Schools in Normal, IL

The city of Normal, Illinois is home to 16 schools, including 9 elementary schools, 3 middle schools, and 4 high schools, all part of the McLean County Unified School District 5, except for University High School and Thomas Metcalf School, which are part of the ISU Laboratory Schools district.

The standout schools in the area are University High School, ranked 18th out of 698 Illinois high schools with exceptional test scores, and Thomas Metcalf School, an elementary/middle school ranked 327th out of 2,056 Illinois elementary schools with strong performance across all grade levels and subjects. The other high schools and middle schools generally perform at or slightly below the district and state averages, while the elementary schools show more variability, with some schools performing well above the district and state averages and others performing well below.

Across the district, the four-year graduation rate for the two main high schools is 89.0%, on par with the state average, and the dropout rate is 2.4%, slightly below the state average. However, the chronic absenteeism rate is high at 25.4%, above the state average. Spending per student ranges widely, from $10,547 at YBMC Charter School to $18,658 at Sugar Creek Elementary, but higher spending does not necessarily correlate with better academic outcomes.