St. Rita of Cascia High School
K-12 School in Chicago, IL · 7740 South Western Avenue · 60620
At a glance
St. Rita of Cascia High School is a 276,408-square-foot K-12 school at 7740 South Western Avenue in Chicago, Illinois, built in 1960. In its 2023 Chicago benchmarking disclosure it reported an ENERGY STAR score of 75 out of 100 (grade B), a site energy-use intensity of 62.8 kBtu/ft² and 1,318 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions. That score is higher than 86% of the 365 scored K-12 school buildings in Chicago.
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance · reporting year 2023
Benchmarking record
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| ENERGY STAR score | 75 (band B) |
| Site EUI | 62.8 kBtu/ft² |
| Source EUI | 94.8 kBtu/ft² |
| GHG emissions | 1,318 tCO₂e |
| GHG intensity | 4.8 kgCO₂e/ft² |
| Electricity | 1,338,658 kWh |
| Natural gas | 127,864 therms |
| Gross floor area | 276,408 sq ft |
| Source record | chicago:100396:2023 |
The disclosure history
Year over year
| Year | Score | Δ | Site EUI | GHG emissions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023latest | 75 | +3 | 62.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,318 tCO₂e |
| 2022 | 72 | +3 | 71.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,431 tCO₂e |
| 2021 | 69 | -8 | 70.5 kBtu/ft² | 1,495 tCO₂e |
| 2020 | 77 | +11 | 65.7 kBtu/ft² | 1,420 tCO₂e |
| 2019 | 66 | +1 | 76.5 kBtu/ft² | — |
| 2018 | 65 | -15 | 77.3 kBtu/ft² | 1,729 tCO₂e |
| 2017 | 80 | +1 | 75.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,759 tCO₂e |
| 2016 | 79 | +6 | 75.8 kBtu/ft² | 1,731 tCO₂e |
| 2015 | 73 | +5 | 78.6 kBtu/ft² | 1,911 tCO₂e |
| 2014 | 68 | 84.0 kBtu/ft² | 2,010 tCO₂e |
Compliance context
Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
Ownership
No owning organisation shown. Names of private individuals in the disclosure are not published here.
Own or manage this building? Claim it to correct the record and get compliance alerts.
Location
- Address
- 7740 South Western Avenue
- City
- Chicago
- State
- Illinois
- ZIP
- 60620
- Coordinates
- 41.92317, -87.69912
Within ~1 km
Nearby benchmarked buildings
- 500 N Michiganscore —
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- Lincoln Park HSscore 73
K-12 School · 341,821 sq ft
- Viridian on Sheridan (vr033)score 67
Multifamily Housing · 103,665 sq ft
- Lyndale Placescore 98
Multifamily Housing · 83,620 sq ft
Other · 75,940 sq ft
Office · 72,340 sq ft
See also: most efficient in Chicago · biggest emitters
How does St. Rita of Cascia High School compare with other K-12 school buildings in Chicago?
The latest disclosures cover 543 K-12 school buildings in Chicago, out of 3,852 buildings citywide. St. Rita of Cascia High School's ENERGY STAR score of 75 compares with an average of 45 across the 365 that report a score; it scores higher than 86% of them and lower than 13%. Its site EUI of 62.8 kBtu/ft² is about 14% below the average of 72.7 kBtu/ft² — it uses less energy per square foot than the typical building in that group. Its emissions intensity of 4.8 kgCO₂e/ft² is about 23% below the group average of 6.2 kgCO₂e/ft².
At 276,408 sq ft, it is about 127% above the average floor area of 121,824 sq ft for those buildings. It was built in 1960, 17 years later than the group's average year built (1943). Across all 24 jurisdictions BuildingCensus covers, the 6,548 K-12 school buildings average an ENERGY STAR score of 64 and a site EUI of 52.7 kBtu/ft².
How has St. Rita of Cascia High School's energy performance changed over time?
BuildingCensus holds 10 Chicago disclosures for St. Rita of Cascia High School, covering report years 2014–2023. Its ENERGY STAR score went from 68 in 2014 to 75 in 2023 (+7 points); its best year on file was 2017, at 80. Site EUI moved from 84.0 kBtu/ft² (2014) to 62.8 kBtu/ft² (2023), a 25% decrease. Reported emissions went from 2,010 tCO₂e to 1,318 tCO₂e over the same span (down 34%).
