The CPS Annual Regional Analysis (ARA) is a collection of reports designed to inform conversations with communities to address the question - what school options do families and communities need?
The purpose of the ARA is to support CPS’s goal to provide every student with a high-quality education in every neighborhood. These reports aim to ensure that every student in Chicago has access to quality public schools and a variety of programs.
The reports present CPS data in one place, without making recommendations or suggestions for action. They give stakeholders consistent information about school quality, enrollment patterns, school choice, and program offerings by region.
Structure & Organization
The ARA consists of a district report and 16 regional reports. The City of Chicago Department of Planning and Development created boundaries for regions based on housing and employment research. Natural borders such as rivers and train lines divide each region. These borders are likely considerations for families when selecting a school. The ARA uses these regions as they are more consistent than city wards or school networks.
The ARA includes all CPS schools, including traditional neighborhood schools, Charter schools, Selective Enrollment, Magnet, Special Education Specialty, and Options High Schools.
Maps
Region Map
The Greater Midway region's boundaries are, generally, West 51st Street, the Stevenson Expressway, and the CTA’s Orange Line to the north; West Columbus Avenue, the BNSF Central Railroad tracks, and Metra’s SouthWest Service Line tracks to the east; and the city’s border with suburban Hometown, Burbank, Bedford Park, and Summit on the south and west.
It consists primarily of seven community areas – Archer Heights, Chicago Lawn, Clearing, Gage Park, Garfield Ridge, West Elsdon, and West Lawn and includes a portion of Ashburn. The region contains medium to low-density residential areas and Midway Airport, for which it is named.
It contains parts of 9 wards, 12 neighborhoods, and 12 community areas. It is served by 4 CTA train stops and 2 Metra stops.
* Denotes Options/alternative or special education specialty school
School Type
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
HIGH SCHOOL
Racial/Ethnic Composition
In the Greater Midway region over the last four years, the number of students who identify as Latinx has increased.
In the region's student population over the last four years, the majority of students identify as Latinx, with the percent of students identifying as Latinx increasing from 84% to 86%, while the percentage of students identifying as Black decreased from 11% to 10%.
The majority of the students in the Greater Midway region identify as Latinx with the southeast portion near the South Side region being primarily students that identify as Black.
Race/Ethnicity Composition Over Time
Race/Ethnicity Composition Over Time
NOTE: This map combines the racial/ethnic identity of students who live in each area (hexagon) of the region. The design of this map protects individual student’s identities while displaying the distribution of race/ethnicity and student density in the region.
The legend shows how the colors associated with each racial/ethnic identity blend together. Areas (hexagons) that show more of one color than another have a higher density of that racial/ethnic identity. Areas with no distinct color are more diverse.
Free and Reduced Lunch Rates
In the past four years, the percentage of students qualifying for Free and Reduced Lunch (FRL) has increased from 69% to 79%. The percentage of students qualifying for FRL in the region remains higher than the overall district percentage of 71%. 1, 2
The Greater Midway region primarily includes areas with low to medium household income with some areas with higher median income in the western and southern portions of the region.3
Free and Reduced Lunch Rate Over Time
Free and Reduced Lunch Rate Over Time
MEDIAN HOUSEHOLD INCOME
1Before 2015, CPS relied on the Nutrition Services department to administer, communicate, and collect the FRL forms. When the federal lunch program was expanded to all students, CPS needed to administer a separate “Fee Waiver Form” that replaced the FRL form. As fee waivers continue to be collected throughout the school year, the percentage of qualifying students increases.
2FRL data is from the 20th day of each school year. Data from school years 2020-21 and 2021-22 was impacted in part by the COVID-19 global pandemic and the ability to administer and collect FRL forms during remote learning.
3The Median Household Income map uses data that the U.S. Census collects annually from all of the households in a given area (census tract). The median income is the midpoint, where 50% of households in the area have incomes higher than this point, and 50% have incomes lower than this point. The median provides a fair representation of income without being influenced by extreme values, such as households reporting no income or those with income much higher than their neighbors.
The income categories used in the Median Household Income map and shown in the map legend reflect the use of “natural breaks.” Natural breaks create groupings of similar data points and divide groups where the data points are the least similar. This method balances the number of values in each group so that one group is not over or underrepresented. By using natural breaks, the income groups should more accurately reflect how Chicagoans view different income levels.