Dewey School of Excellence is named in honor of George Dewey (1837-1917). A member of the United States Navy, Dewey is best known for his victory at the Battle of Manila Bay in 1898 during the Spanish-American War. He is the only person to have attained the rank of Admiral of the Navy, which is the most senior rank.

Dewey School of Excellence opened in 1901 and originally contained 22 classrooms, an auditorium, library, and gym. It was the first fireproof structure of its kind in Chicago.

Additional land was acquired in 1968 to accommodate additional recreation space and temporary classrooms when enrollment at the school soared to nearly 1,500 before Hope Middle School opened in 1971 (now a high school).

A Child Parent Center opened south of the main Dewey building in 1975 and contains 6 classrooms.

Today the building contains 27.5 classrooms including 3 state of the art computer labs and serves 370 students.