What does an ENERGY STAR score of 75 mean?
ENERGY STAR scores run from 1 to 100 and are computed by the EPA's Portfolio Manager as a percentile against similar buildings nationwide, adjusted for climate, size and use: a score of 75 means the building performs better than about 75% of its national peers. BuildingCensus bands the score into report-card grades; 75 falls in band B — above median (70–84). Scores of 75 or higher meet the threshold for ENERGY STAR certification; certification itself is a separate, verified application that the disclosure does not record. In Chicago, 35% of scored buildings are at 75 or above.
Site energy-use intensity (EUI) is the energy a building uses on site in a year divided by its floor area, in thousand Btu per square foot — lower is more efficient. St. Rita of Cascia High School's 62.8 kBtu/ft² across 276,408 sq ft works out to about 17.4 billion Btu (5,087 MWh-equivalent) in 2023. Its source EUI of 94.8 kBtu/ft² also counts the energy lost generating and delivering that power, which is why it is higher. The disclosure also reports 1,338,658 kWh of electricity and 127,864 therms of natural gas for the year.
Which law requires St. Rita of Cascia High School to report its energy use?
St. Rita of Cascia High School reports under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance, the legal basis of the Chicago Energy Benchmarking program, which publishes each covered building's annual benchmarking results. The record shown here is the report-year 2023 disclosure (source record chicago:100396:2023). Covered buildings that fail to benchmark and report face fines of up to $100 plus $25 per day of violation under the ordinance.
More K-12 school buildings in Chicago
- Corliss HS / Noble-Butler· 272,651 sq ft · score 14 (D)
- Kenwood HS· 272,432 sq ft · score 23 (D)
- Morgan Park HS· 269,480 sq ft · score 56 (C)
- Lake View HS· 266,099 sq ft · score 66 (C)
- Brooks HS· 264,710 sq ft · score 16 (D)
- Rudolph· 263,250 sq ft · score 63 (C)
- K-12 School buildings in Chicago· 543 benchmarked
- All Chicago benchmarked buildings· Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance
- Most efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Least efficient large buildings in Chicago
- Biggest emitters in Chicago
Frequently asked questions
What is St. Rita of Cascia High School's energy grade?
St. Rita of Cascia High School scores 75 out of 100 on ENERGY STAR — band B, above median (70–84) — in its 2023 Chicago disclosure. Scores are national percentiles against similar buildings; 75+ qualifies for ENERGY STAR certification.
How much energy does St. Rita of Cascia High School use?
Its 2023 site energy-use intensity was 62.8 kBtu/ft² (94.8 kBtu/ft² source) across 276,408 sq ft, including 1,338,658 kWh of electricity and 127,864 therms of natural gas.
What are St. Rita of Cascia High School's carbon emissions?
St. Rita of Cascia High School reported 1,318 tCO₂e of greenhouse-gas emissions (4.8 kgCO₂e/ft²) for 2023.
Where is St. Rita of Cascia High School?
St. Rita of Cascia High School is at 7740 South Western Avenue, in Chicago, Illinois 60620. Its coordinates are 41.92317, -87.69912 (latitude, longitude), as published in the Chicago Energy Benchmarking file.
How big is St. Rita of Cascia High School and when was it built?
St. Rita of Cascia High School has 276,408 sq ft of gross floor area, as reported in its 2023 disclosure. The disclosure lists 1960 as its year built. It is classed as K-12 school.
Is St. Rita of Cascia High School covered by the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance?
Yes — it appears in the 2023 Chicago Energy Benchmarking disclosure, which lists the buildings reporting under the Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance.
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About this data
Source: Chicago Energy Benchmarking (Building Energy Use Benchmarking Ordinance), as published October 2, 2026. See the methodology for how records are matched, cleaned and scored.
Cite as: BuildingCensus, “St. Rita of Cascia High School, Chicago, Illinois — 2023 benchmarking disclosure”, https://buildingcensus.com/buildings/chicago/st-rita-of-cascia-high-school-742d3712 (data as of October 2, 2026).