Best Public Schools in New Athens, IL

New Athens, Illinois, has three public schools serving 488 students from prekindergarten through grade 12: New Athens Elementary (PK–5), New Athens Junior High (grades 6–8), and New Athens High School (grades 9–12). The clearest academic standout is Junior High: in 2025–2026, its all-grades IAR proficiency was 80% in ELA and 59% in math, 23 and 20 points above state results.

New Athens Junior High had especially strong grade-level results: 8th-grade ELA was 89%, 26 points above the state, and 6th-grade math was 63%, 27 points above. New Athens Elementary was also above state results in most reported IAR comparisons; its all-grades ELA and math were 63% and 54%, respectively, though 5th-grade ELA was 3 points below state. New Athens High School showed a split picture: 11th-grade ACT results were 3 points above state in ELA, 10 in math, and 8 in science, while 9th- and 10th-grade PreACT ELA results were 5 and 8 points below state.

Recent changes are mixed: Elementary’s all-grades ELA and math results fell 5 and 7 points from the prior year, while state results rose 3 and 1 point; Junior High’s ELA was nearly unchanged and math rose 3 points. SchoolDigger ranks Junior High at the 84th percentile, Elementary at the 62nd, and High School at the 61st; these rankings compare different school types and groups. Attendance is a strength across the area: chronic absenteeism was 8% at Elementary, 14% at Junior High, and 14% at High School, all below the state’s 24%. For 2024–2025, free/reduced lunch eligible enrollment was 22% at Elementary, 35% at Junior High, and 32% at High School; student–teacher ratios were 14.9, 13.9, and 11.7, respectively. These measures provide context, not explanations for achievement differences.