11.4:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.9:1 average. An estimated 98% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is above Cook County's rate of about 66%.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Washington-McKinley Elem Sch ranks in the top 10% of Illinois public schools. The BeatsExpectations model, a per-state regression of composite proficiency on FRL share, predicts schools with this student profile to land around 14.8%; Washington-McKinley Elem Sch posts 28.6%, +13.8 points above that line.

Around the school, census data for Cook County shows median household income runs about $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. In all, Cook County runs 1406 public schools (combined enrollment of about 697,934 students), of which Washington-McKinley Elem Sch is one.

The closest other public school is Lincoln Elem School, roughly 0.6 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Washington-McKinley Elem Sch at 6th of 9; the average score across the group is 31.1%.

The campus sits in a suburban setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count edged down 53%: 615 students in 2018 compared to 286 in 2025. Class-load math has grew: from 9.5:1 in 2018 to 11.4:1 in 2025.

On this page, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Members of the school community can share what they know.