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Honest take: what's the hardest part about being a student at Deer Path Elem School?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
452
Elementary
DISTRICT 403 · STATE 381
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·CARY CCSD 26·NCES 170873003137
Deer Path Elem School
2211 Crystal Lake Rd, Cary, IL 60013 · (224) 357-5350 · McHenry County
GRADES KG–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBREGULAR SCHOOL452 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.2:1
32 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.2:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
26%
116 students
DISTRICT 27% · STATE 56%
Community
3
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. 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
Deer Path Elem School→Cary Jr High School
Based on grade levels within Cary CCSD 26. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)English Language Arts
60.6%
IL avg 51.0% . +18.0pp since 2023
Math
48.5%
IL avg 37.9% . +13.6pp since 2023
What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 61 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 49 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 18 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 14 points.
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
51.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
56.7%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-5.2pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 52% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 57% 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 →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
452
-119 (-21%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
14.2:1
was 15.4:1
% White
74%
was 79%
% Hispanic
19%
was 13%
% Black
2%
was 1%
% Asian
4%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About Deer Path Elem School
Deer Path Elem School is a moderately sized elementary-level community in Cary, Illinois, operated by Cary CCSD 26. The school teaches 452 students in grades K through 5.
Within Cary CCSD 26, which oversees 5 schools and 2,372 students, Deer Path Elem School is one campus in the system.
On the student-mix side, Deer Path Elem School logs that 74% of the student body identifies as White. Beyond that, the school logs 19% Hispanic, 4% Asian.
In terms of school funding signals, The school reports having 32 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 14.2:1. The state averages about 13.9:1, putting this campus right in line with peers. Around 26% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. By comparison, McHenry County runs at roughly 35%, so the school's eligibility rate is below the surrounding baseline.
On a demographically-adjusted basis, Deer Path Elem School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 56.7%, the actual is 51.5%, a residual of -5.2 points.
In the area at large, McHenry County reports that the typical household earns roughly $104,802 per year, 35% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 4%. Across McHenry County's 89 public schools (combined enrollment of about 50,123 students), Deer Path Elem School is one campus in the mix.
Nearest neighbor: Cary Jr High School, around 0.2 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around Deer Path Elem School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Deer Path Elem School at 6th of 8; the average score across the group is 52.8%.
Deer Path Elem School operates from a residential location.
Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at Deer Path Elem School has fell 21%, going from 571 students in 2018 to 452 in 2025. The Hispanic share of enrollment grew from 13% to 19% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio pulled in from 15.4:1 in 2018 to 14.2:1 today.
On the community side, members of the Deer Path Elem School community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
McHenry County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
312,591
Census ACS
Median income
$104,802
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
35%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
4%
Below federal line
Schools in county
89
50,123 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in Cary CCSD 26
- Cary Jr High SchoolMiddle · 761 students
- Three Oaks SchoolElementary · 443 students
- Briargate Elem SchoolElementary · 400 students
- Oak Knoll Early Childhood CenterElementary · 316 students
Other schools in Cary
- Cary-Grove Community High SchoolHigh · 1,348 students
- Cary Jr High SchoolMiddle · 761 students
- Three Oaks SchoolElementary · 443 students
- Briargate Elem SchoolElementary · 400 students
- Oak Knoll Early Childhood CenterElementary · 316 students
Nearby schools
- Cary Jr High School0.2 mi · 761
- Cary-Grove Community High School0.8 mi · 1,348
- Three Oaks School1.0 mi · 443
- Oak Knoll Early Childhood Center1.3 mi · 316
- Briargate Elem School1.9 mi · 400
- Prairie Grove Junior High School2.1 mi · 357
Frequently asked questions
About Deer Path Elem SchoolHow many students attend Deer Path Elem School?
Deer Path Elem School enrolls approximately 452 students in grades KG-05.
What grades does Deer Path Elem School serve?
Deer Path Elem School serves grades KG-05.
How many teachers does Deer Path Elem School have?
Deer Path Elem School employs 32 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 14.2:1.
How diverse is Deer Path Elem School?
Deer Path Elem School reports a student body of 74% White, 19% Hispanic, 2% Black, 4% Asian, 2% Two or more.
Who oversees Deer Path Elem School?
Deer Path Elem School is overseen by Cary CCSD 26 in McHenry County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.