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Does Carl Sandburg Elem School have enough mental health and stress support?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
555
Elementary
DISTRICT 283 · STATE 381
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CHARLESTON CUSD 1·NCES 170960000566
Carl Sandburg Elementary School
1924 Reynolds Dr, Charleston, IL 61920 · (217) 639-4000 · Coles County
GRADES 01–03ELEMENTARY33-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL555 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 61% of Illinois public elementary schools
- BTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats 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
14.1:1
40 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 12.2:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
55%
303 students
DISTRICT 50% · STATE 56%
Community
6
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 1 | 189 | 34% |
| Grade 2 | 175 | 32% |
| Grade 3 | 191 | 34% |
Student demographics
44%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 41% · 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
Carl Sandburg Elementary School→Jefferson Elementary School→Charleston Middle School→Charleston High School
Feeds from
Based on grade levels within Charleston CUSD 1. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)English Language Arts
50.8%
IL avg 51.0% . +16.5pp since 2023
Math
51.1%
IL avg 37.9% . +16.3pp since 2023
What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 51 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 51 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 17 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 16 points.
IAR + ISA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 50.8% | 51.1% |
| 2023-24 | 34.3% | 34.8% |
% 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
45.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
40.0%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+5.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 45% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 40% 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 Carl Sandburg Elementary School
Carl Sandburg Elementary School's state test result (45.5% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carl Sandburg Elementary School this school | 555 | 54.6% | 45.5% |
| Clinton Elementary School Clinton | 506 | 53.8% | 47.5% |
| Marseilles Elementary School Marseilles | 528 | 57.2% | 27.8% |
| Greenville Elementary School Greenville | 514 | 55.8% | 51.0% |
| Sarah Atwater Denman Elementary School Quincy | 501 | 59.1% | 39.3% |
| Washington Elementary School Marion | 465 | 57.8% | 65.1% |
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 Carl Sandburg Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Illinois | In Coles County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 45.5% | #724 of 1,925 | N/A |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 51.1% | #640 of 2,077 ▲ 19 | N/A |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 50.8% | #976 of 2,077 ▲ 23 | N/A |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 555 | #364 of 2,419 | #3 of 7 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.1:1 | #1,261 of 2,035 | N/A |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 44.1% | #1,058 of 2,042 | N/A |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 54.6% | #1,173 of 2,132 | N/A |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +7.6% | #346 of 615 | N/A |
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
555
+30 (+6%) vs 2020
+102% since 1990-91, when it was 275
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 | 555 | 39.5 | 14.1:1 | 55% (303) |
| 2023-24 | 537 | 37 | 14.5:1 | 58% (311) |
| 2022-23 | 551 | 39 | 14.1:1 | 58% (320) |
| 2020-21 | 525 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 516 | 34 | 15.2:1 | 53% (274) |
| 2015-16 | 574 | 35 | 16.4:1 | 52% (299) |
| 2010-11 | 580 | 35 | 16.6:1 | 51% (294) |
| 2000-01 | 518 | 34 | 15.2:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 275 | 11 | 25.0:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Carl Sandburg Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students up 8% (516 to 555); teachers up 16% (34 to 39.5).
About Carl Sandburg Elementary School
Carl Sandburg Elementary School, a medium-sized elementary school, is located in Charleston, Illinois. It serves 555 students in grades 1 through 3. For comparison, elementary schools in Illinois average about 381 students.
A total of 6 schools make up Charleston CUSD 1, with 2,744 students enrolled.
At Carl Sandburg Elementary School, White students make up 73% of the student body. The next largest groups are 9% Black, 9% multiracial, and 7% Hispanic. The school's White share is 16 points below the 90% share among Coles County residents. The school's diversity index is 44%, meaning two students picked at random have a 44% chance of belonging to different racial or ethnic groups.
Dividing enrollment by its 39.5 full-time-equivalent teachers gives a ratio of about 14.1:1. For comparison, elementary schools in Illinois average 13.9:1. Eligible students account for 55% of enrollment in the free or reduced-price lunch program. That tracks the 55% average for public schools in Coles County.
allk12 grades Carl Sandburg Elementary School a B. The grade compares the school only with Illinois public elementary schools, because each state gives its own test.
Carl Sandburg Elementary School's average proficiency rate on state tests of 45.5% is 5.5 points above the 40.0% the model predicts from its lunch-eligibility share.
In Coles County (population about 46,777), the median household income is $56,478, 27% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 12% of people live in poverty. Carl Sandburg Elementary School is one of 23 public schools in the county.
The next-closest public school is Mark Twain Elementary School, about 1.4 miles away. Carl Sandburg Elementary School is one of several public schools in the area, with 4 others within five miles. Ranking the closest schools with test data puts Carl Sandburg Elementary School at 2nd of 7.
The National Center for Education Statistics classifies the school's location as Town: Remote, meaning it is in a town far from an urbanized area.
Federal data show a 6% enrollment gain, from 525 in 2020-21 to 555 in 2024-25.
Questions about school safety, transportation, and start times can be posted here. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Coles County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
46,777
Census ACS
Median income
$56,478
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
27%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
12%
Below federal line
Schools in county
23
5,973 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Charleston CUSD 1
- Charleston High SchoolHigh · 795 students
- Jefferson Elementary SchoolMiddle · 698 students
- Charleston Middle SchoolMiddle · 401 students
- Mark Twain Elementary SchoolElementary · 221 students
- Ashmore Elementary SchoolElementary · 74 students
Other schools in Charleston
- Charleston High SchoolHigh · 795 students
- Jefferson Elementary SchoolMiddle · 698 students
- Charleston Middle SchoolMiddle · 401 students
- Mark Twain Elementary SchoolElementary · 221 students
- Lerna TAOEPHigh
- Shelbyville TAOEPHigh
Other Carl Sandburg Elementary schools
3 other US public schools in 2 states are named Carl Sandburg Elementary. Carl Sandburg Elementary School is the largest of the 4.
- Carl Sandburg Elementary SchoolWheaton, IL · 402 students
- Carl Sandburg ElementaryJoliet, IL · 371 students
- Carl Sandburg ElementaryKirkland, WA · 391 students
Nearby schools
- Mark Twain Elementary School1.4 mi · 221
- Charleston High School1.5 mi · 795
- Charleston Middle School1.6 mi · 401
- Jefferson Elementary School1.7 mi · 698
- Franklin Elementary School9.0 mi · 243
- Mattoon Middle School9.2 mi · 610
Frequently asked questions
About Carl Sandburg Elementary SchoolHow many students attend Carl Sandburg Elementary School?
Carl Sandburg Elementary School enrolls approximately 555 students in grades 01-03.
What grades does Carl Sandburg Elementary School serve?
Carl Sandburg Elementary School serves grades 01-03.
How many teachers does Carl Sandburg Elementary School have?
Carl Sandburg Elementary School employs 40 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.1:1.
What is the student diversity at Carl Sandburg Elementary School?
Student demographics at Carl Sandburg Elementary School are roughly 73% White, 7% Hispanic, 9% Black, 1% Asian, 9% Two or more.
Who oversees Carl Sandburg Elementary School?
Carl Sandburg Elementary School is overseen by Charleston CUSD 1 in Coles County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.