Enrollment
148
Elementary
DISTRICT 139 · STATE 381
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CAIRO USD 1·NCES 170807000424
Cairo Elementary School
3101 Elm St, Cairo, IL 62914 · (618) 734-1027 · Alexander County
GRADES PK–06ELEMENTARY43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL148 STUDENTS
D
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 9% of Illinois public elementary schools
- FTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Illinois public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
10.2:1
15 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 10.5:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
99%
147 students
DISTRICT 98% · STATE 56%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 22 | 15% |
| Kindergarten | 17 | 11% |
| Grade 1 | 24 | 16% |
| Grade 2 | 17 | 11% |
| Grade 3 | 14 | 9% |
| Grade 4 | 16 | 11% |
| Grade 5 | 19 | 13% |
| Grade 6 | 19 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (17) is 11% smaller than its 6th grade class (19).
Student demographics
43%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 40% · STATE 69% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Cairo Elementary School→Cairo Jr/Sr High School
Based on grade levels within Cairo USD 1. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)English Language Arts
12.9%
IL avg 51.0% . +4.7pp since 2023
Math
5.7%
IL avg 37.9% . +4.5pp since 2023
What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 13 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 6 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Illinois schools, those numbers are about 51 and 38. Reading and writing scores are up about 5 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 5 points.
IAR + ISA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 12.9% | 5.7% |
| 2023-24 | 8.2% | 1.2% |
% Proficient (Levels 4-5), all students and all tested grades.
Source: IAR + ISA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
9.8%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
14.2%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-4.4pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 10% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 14% typical for Illinois schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Illinois's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Cairo Elementary School
Cairo Elementary School's state test result (9.8% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 4 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cairo Elementary School this school | 148 | 99.3% | 9.8% |
| Nob Hill Elementary School Country Club Hills | 164 | 98.8% | 20.7% |
| Faraday Elementary School Chicago | 178 | 98.3% | 18.0% |
| Riverdale School Riverdale | 137 | 99.3% | 28.9% |
| Prairie-Hills STEAM Academy Markham | 102 | 98.0% | 30.3% |
| Early Childhood Cntr Dolton | 196 | 99.5% | N/A |
Matched among Illinois elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Cairo Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Illinois |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 9.8% | #1,884 of 1,925 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 5.7% | #2,013 of 2,077 ▲ 43 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 12.9% | #2,035 of 2,077 ▼ 52 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 148 | #2,223 of 2,419 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 99.3% | #35 of 2,132 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -30.5% | #164 of 1,461 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
148
-20 (-12%) vs 2020
-56% since 1990-91, when it was 333
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 148 | 14.5 | 10.2:1 | 99% (147) |
| 2023-24 | 174 | 13.4 | 13.0:1 | 99% (172) |
| 2022-23 | 182 | 12.7 | 14.3:1 | 100% (182) |
| 2020-21 | 168 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 213 | 12.9 | 16.6:1 | 98% (208) |
| 2015-16 | 268 | 16 | 16.8:1 | 100% (268) |
| 2010-11 | 273 | 25 | 10.9:1 | 99% (270) |
| 2000-01 | 305 | 18 | 16.9:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 333 | 17 | 19.6:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Cairo Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 31% (213 to 148); teachers up 13% (12.9 to 14.5).
About Cairo Elementary School
A small elementary school in Cairo, Illinois, Cairo Elementary School is part of Cairo USD 1. Students in pre-K through 6 attend the school, which enrolls 148 students. For comparison, elementary schools in Illinois average about 381 students.
The district for Cairo Elementary School is Cairo USD 1, with 2 schools and 278 students.
At Cairo Elementary School, Black students make up 74% of the student body. After that, the student body is 14% White and 11% multiracial. Census figures show Alexander County is about 33% Black. The school's diversity index is 43%, meaning two students picked at random have a 43% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
At Cairo Elementary School, 14.5 full-time-equivalent teachers work with students, a ratio of about 10.2:1. That is lower than the 13.9:1 average for elementary schools in Illinois. Roughly 99% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. For comparison, public schools in Alexander County average 99%.
Cairo Elementary School is graded D by allk12, scoring above 9% of Illinois public elementary schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
The model predicts 14.2% for a school in Illinois with Cairo Elementary School's free or reduced-price lunch share. Cairo Elementary School posts 9.8%.
Census Bureau estimates for Alexander County show that the median household income is $47,043, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 13% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 10%. There are 7 public schools in Alexander County, enrolling about 582 students in all.
The nearest other public school, Cairo Jr/Sr High School, is about 0.6 miles away. Inside a ten-mile radius, there are 3 other public schools. Ranked by average proficiency, Cairo Elementary School places 5th out of 7 schools in its immediate area.
NCES assigns Cairo Elementary School the locale Rural: Remote, meaning in rural territory far from an urban area.
2024-25 enrollment was 148, a 12% decrease from 168 in 2020-21.
Questions about science fairs, picture day, and bus routes can be posted here. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Alexander County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
4,875
Census ACS
Median income
$47,043
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
13%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
10%
Below federal line
Schools in county
7
582 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other Cairo Elementary schools
2 other US public schools in 3 states are named Cairo Elementary. Cairo Elementary School is the 2nd largest of the 3.
- Cairo Elementary SchoolHenderson, KY · 233 students
- Cairo Elementary SchoolOntario, OR · 124 students
Nearby schools
- Cairo Jr/Sr High School0.6 mi · 130
- Meridian High School8.2 mi · 206
- Meridian Elementary School8.2 mi · 213
- CHARLESTON HIGH10.7 mi · 310
- Ballard County Elementary School11.3 mi · 444
- Ballard Co. Preschool/Headstart Center11.3 mi · 93
Frequently asked questions
About Cairo Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Cairo Elementary School?
Cairo Elementary School enrolls approximately 148 students in grades PK-06.
Is Cairo Elementary School an elementary, middle, or high school?
Cairo Elementary School is an elementary school covering grades PK-06.
How many teachers does Cairo Elementary School have?
Cairo Elementary School employs 15 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 10.2:1.
What is the student diversity at Cairo Elementary School?
Student demographics at Cairo Elementary School are roughly 14% White, 1% Hispanic, 74% Black, 11% Two or more.
Is Cairo Elementary School public or private?
Cairo Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by Cairo USD 1.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.