Taft High School

What Taft High School does

Taft High School is a public neighborhood high school operated by Chicago Public Schools (CPS) at 6530 West Bryn Mawr Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, serving grades 7–12 with a total enrollment of approximately 4,440 students across two campuses — a Varsity Campus for grades 10–12 and a separate Freshman Academy at 4071 North Oak Park Avenue for incoming 9th-grade students. Founded in 1939, Taft is an authorized International Baccalaureate (IB) World School delivering the IB Diploma Programme, IB Middle Years Programme, and IB Career-related Programme to all students, alongside Advanced Placement courses, Career & Technical Education, an Academic Center for gifted learners, AVID college-readiness programming, NJROTC, and the SOAR program. Support infrastructure includes a Tutoring Center, an Eagle Mentors program, 70+ student clubs, and 34 varsity sports teams.

The school's underlying technology stack is operational rather than productized: gradebook, scheduling, and student records run on the district-wide Aspen Student Information System; admissions flow through the GoCPS centralized enrollment portal; and a free Taft HS mobile app on iOS and Android provides families with grades, news, athletic scores, and teacher contacts. Digital learning resources are sourced from the CPS Digital Resources Library and CPS eBooks platform. Outreach and engagement are executed through a multi-channel footprint — official Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram accounts, the school website, an annual Taft Night Out community event, and live YouTube streaming of athletic contests.

Taft's business model is that of a publicly funded government entity: no tuition is charged, primary funding flows from CPS district budgets and Illinois public education appropriations, and ancillary revenue is limited to optional program fees, transcript fees, the Friends of Taft donor organization, and a Taft-branded school store. Performance signals include 91% of freshmen on track, 90% of students drawn from the surrounding Norwood Park neighborhood, a student body speaking 55 languages, and sustained recognition including seven consecutive years on the U.S. News Best High Schools list, multiple CPL athletic championships, and $695,650 in Visual Art scholarship offers.

Name

Taft High School

Legal name

Taft High School

Website

https://tafthighschool.org

Company type

Public

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Taft High School is a public Chicago Public Schools institution serving approximately 4,440 students in grades 7–12 across a Varsity Campus and a Freshman Academy, operating as an IB World School that delivers IB Diploma, Middle Years, and Career-related Programmes alongside AP, CTE, and NJROTC offerings at no tuition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Secondary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

akta.pro primary industry

Public High Schools (EDAJAAAD)

Keywords

• Secondary education
• Public high school
• IB World School
• College preparatory
• Chicago Public Schools

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Taft High School is a public secondary school operated by Chicago Public Schools. It is an authorized IB World School delivering the International Baccalaureate programme alongside a standard high school curriculum to students in the Chicago area. The school provides college-preparatory instruction and is governed as part of the Chicago Public Schools district.

Product overview

Taft High School is an IB World School offering a comprehensive educational portfolio centered around three International Baccalaureate programs (Diploma, Middle Years, and Career-related Programmes) alongside Advanced Placement courses. The school operates two campuses - a Freshman Academy for 9th graders and a Varsity Campus for grades 10-12. Academic support is provided through AVID college-readiness programming, an Academic Center for gifted learners, Career and Technical Education, NJROTC military education, a Tutoring Center, and over 70 extracurricular clubs. The school also offers a free mobile application for iOS and Android devices, enabling parents and students to access grades, news, athletics updates, and communicate with teachers. With 4,440 students across grades 7-12, Taft competes in 34 varsity sports and has been recognized on the US News Best High Schools list for seven consecutive years.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• International Baccalaureate (IB) Programme IB World School academic programme offering college-preparatory coursework for high school students in the Chicago area.
• Standard High School Curriculum Standard public high school academic curriculum delivered to enrolled students in compliance with Chicago Public Schools and Illinois state standards.

Quantifiable outcome

• 91% of freshmen on track for graduation
• +2 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Naval Base Great LakesminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 December 2025Taft NJROTC cadets visited Great Lakes Naval Base on December 18th, 2025, attending recruit graduation and touring facilities. The Under Secretary of the United States Navy was guest speaker.
• Chicago Public Schools (CPS)coreOthersTaft High School is part of the Chicago Public Schools district, operating under district policies, curricula standards, and enrollment systems.
• International Baccalaureate (IB) OrganizationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTaft is an authorized IB World School offering the Diploma Programme, Career-related Programme, and Middle Years Programme to all students.
• Chicago BearsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerChicago Bears sponsor Taft's Girls Flag Football Summer League, with the school hosting games and participating in league activities.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Northside College Preparatory High School: Highly ranked CPS selective-enrollment high school offering IB programmes; competes directly with Taft for academically oriented Chicago families through GoCPS.
• Lane Tech College Prep High School: Another large CPS selective-enrollment high school with IB and Advanced Placement programs serving a comparable urban Chicago student body at similar scale; directly competes for GoCPS applicants seeking rigorous college-prep curricula.
• Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center: CPS high school with science/STEM specialization and similar size to Taft; comparable urban public-school context and competitive GoCPS overlap.
• Lincoln Park High School: CPS neighborhood high school with IB authorization; comparable public-school operating model and academic profile within the same district.
• Jones College Prep High School: CPS selective-enrollment high school in downtown Chicago offering IB and AP coursework; directly competes for the same GoCPS applicant pool as Taft.
• Walter Payton College Prep High School: Elite CPS selective-enrollment high school and consistent US News top-ranked Illinois school; competes head-to-head with Taft for high-achieving Chicago students through GoCPS.
• Whitney M. Young Magnet High School: CPS magnet high school with IB and AP programs; comparable in academic programming and GoCPS enrollment competition, located in Chicago's Near West Side.
• Phoenix Military Academy: CPS high school with a military/NJROTC-led model comparable to Taft's NJROTC program; similar public-school operating context within CPS.
• Brooks College Preparatory Academy: CPS college-prep high school on Chicago's South Side with similar academic program breadth; comparable urban public-school context.
• Lindblom Math and Science Academy: CPS selective-enrollment high school with specialized STEM focus and IB programmes; directly comparable academic positioning.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/taft_hs
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCj_tNTA9Fu4GYoKTb4Rl-Rg/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/tafthighschoolchicago
• Instagraminstagram.com/tafthighschoolchicago

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Taft High School