Fairview Elem School

Set in Normal, Illinois, Fairview Elem School is a compact elementary school, part of McLean County USD 5. It caters to 280 students across grades K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 381 students per school, that is 27% smaller than typical.

McLean County USD 5 comprises 24 schools with combined enrollment of 12,407 students; Fairview Elem School is among them.

In terms of who attends, Fairview Elem School reports that the most-represented group is White (41%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. Beyond that, the school reports 35% Black, 12% Hispanic, 11% multiracial. That is noticeably less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 78%.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, Fairview Elem School has 16 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 17.1:1. That figure is higher than the state norm's 13.9:1 average. Roughly 55% of students at Fairview Elem School qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is above McLean County's rate of about 40%.

With demographic context factored in, Fairview Elem School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 40.0%, the actual is 38.3%, a residual of -1.7 points.

Across the wider county, the surrounding county (McLean County) records that the typical household earns roughly $79,905 per year, roughly 47% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and the poverty rate sits near 7%. Across McLean County's 60 public schools (combined enrollment of about 23,759 students), Fairview Elem School is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: University High School, around 0.7 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), Fairview Elem School ranks 6th on composite proficiency, beneath the local average of 47.1%.

Geographically, the school is in a suburban area.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count climbed 6%: 264 students in 2018 compared to 280 in 2025. The White share of enrollment shrank from 60% to 41% over that span. Class-load math has loosened: from 15.2:1 in 2018 to 17.1:1 in 2025.

On this page, recent activity here tends to focus on classroom updates, athletics, and weather closures. Members of the school community can share what they know.