Taft High School

6530 West Bryn Mawr Avenue

School District

Chicago Public Schools
Grade

7-12
Teacher/Student Ratio

1:17
Type

public

GreatSchools Rating

The school rating calculation is based on four ratings: the Student Progress Rating or Academic Progress Rating, College Readiness Rating, Equity Rating, and Test Score Rating each designed to show different facets of school success. Learn more about GreatSchools Ratings

Reviews

Submitted by student on October 30, 2024

I’m currently a student attending at Taft and so far my experience has been nothing but terrible mostly due to the fact that bullying is still considered a normal thing and not looked at enough by teacher/staff also security is very lazy and would rather talk to each other in the halls instead of going around the school and catching the kids who do drugs, sexual activities, or skipping classes furthermore the current principal does not do ANYTHING to combat any of these issue’s whatsoever so if your planning on sending your children here to this school DO NOT try and find another public high school for them to attend…
Submitted by parent on October 06, 2024

My son is attending AC at Taft HS, and his experience has been positive overall. Teachers are responsive and supportive to students' needs. Many clubs to choose from and students are encouraged to be creative and share their interests with others.
Submitted by other on July 01, 2024

Great school that consistently prioritizes the well-being of the children by providing a wide range of extracurricular activities and sports.
Submitted by parent on January 23, 2023

Great School, Great Principal, and Great Awesome Teachers.
Submitted by parent on August 29, 2022

Last year I left a good rating because it genuinely WAS a good school. But this year is just not it. The new policies are incredibly disrespectful to students. The teachers have no say in anything. Students are not listened by administration. They close almost all bathrooms, and the bathroom passes they do give are only for specific bathrooms. This is because they don't want us in the bathrooms as much...whatever that means. Taft is a good place for you to understand how messed up the world is, but if you want a silly quirky highschool experience. Go litterally anywhere else. Also the rating on great schools, is old and outdated.
Submitted by parent on April 09, 2022

Taft is the only CPS school to offer 100% of the available sports programs CPS has to offer. Their academics are rigorous. The IB program ( while harder to get into) is a challenging program that is respected by lots of colleges. I’m not sure why their rating is so low. The teachers are exceptional, the extra curriculum programs span a wide net and Taft has a lot to offer academically.
Submitted by student on December 19, 2021

It's extremely difficult to fail. Students are taught respect constantly, staf are really good. Overall 9/10 ,I don't get how this schools rating dropped so low
Submitted by parent on December 01, 2021

Positives: Student and teacher collaborations and relationships are positive. Sports and extra-curricular activities are extra present with wonderful staff and coaches. Students are academically leveled appropriately. Counselors are always present and available. Negatives: Class sizes are way too large. Mostly all teachers are not transparent with regards to curriculum or a scope and sequence of learning. College readiness for testing is lackluster. You are better off getting a tutor for ACT and SAT prep and writing support. IB is program holds no regard for achievement. Your just as good in Honors or AP or dual credit. I recommend dual credit courses in senior year if your child is going to college.
Submitted by parent on June 24, 2020

Taft High School and Taft Freshman Academy are exceptional schools with incredible staff members who really care.
Submitted by parent on August 22, 2018

1/2 the teachers do not give homework. This is high school. There should be homework. There is no help from the counselors for kids with any kind of issues. Now I know why many send their kids to Catholic high schools.
Submitted by parent on November 14, 2017

My son loves it, he feels safe, is learning and participating in school activities feels like home to him
Submitted by other on February 08, 2017

A jewel of the northwest side of Chicago. Taft if a level 1 neighborhood school. It is a realistic option rather than wasting time traveling 10 hours per week to the Select Enrollment schools. The teachers and staff are student centered, dedicated and committed to public education. They offer every sport that CPS offers and each coach stresses the value of sportsmanship. Their teams compete on the national stage and travel the country to give their athletes a college experience. An interesting note is that Taft is the school that the movie GREASE is based on as well as having alumni such as Terry Kath, an original founder of the band CHICAGO. Taft offers an opportunity to receive the world renowned IB diploma but also understands not all students are academic scholars and Tafts curriculum is designed and flexible to meet all students where they are in their academic journey. Last year 98% of the students were accepted to college. Taft is an amazing school.
Submitted by parent on October 07, 2015

My son has attended this school because we have no choice, during this time we have experience stress, anxiety and above all fear due to the way they force students, i have my research to admitted to things they have done. The staff is forcing, unruly students to sign documents that are not even appropriate, they don't have in place a program with extreme special needs, and many times these students are aggressive and hurt other students and make stories and they are believed just because they say so. As a parent and professional I find the atmosphere for learning is contaminated with threats and not facilitating a positive experience for my child. Teachers leave without noticed, the tutors and teachers are always in the rush to leave to their home, and there is no one there who listen,reply to e-mails, we call for staffing with all the staff that relates to our children and nothing happen. I will like to send my son to a better school in Chicago where safety and respect plus learning take place but is a dream Chicago Schools are suffering terrible setbacks and the fault in place in our children. Can they Taft allow parents like me to request an honest conversation with a responsible counselor o social worker not cranky or overly tired to discuss why they don't plan and hold responsible the parents and students that are a threat to the other students, I am ready to take action to have one particular pair of parents and the counselor responsible for the damage they are doing to my child by make the school find resources for one particular young lady that is special needs and attack others, a treatment plan need to be implemented, special transportation ultimately find an therapeutic school for her, so she can receive the need she deserve as well that no endanger others students with her constant acting out.
Submitted by student on August 10, 2015

