Flora Elementary School

Flora Elementary School, a well-populated K-5 school in Flora, Illinois, overseen by Flora CUSD 35, teaches 672 students, covering grades pre-K through 5. Compared to the state average of about 381 students per school, that is 76% bigger than typical.

Flora CUSD 35 runs 3 schools in total, collectively educating 1,320 students. Flora Elementary School is one of those campuses.

On demographics, Flora Elementary School records that nearly all students (90%) are White. The remainder breaks down as 6% Hispanic, 2% multiracial.

On the resource side, The school lists 51 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 13.3:1. That tracks the state average closely. About 61% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. That share is north of Clay County's rate of about 51%.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Flora Elementary School ranks in the top 10% of Illinois public schools. The BeatsExpectations model, a per-state regression of composite proficiency on FRL share, predicts schools with this student profile to land around 36.2%; Flora Elementary School posts 53.2%, +17.0 points above that line.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for Clay County indicate median household earnings sit near $60,417, roughly 13% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Clay County's 8 public schools (combined enrollment of about 2,130 students), Flora Elementary School is one campus in the mix.

Flora High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.3 miles from this campus. Counting just inside five miles, 2 other public schools cluster around Flora Elementary School. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Flora Elementary School at 3rd of 9; the average score across the group is 36.2%.

The school occupies a small-town site.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count ticked down 9%: 739 students in 2018 compared to 672 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 1% to 6% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 16.4:1 in 2018 to 13.3:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Flora Elementary School community share and discuss open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.