About Our School

Welcome to Oak Park and River Forest High School! We are a comprehensive public high school located in Oak Park, Ill., a suburb eight miles due west of downtown Chicago. We are a one-school district, with the majority of our students coming from two sender districts, River Forest Public Schools District 90 and Oak Park Elementary School District 97.

We offer more than 200 courses, a variety of programs for students with special needs, 90 clubs and activities, and 29 competitive sports. We prepare our students well for post-secondary success, with an average ACT composite score of 24 and a 94% graduation rate.

Oak Park and River Forest are communities that highly value diversity. OPRFHS is a founding member of the national Minority Student Achievement Network, and our school is racially diverse. We are economically diverse as well, with a significant mix of homeowners and renters. Our villages have also long embraced the LGBTQ community. 

We seek faculty and staff who have high expectations for all students, and who value student voice in education. As a school, we are particularly focused on closing opportunity gaps for our students of color. 

2025-2026 Top Accolades

• Ranked by annual "U.S. News & World Report Best High Schools" as 24th in Illinois and 540th in the nation, putting OPRF in the top 3% of public high schools, both statewide and nationally. (Fall 2026)
• Ranked as sixth best public high school in suburban Cook County by "Chicago" magazine. (September 2026)

Academics

• Jaelyn Hammersley earned a fourth-place award at the 2026 Regeneron International Science and Engineering Fair, the world’s largest and most prestigious international high school science and engineering competition. 
• Keaton Roberts took first place in Biology/Microbiology at the national Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, and Scientific (or ACT-SO) Olympics.
• Shelia Hardin was named top high school math teacher in the state by the Illinois Council of Teachers of Mathematics.
• In OPRF’s first graduating group from the Advanced Placement (AP) Capstone program, 17 Huskies earned the prestigious AP Capstone Diploma.
• Roughly 25% of the Class of 2026 graduates were named as State Scholar Program finalists, compared to approximately 10% of graduating seniors across Illinois.
• English teacher Rex Ovalle, member of the Executive Committee of the National Council of Teachers of English, co-authored the guidebook Artificial Intelligence English Language Arts Framework for ELA Teachers in Grades 6–12. 

Activities

• Speech Club sponsor Patt Cheney and the OPRF Speech Team earned Charter Status in the National Speech & Debate Association, the group’s highest honor given to high schools.
• Gayatri Gadhvi was a regional winner of the English-Speaking Union’s National Shakespeare Competition.
• DECA/Business Club members Seth Osta, Kirin Pauline, and Genevieve Stevens earned first place finishes at the state competition, the largest in Illinois DECA history.
• The OPRF Best Buddies Club earned High School Chapter of the Year from Best Buddies Illinois.  
• Rowan Neville and Ellie Shea were inducted into the Chicago Shakespeare Teen Slam Hall of Fame that same evening. 

Arts

• English Division Head Ericka Eckart published a book of poems, The Mothers.
• 25 Huskies were selected to perform at the All-State Concerts during the annual Illinois Music Educators Association, a school record. In addition, the 22-member Jazz Ensemble earned the prestigious honor of performing as a feature at the conference. 
• Students Will Reinholdt, Braden Estanilla, Jamie Kaegi, and Mena Marie Ollins and Theatre Department Chair Michelle Bayer were selected for the All-State production of Newsies at the 50th Annual Illinois High School Theatre Festival. 
• Theatre Department Chair Michelle Bayer was named the 2028 Illinois High School Theatre Festival Executive Director. 
• Nolan Maddox earned runner-up for best performance in an actor role for his work in RENT: School Edition at the 15th Annual Illinois High School Musical Theatre Awards, qualifying him for the National High School Musical Theatre Jimmy Awards. 
• Matthew Bell had his brand 14th Pharaoh Apparel featured in a runway show during Chicago Fashion Week. 

Athletics

• Jamiel Castleberry won the boys individual state wrestling championship at 126 pounds, while MJ Rundell and David Ogunsanya earned 3rd  in their respective weight classes 
• Boys Volleyball won second place at state, the team’s best finish since 1998.
• Julia Henderson was selected for the Illinois All-State Flag Football Team, placing her among the top 0.1% of high school flag football players in the state.

Governance

• The Business Office received the Association of School Business Officials International’s Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting for the district’s fiscal year Annual Comprehensive Financial Report.
• The District 200 Board of Education earned the School Board Governance Recognition from the Illinois Association of School Boards.