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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