Enrollment
263
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Joliet, IL
Forest Park Individual Ed School
Federal NCES profile for Forest Park Individual Ed School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 35/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 172058002332
👥 S:T ratio 30
🌟 Gifted program 30
📋 Attendance 44
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Forest Park Individual Ed School earns 35/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 89% of Illinois schools.
- #9 of 20
- elementary schools in Joliet · Resource Index
- 35
- Resource Index · Typical
- 17.5:1
- large classes for Illinois
- 263
- students enrolled
Forest Park Individual Ed School has class sizes larger than 89% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Forest Park Individual Ed School ranks #9 of 20 elementary schools in Joliet, IL.
School address
District: Joliet Psd 86 · Illinois
NCES ID 172058002332 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
15.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
17.5:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
+25% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Forest Park Individual Ed School compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Forest Park Individual Ed School
Teacher staffing is the clearest operational constraint
Forest Park Individual Ed School's enrollment sits away from the most extreme size bands, but its reported student-teacher ratio is heavier than most Illinois schools. That isolates staffing load as a more useful concern than raw campus size. A high ratio does not establish weak teaching or outcomes, yet it can indicate less adult capacity per enrolled student. The remaining federal indicators show whether support staffing and program access offset that pressure.
No single support indicator dominates
Forest Park Individual Ed School's available federal support indicators do not reveal an extreme in advanced-course access, specialist staffing, chronic absence, or IDEA enrollment. The most responsible reading is therefore component by component rather than a sweeping verdict: current counseling availability, health support, program schedules, and attendance policy still warrant direct confirmation. Missing or middle-range federal fields are not evidence that services are either strong or weak.
Forest Park Individual Ed School is a mid-sized elementary school in Joliet, Illinois, enrolling 263 students.
Class loads run heavy: 17.5:1 is larger than about 89% of Illinois schools and 25% above the 14:1 state mean, so each teacher carries more students than is typical.
Enrollment of 263 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (81% of enrollment) (diversity index 33/100).
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 22.4% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
The surrounding Joliet Psd 86 spends $22,414 per pupil, 23% above the Illinois average, a better-resourced district than most.
Among Joliet's elementary schools, it stands alongside Thomas Jefferson Elem Sch (646 students): Forest Park Individual Ed School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs heavier classes (17.5:1 vs 15.8:1).
Joliet Psd 86 also operates Hufford Junior High School (1,072 students) and Washington Jr High & Academy Prgm (724 students) alongside Forest Park Individual Ed School.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Forest Park Individual Ed School compares
Forest Park Individual Ed School on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 17.5:1 | ▲ 25% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 263 | top 71% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
17.5:1
Leaner classes than 27% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
263
Bigger than 27% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
17.5:1
students per teacher
- 25% above state mean
Top 89% in Illinois - lower ratio than 11% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
22.4%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$22,414
per pupil, district-wide
- above Illinois avg of $18,196
Well above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting substantially higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 81.0%
African American 9.1%
White 8.0%
Two or More 1.9%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 81.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 32.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 32.9, Forest Park Individual Ed School is less mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Joliet Psd 86, which includes Forest Park Individual Ed School.
$22,414
Per student
+23%
vs Illinois
Avg $18,196
+27%
vs U.S.
Avg $17,658
Revenue mix
Local 24.4%
State 63.0%
Federal 12.5%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2022-23 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Forest Park Individual Ed School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hufford Junior High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Washington Jr High & Academy Prgm | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Dirksen Junior High School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Sator Sanchez Elem School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Pershing Elem School | Larger | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Forest Park Individual Ed School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,072
- Students per teacher
- 14.7:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
- Enrollment
- 724
- Students per teacher
- 13.2:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 653
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 19/100
- Enrollment
- 635
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 19/100
- Enrollment
- 621
- Students per teacher
- 20:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
Similar elementary schools in Joliet
6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Thomas Jefferson Elem Sch
Standard public school
646 students 15.8:1 students per teacher
Sator Sanchez Elem School
Standard public school
635 students 14.4:1 students per teacher
Pershing Elem School
Standard public school
621 students 20:1 students per teacher
Lynne Thigpen Elem School
Standard public school
620 students 16.8:1 students per teacher
Farragut Elem School
Standard public school
568 students 18.3:1 students per teacher
Jones Elementary School
Standard public school
553 students 15.4:1 students per teacher
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Illinois, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~263 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~17.5:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Forest Park Individual Ed School's federal record.
- Compare Forest Park Individual Ed School against another school. Compare schools
- Joliet Psd 86's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Forest Park Individual Ed School
How many students attend Forest Park Individual Ed School?
Forest Park Individual Ed School has 263 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Joliet, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Forest Park Individual Ed School?
The student-teacher ratio at Forest Park Individual Ed School is 17.5:1, which is 25% higher than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 11% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Forest Park Individual Ed School?
The largest demographic group at Forest Park Individual Ed School is Hispanic or Latino at 81.0% of enrollment, in Joliet, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Forest Park Individual Ed School?
Forest Park Individual Ed School has a Resource Investment Index of 35/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, gifted-program reporting, chronic absenteeism. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Forest Park Individual Ed School rank among elementary schools in Joliet?
By Resource Investment Index, Forest Park Individual Ed School ranks #9 of 20 elementary schools in Joliet, IL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Joliet on the city page.
What other schools are in Joliet Psd 86?
Besides Forest Park Individual Ed School, Joliet Psd 86 also operates Hufford Junior High School (1,072 students), Washington Jr High & Academy Prgm (724 students), and Dirksen Junior High School (653 students). See the Joliet Psd 86 district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, the data changelog, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.