Best Public Schools in Charleston, IL

Summary:

The city of Charleston, Illinois is home to 5 schools serving students from elementary through high school, including 2 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 high school. The schools in this Charleston CUSD 1 district face some significant challenges, with the district ranked 641 out of 811 districts in Illinois and rated 1 star out of 5 by SchoolDigger.

Among the standout schools, Charleston High School has seen fluctuations in its statewide ranking, ranging from 238 out of 697 Illinois high schools in 2023-2024 to 420 out of 698 in 2024-2025. Its graduation rate of 89.0% and dropout rate of 2.4% in 2024-2025 are notable. Meanwhile, Charleston Middle School has maintained a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger, ranking 657 out of 1,368 Illinois middle schools in 2024-2025, and its performance on English Language Arts assessments, with 54.8% proficiency in 2024-2025, is higher than the district and state averages.

The data also reveals some concerning trends, such as the district's high rates of chronic absenteeism, which stood at 25.4% across all schools in 2024-2025, significantly higher than the state average. Additionally, the schools in the Charleston CUSD 1 district have relatively high rates of students receiving free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 49.62% at Charleston High School to 57.91% at Carl Sandburg Elementary School in 2023-2024, suggesting potential socioeconomic challenges that may be impacting student outcomes.

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Immunizations Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				PreACT Secure English Language Arts (2025)		PreACT Secure Mathematics (2025)		PreACT Secure Science (2025)		ACT English Language Arts (2025)	ACT Mathematics (2025)	ACT Science (2025)	ISA Science (2025)		IAR English Language Arts (2025)							IAR Mathematics (2025)							% Polio (2024)	% Measles (2024)	% Mumps (2024)	% Rubella (2024)	% Hepatitis B (2024)	% Varicella (2024)	% DTP (2024)	% Pneumococcal (2024)	% Meningococcal (2024)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PreACT Secure English Language Arts 9th Grade	PreACT Secure English Language Arts 10th Grade	PreACT Secure Mathematics 9th Grade	PreACT Secure Mathematics 10th Grade	PreACT Secure Science 9th Grade	PreACT Secure Science 10th Grade	ACT English Language Arts 11th Grade	ACT Mathematics 11th Grade	ACT Science 11th Grade	ISA Science 5th Grade	ISA Science 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 3rd Grade	IAR English Language Arts 4th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 5th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 6th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 7th Grade	IAR English Language Arts 8th Grade	IAR English Language Arts All Grades	IAR Mathematics 3rd Grade	IAR Mathematics 4th Grade	IAR Mathematics 5th Grade	IAR Mathematics 6th Grade	IAR Mathematics 7th Grade	IAR Mathematics 8th Grade	IAR Mathematics All Grades	% Polio All Grades	% Measles All Grades	% Mumps All Grades	% Rubella All Grades	% Hepatitis B All Grades	% Varicella All Grades	% DTP All Grades	% Pneumococcal All Grades	% Meningococcal All Grades	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Lerna TAOEP	Public	6-12	10 3Rd St	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Clk/Cls/Cmbn/Dglas/Edgr/Mltr/Shlb	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(217) 235-4867	0	2	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Shelbyville TAOEP	Public	6-12	730 7Th St	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Clk/Cls/Cmbn/Dglas/Edgr/Mltr/Shlb	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(217) 348-0151	0	1	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Carl Sandburg Elementary School	Public	1-3	1924 Reynolds Dr	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Charleston CUSD 1	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(217) 639-4000	555	40	14.0	54.6%	407 (73.3%)	50 (9.0%)	40 (7.2%)	6 (1.1%)	2 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (9.0%)								(n/a)												50.8						50.8	51.1						51.1	95.8	95.2	95.2	95.2	100.0	95.2	95.6			$13,664	$637	$13,027
Charleston High School	Public	9-12	1615 Lincoln Ave	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Charleston CUSD 1	No	(n/a)	No	No	(217) 639-5000	795	48	16.5	44.9%	622 (78.2%)	58 (7.3%)	47 (5.9%)	8 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	59 (7.4%)	41.8	420^th of 698 public high schools	39.8%		58.2	238^th of 697 public high schools	65.9%	182	60.8	50.0	19.7	19.1	42.9	40.4	37.2	25.6	36.6																	97.0	97.8	97.8	97.8	97.8	97.4	98.3		94.7	$13,654	$52	$13,602
Charleston Middle School	Public	7-8	920 Smith Dr	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Charleston CUSD 1	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(217) 639-6000	401	30	13.3	48.1%	306 (76.3%)	32 (8.0%)	24 (6.0%)	6 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	32 (8.0%)	47.7	657^th of 1368 public middle schools	52.0%		43.7	693^rd of 1363 public middle schools	49.2%	36											49.2					48.9	60.3	54.8					23.0	17.5	20.2	99.5	99.5	99.5	99.5	99.5	99.5	99.5		99.5	$14,820	$556	$14,265
Jefferson Elementary School	Public	4-6	801 Jefferson Ave	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Charleston CUSD 1	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(217) 639-7000	698	44	16.0	51.6%	523 (74.9%)	70 (10.0%)	51 (7.3%)	8 (1.1%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	43 (6.2%)								(n/a)										30.1			42.1	42.8	51.5			45.2		28.9	16.8	23.4			23.0	96.9	96.9	96.9	96.9	99.0	96.9	96.9		29.7	$11,817	$467	$11,350
Mark Twain Elementary School	Public	PK-K	1021 13th St	Charleston	61920	Coles County	Charleston CUSD 1	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(217) 639-8000	221	17	13.3	50.7%	160 (72.4%)	23 (10.4%)	20 (9.0%)	2 (0.9%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (6.8%)								(n/a)																										89.1	88.1	88.1	88.1	99.0	87.6	88.6	11.9		$15,193	$625	$14,568

Cities Near Charleston

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Oakland	5.68 mi	2	679^th
Ashmore	6.64 mi	1	748^th
Kansas	9.36 mi	3	494^th
Humboldt	11.49 mi	1
Arcola	12.69 mi	2	621^st

See the top IL Illinois cities

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau, the Illinois Department of Public Health and the Illinois State Board of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.

Best Public Schools in Charleston, IL

Charleston Middle School

Charleston High School

Carl Sandburg Elementary School

Jefferson Elementary School

Lerna TAOEP

Mark Twain Elementary School

Shelbyville TAOEP

Cities Near Charleston