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Ben-Gil Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
964th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,737 Illinois Elementary Schools
Better than 45% of Illinois elementary schools
Summary

Ben-Gil Elementary School in Gillespie, Illinois, serves pre-K through grade 5 and enrolls 523 students in an area with several nearby schools for comparison. The clearest concern is fifth-grade math: in 2025–26, 23% of Ben-Gil fifth graders were proficient, compared with 36% statewide and a 44% average across four nearby schools with reported results. Ben-Gil was above only Litchfield Elementary among those four, making the fifth-grade math dip the school’s most important academic finding.

Results vary by grade and subject. Ben-Gil’s fourth-grade math proficiency was 45%, above the state’s 42%, while its fifth-grade science proficiency was 52%, compared with 48% statewide and an average of 51% at six nearby schools. ELA is stronger in grades 4 and 5 than in grade 3: grade 4 was 3 points above the state and grade 5 was 9 points above, while grade 3 was 4 points below. Across all grades, however, Ben-Gil was 1 point below the state in ELA and 1 point below in math. Chronic absenteeism was lower than at Gillespie CUSD 7 and statewide—16% versus 21% and 24%—but was the second-highest rate among the 11 nearby schools listed.

Scores have improved since 2023–24, though not as quickly as state results: Ben-Gil’s ELA proficiency rose 12 percentage points and math rose 7, while each subject ended 1 point below the state. SchoolDigger placed Ben-Gil at the 45th statewide percentile with 2 stars in 2025–26, close to its district’s 44th percentile and 2 stars; locally, three nearby schools ranked lower and four higher. The 2024–25 student-teacher ratio was 12.4, below the nearby-school average of 14.0. Free/reduced lunch eligible students made up 66% in 2024–25, the highest reported rate of the same type among nearby schools. SchoolDigger’s ranking for “Low Socio Economic Status Students” was at the 72nd percentile, compared with the school’s overall 45th percentile; its ranking for “White Students” was at the 12th percentile, down from the 45th percentile in 2023–24.

523
Students ?
12.4
Student/teacher ratio ?
$15,955
Per pupil spending ?
66.2%
Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?
98.3%
Measles protection (all grades) (2025-26)
 340 Kelly St
       Gillespie, IL  62033-1476

(217) 839-4828

District: Gillespie CUSD 7


Students who attend Ben-Gil Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Gillespie Middle School
High:    Gillespie High School
Racial breakdown:

White:
94.5%
African American:
2.7%
Hispanic:
1.1%
more
 See top rated Illinois elementary schools

 Compare Ben-Gil Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 66th percentile in 2024 → 45th in 2026
Worth a look
!Ranking has slipped from its 66th-percentile peak (2024) to 45th (2026)
!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing
Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?
This school49%
District avg48%
Illinois avg48%
964th of 1,737
Illinois public elementary schools ?
Bottom 45%▲ up 15 pts since 2016
From bottom 30% (2016) to bottom 45% (2026)
See the entire ranking list of Illinois Elementary Schools →
★★★★★
SchoolDigger rating ?
414th of 738Gillespie CUSD 7 among Illinois districts
Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)
Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202642.3964 of 173744.5%★★☆☆☆
202560.0810 of 205660.6%★★★☆☆
202461.5709 of 206765.7%★★★☆☆
202345.31047 of 207749.6%★★☆☆☆
202237.91226 of 208241.1%★★☆☆☆
202125.61399 of 194828.2%★☆☆☆☆
201954.7888 of 208657.4%★★★☆☆
201859.0781 of 203761.7%★★★☆☆
201747.71003 of 204450.9%★★★☆☆
201629.61434 of 204629.9%★★☆☆☆
201534.11290 of 205237.1%★★☆☆☆
201447.81153 of 209344.9%★★☆☆☆
201345.41266 of 216741.6%★★☆☆☆
201247.61355 of 216637.4%★★☆☆☆
201145.91371 of 214736.1%★★☆☆☆
201028.31677 of 213921.6%★☆☆☆☆
200942.11428 of 212032.6%★★☆☆☆
200847.81306 of 209237.6%★★☆☆☆
200748.81348 of 209535.7%★★☆☆☆
200656.71154 of 208644.7%★★☆☆☆
200554.61131 of 202244.1%★★☆☆☆
200450.91194 of 203041.2%★★☆☆☆
200347.21262 of 202037.5%★★☆☆☆

