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Prairie Central CUSD 8

Coming soon: We're expecting this year's test scores from the Illinois State Board of Education any day now — new rankings will be posted the moment they're released!

Coming soon: This year's test scores are expected from the Illinois State Board of Education any day now — new rankings will follow the moment they're released!

At a glance

409^thof 811 Illinois districts▲ 57

Better than 49% of Illinois districts

Elementary 3 Middle 2 High 1Grades PK, KG-12

605 N 7th St
Fairbury, IL 61739-1300·(815) 692-2504·All Illinois district rankings →

Statewide performance 2017–2025

2025: better than 49.6% of districts

Schools

1,712

Students

Top rankedPrairie Central Elementary School891^st of 2,056 Illinois elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Prairie Central Elementary School up 272 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Prairie Central Primary East 11.1 students per teacher

Compare Illinois districts →See the top-ranked Illinois schools →

Summary:

The Prairie Central CUSD 8 district in Illinois serves students from preschool through 12th grade across 6 schools, including 3 elementary schools, 2 middle schools, and 1 high school. The district faces some academic challenges, with varying performance levels across the schools and subject areas.

Among the standout schools, Prairie Central Upper Elementary shines with the highest overall performance on the IAR English Language Arts and Mathematics assessments, with 70.3% of students proficient or better in ELA and 49.5% in Math, significantly higher than the district averages. In contrast, Prairie Central Junior High School struggles with Math, with only 22% of students proficient or better, well below the district average of 35.8%, despite its strong performance in ELA.

The district faces some concerning issues, such as high chronic absenteeism rates across all schools, reaching 25.4% in 2024-2025. Additionally, the schools have a significant population of economically disadvantaged students, with free/reduced lunch rates ranging from 42.46% to 64.39%. These factors likely contribute to the academic challenges and suggest a need for targeted strategies to improve attendance, engagement, and equity in educational opportunities for all students within the Prairie Central CUSD 8 district.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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 (2025)	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
Prairie Central Upper Elementary	Public	5-6	312 N Center St	Forrest	61741	Livingston County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 657-8238	216	18	11.7	44.0%	189 (87.5%)	0 (0.0%)	20 (9.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.2%)								(n/a)										42.4				61.9	82.6			70.3			50.0	48.8			49.5	98.7	99.1	99.1	99.1	99.1	97.3	98.2		56.8	$14,893	$337	$14,557
Prairie Central High School	Public	9-12	411 N 7th St	Fairbury	61739	Livingston County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	No	(815) 692-2355	487	42	11.7	40.0%	402 (82.5%)	5 (1.0%)	60 (12.3%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (3.1%)	55.4	297^th of 698 public high schools	57.4%		54.7	265^th of 697 public high schools	62.0%	32	56.3	61.4	32.8	18.8	54.6	50.5	46.3	32.5	40.7																	99.2	99.6	99.6	99.6	98.5	96.4	99.4		95.4	$15,324	$137	$15,187
Prairie Central Junior High School	Public	7-8	800 N Wood St	Forrest	61741	Livingston County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 657-8660	250	21	12.1	52.4%	208 (83.2%)	1 (0.4%)	26 (10.4%)	3 (1.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (4.8%)	55.8	540^th of 1368 public middle schools	60.5%		47.8	618^th of 1363 public middle schools	54.7%	78											54.0					63.0	60.9	62.0					20.0	24.3	22.0	98.3	97.5	97.5	97.5	98.3	97.5	98.3		97.5	$14,590	$313	$14,277
Prairie Central Elementary School	Public	2-4	600 S 1st St	Fairbury	61739	Livingston County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 692-2623	367	30	12.3	44.4%	314 (85.6%)	3 (0.8%)	32 (8.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (4.9%)	55.8	891^st of 2056 public elementary schools	56.7%		39.5	1163^rd of 2067 public elementary schools	43.7%	272												56.9	61.8					59.2	45.4	29.1					37.9	97.8	98.4	98.4	98.4	98.9	98.1	97.8			$12,077	$224	$11,853
Prairie Central Primary East	Public	PK, KG-1	407 S 4th St	Chatsworth	60921	Livingston County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 635-3555	148	13	11.1	62.8%	118 (79.7%)	2 (1.4%)	22 (14.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (4.1%)								(n/a)																										90.6	89.9	89.9	89.9	90.6	89.9	89.3	32.7		$17,879	$952	$16,927
Prairie Central Primary West	Public	PK, KG-1	700 S Division St	Chenoa	61726	McLean County	Prairie Central CUSD 8	No	(n/a)	No	Yes	(815) 945-2971	244	17	14.5	45.1%	207 (84.8%)	3 (1.2%)	15 (6.1%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (7.4%)								(n/a)																										98.0	97.6	97.6	97.6	98.8	97.6	98.0	32.9		$14,298	$329	$13,969

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Saunemin CCSD 438	9.59 mi	1	642^nd
Tri Point CUSD 6-J	11.71 mi	3	436^th
Pontiac CCSD 429	14.03 mi	4	699^th
Pontiac Township HSD 90	14.25 mi	1	381^st
DeWitt/Livingstn/Logan/McLean ROE	14.25 mi	6

See the top IL Illinois districts

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.