James R Wood Elem School

James R Wood Elem School is an elementary campus of close-knit scale in Somonauk, Illinois, run under Somonauk CUSD 432, instructing 298 students in grades pre-K through 4. That puts it 22% smaller than the typical public school in Illinois, which averages around 381 students.

Somonauk CUSD 432 runs 3 schools in total, collectively educating 771 students. James R Wood Elem School is one of those campuses.

In terms of who attends, James R Wood Elem School reports that the student body is overwhelmingly White (83%). Beyond that, the school shows 14% Hispanic, 2% multiracial. That is meaningfully more White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 74%.

On the resource side, The school currently runs with 29 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 10.5:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 13.9:1, putting James R Wood Elem School tighter than the state norm the norm. Around 40% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against DeKalb County (around 48%), the school's rate is south of typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, James R Wood Elem School sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 48.6%; this one delivers 42.3%.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for DeKalb County indicate median household income runs about $70,724, 33% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 10%. James R Wood Elem School is one of 43 public schools in DeKalb County (combined enrollment of about 16,328 students).

Somonauk High School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.2 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. On composite proficiency, James R Wood Elem School comes 8th of 9 in the immediate cluster, below the nearby-schools average of 55.7%.

The school occupies a town-based site.

Five-year trend. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at James R Wood Elem School has edged up 5%, going from 285 students in 2018 to 298 in 2025. Class-load math has narrowed: from 14.6:1 in 2018 to 10.5:1 in 2025.

On this page, recent activity here tends to focus on enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.