Disabled

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202546.9474 of 104954.8%★★★☆☆
202444.0421 of 88652.5%★★★☆☆
202346.2385 of 90757.6%★★★☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202636.7838 of 128634.8%★★☆☆☆
202557.2800 of 194258.8%★★★☆☆
202461.2658 of 194266.1%★★★☆☆
202347.1947 of 195751.6%★★★☆☆
202246.1944 of 197052.1%★★★☆☆
202126.21216 of 168027.6%★☆☆☆☆
201954.2868 of 201957.0%★★★☆☆
201864.4638 of 196467.5%★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202664.3281 of 100171.9%★★★★☆
202571.7355 of 180080.3%★★★★☆
202476.4231 of 179387.1%★★★★☆
202371.7315 of 180882.6%★★★★☆
202264.3446 of 176374.7%★★★★☆
202144.9738 of 151451.3%★★★☆☆
201979.7179 of 181690.1%★★★★★
201883.1134 of 176592.4%★★★★★

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202633.9873 of 131133.4%★★☆☆☆
202560.7732 of 194762.4%★★★☆☆
202460.8661 of 195966.3%★★★☆☆
202343.51033 of 198447.9%★★☆☆☆
202231.71273 of 197735.6%★★☆☆☆
202122.01350 of 170720.9%★☆☆☆☆
201955.3814 of 201959.7%★★★☆☆
201856.2786 of 197260.1%★★★☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202534.2808 of 129237.5%★★☆☆☆
202435.6723 of 119539.5%★★☆☆☆
202340.2606 of 115647.6%★★☆☆☆
202237.0610 of 111345.2%★★☆☆☆
202126.1497 of 64022.3%★☆☆☆☆
201961.1325 of 119472.8%★★★★☆
201858.3203 of 76373.4%★★★★☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankIllinois percentileRating
202617.91007 of 114912.4%★☆☆☆☆
202538.0926 of 138933.3%★★☆☆☆
202444.8763 of 139245.2%★★☆☆☆
202325.71123 of 141920.9%★☆☆☆☆
202218.31251 of 142512.2%★☆☆☆☆
202112.71236 of 13085.5%☆☆☆☆☆
201932.61029 of 146229.6%★☆☆☆☆
201836.2955 of 146334.7%★★☆☆☆
How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)
Low Socio Economic Status (2026)72nd percentile+27 vs school
Disabled (2025)55th percentile-6 vs school
Special Education (2025)37th percentile-23 vs school
Female (2026)35th percentile-10 vs school
Male (2026)33rd percentile-11 vs school
White (2026)12th percentile-32 vs school
By subject vs Illinois (2025-2026) ?
English Language Arts55%~ state avg
Science52%+5 vs state
Mathematics38%~ state avg

★
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Frequently Asked Questions about Ben-Gil Elementary School

Ben-Gil Elementary School ranks 964th of 1737 Illinois elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Students who attend Ben-Gil Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Gillespie Middle School
High : Gillespie High School

Students at Ben-Gil Elementary School are 94% White, 3% African American, 1% Hispanic, 1% Two or more races.

In the 2024-25 school year, 523 students attended Ben-Gil Elementary School.

Rate Ben-Gil Elementary School!



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Latest Illinois data All new data »
2025–26 school spending dataOct 30, 2026
2025–26 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesOct 30, 2026
2025–26 ACT, IAR, ISA & PreACT Secure test scoresOct 30, 2026
2013–14 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)Oct 19, 2026


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.

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