Taft high school is a great high school, if you attend Ib, AVID,ROTC or the Academic Center. If you do regulars, then your going to have to work really hard to excel in your class. In the good programs that I stated above, kids are respectful to the teachers, do their work and talk once in a while. But in regulars, its chaotic! Im a student at Taft and am a part of IB, but the few regular classes I have are nightmares. Kids swear at the teacher, argue with them, talk as if their outside of school and once in a while, you'll see a few kids using a hookah pen(in class). Now the new principal is doing excellent and the programs their are at a Lane Tech-Northside level, their are some underlying problems here that need to be fixed to reach those levels. First, we have to get rid of the terrible guards here who seem to respect the troublemakers and scream at the kids who are doing nothing wrong. You need your id present when you walk into the lunchroom, but the guards don't even check, they just stare at your face when you walk in. Second problem, the bathrooms here are a mess!! Their are no locks on the stall doors, their is graffiti on the walls and the bathroom overall smells like a sewer(their is also puddles and 2 pieces of toilet paper!) and lastly, we need to discipline some of these kids in regulars. They smoke after school, during school and before school, fight like bulls in the lunchroom and just don't care about their grade. We need to stop caring for these individuals because they don't care about grades, they care about how "dope is cool" and "swag is for life", and meanwhile we employ excellent teachers to teach these fools who'd rather skip school than learn. But overall, Taft is an amazing school with a great science program, theater program and music program. makes sure though to enter a academic program than regulars cause you'll find yourself unchallenged in regulars.
Submitted by student on May 02, 2015

I'm currently an 8th grader in the academic center and my experience has been amazing. I wanted to go to Lane for middle school but didn't get in but Taft is honestly a gem in comparison. We are balanced in academics, athletics, and socializing. I took 2 Honors high school classes as a seventh grader and now 5 as an eight grader. I had such an amazing experience these two years & it's definitely worth it to go here. I feel so prepared for high school. When I got here I realized I wasn't in the top 50 of my grade and with the help of everyone now I'm going to Northside College Prep for high school. Taft has the key to success it just depends how much work you put in. By the way our high school acceptances are great: almost ten of us are going to northside, around 5 to Whitney, over ten to jones, one to Payton, a lot to lane, and a lot are staying at Taft for IB.
Submitted by parent on April 02, 2015

My daughter is in the 7th grade Academic Center at Taft. She LOVES it. The teachers and counselors are outstanding. The new principal and assistant principal are very responsive to the concerns of the community and very proactive in engaging the students. I would highly recommend any parent sending their child to Taft for both the Academic Center program or the high school program. There are great things happening at this outstanding neighborhood school.
Submitted by other on September 28, 2014

As an alumnus from Taft High School (Class Of 1971), I have returned to help my Alma Mater. I truly believe that all alumni should pay it forward and thus help the young people succeed in this world. When I attended Taft, I was involved in Junior Achievement and learned how to be a successful business person. Today I talk to various clubs at Taft and point the way so that they can achieve a bright future. I have organized many tribute concerts for Terry Kath, co-founder of the band, Chicago who graduated Taft in 1964. I have also witnessed many students who have become academically sound because their parents have become very involved in their education. The new Principal, Mr. Mark Grishaber has been very creative in reaching out to the entire student body and insisting that each student be on time every day of the school year. I know that he will be successful in returning Taft to its former status, the greatest neighborhood school in the City of Chicago. Every school has its problems. If students work together with the Administration, I firmly believe that Taft will be considered a class high school and will change for the better.
Submitted by other on August 27, 2014

SO BAD! Don't send your kids there! I hate it so much! I graduated from 8th grade there a few months ago and was accepted into a SEHS. The Academic Center is great for preparing you for high school but the teachers are mostly horrible and is in a nighborhood high school environment. Taft is my neighborhood high school but I would never consider going there. There are drugs and smoking in the bathroom and the resources are limited and very old. It does not deserve an 8 out of 10. Look at the test scores. No, not the ISATs that the middle schoolers made, but the PSAE testing. The security is so bad and lax. The new stand-in principal is distant and doesn't care. The teachers are either way too old or young.One time I spent an entire lunch period pushing around a garbage can because I was wearing a NAVY BLUE HOODIE. It was my first week as a 7th grader! Some of the highschoolers will bully you and pressure you into things. Also, straight A's there are too easy to achieve and honors and regulars are pretty much the same. IB is okay.There were some dumb kids there. The highest GPA there last year was only about a 5.2..Less than the average of a school like NCP or Payton. Eh Bad memories
Submitted by teacher on June 24, 2014

William Howard Taft High School is one of the secret jewels of the Chicago Public Schools. One of the reasons so many parents want their children to attend. The IB program is wonderful.
Submitted by other on May 20, 2014

I'm gonna have to keep it short because there is a limit for how many characters I put for this review. Here it is: The Positive: -Challenging subjects -Teachers that care for your education -Loads of extracurricular activities and opportunities -A good uniform code that makes students fell more comfortable The Negative: -Smoking in the bathrooms -A lack in variety on foods -Most students are pretentious jerks -Security guards aren't really doing their jobs -Loitering all over the place Verdict: Taft is a mediocre school at best. It could've improved on a lot of aspects this school has. This is just my opinion.