Prairie Central Elem School

Located at 600 S 1st St, in Fairbury, Illinois, Prairie Central Elem School is an average-sized elementary school that enrolls 367 students (grades 2 through 4), overseen by Prairie Central CUSD 8.

Prairie Central CUSD 8 comprises 6 schools with combined enrollment of 1,712 students; Prairie Central Elem School is among them.

For racial and ethnic makeup, Prairie Central Elem School reports that the student body is overwhelmingly White (86%). Beyond that, the school reports 9% Hispanic, 5% multiracial. That mix tracks the wider county fairly closely.

On the income-and-resources front, Staff filings list 30 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.4:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 13.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. Around 44% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), Prairie Central Elem School performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 45.9%, the actual is 42.5%, a residual of -3.4 points.

Across the wider county, ACS estimates for Livingston County put the typical household earns roughly $73,790 per year, roughly 19% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 8% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Prairie Central Elem School is one of 24 public schools in Livingston County (combined enrollment of about 5,273 students).

The closest other public school is Prairie Central High School, roughly 1.0 miles away. Within ten miles, there are 3 other public schools, a sparser pattern than typical urban areas. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Prairie Central Elem School at 3rd of 8; the average score across the group is 37.3%.

Geographically, the school is in a small-town area.

Looking at the recent track record. Over the past 7-year window, the student count ticked down 4%: 381 students in 2018 compared to 367 in 2025. Over the same period, the Hispanic share climbed from 4% to 9%.

Within the allk12 community for this school, members of the Prairie Central Elem School community share and discuss science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.