Egyptian Elem School

Egyptian Elem School is a minimally staffed elementary-level community in Tamms, Illinois, overseen by Egyptian CUSD 5. The school educates 151 students in grades pre-K through 5. By comparison, Illinois's public schools average about 381 students each, so Egyptian Elem School sits 60% below that benchmark.

Within Egyptian CUSD 5, which oversees 3 schools and 304 students, Egyptian Elem School is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Egyptian Elem School logs that 75% of the student body identifies as White; the rest looks like 13% Black, 13% multiracial. That is visibly more White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 63%.

Looking at school resources, Staff filings list 12 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.6:1 students per teacher. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 13.9:1, putting Egyptian Elem School tighter than the state norm the norm. An estimated 99% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Egyptian Elem School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 14.2%; this one delivers 13.8%.

Across the wider county, ACS estimates for Alexander County put median household income runs about $47,043, about 13% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 10%. In all, Alexander County runs 7 public schools (combined enrollment of about 582 students), of which Egyptian Elem School is one.

Egyptian Jr High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.0 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 2 other public schools cluster around Egyptian Elem School. On composite proficiency, Egyptian Elem School comes 6th of 8 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 30.0%.

Geographically, the school is in a countryside area.

Over the past 7-year window. Egyptian Elem School's enrollment has declined 40% since 2018, when it stood at 251 (now 151). Class-load math has tightened: from 13.6:1 in 2018 to 12.6:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Egyptian Elem School community share and discuss enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.