Prairie Central Primary West

Prairie Central Primary West operates as a small elementary campus in Chenoa, Illinois, overseen by Prairie Central CUSD 8. Current enrollment sits at 244 students spanning grades pre-K through 1. That puts it 36% smaller than the typical public school in Illinois, which averages around 381 students.

Across the 6 schools in Prairie Central CUSD 8 (1,712 students total), Prairie Central Primary West accounts for its share of the district's footprint.

Looking at the student body, Prairie Central Primary West reports that 85% of students identify as White, making the school strongly White-majority; the rest consists of 7% multiracial, 6% Hispanic.

Looking at school resources, On paper, Prairie Central Primary West has 17 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 14.5:1. That tracks the state average closely. About 45% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy.

Zooming out to the county, census data for McLean County shows median household earnings sit near $79,905, about 47% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 7% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, McLean County runs 60 public schools (combined enrollment of about 23,759 students), of which Prairie Central Primary West is one.

Lexington Elem School is the nearest neighboring public school, about 7.2 miles from this campus. 4 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a ten-mile radius, suggesting a relatively low-density school footprint.

The campus sits in an outlying setting.

Five-year trend. Prairie Central Primary West's enrollment has held roughly steady since 2018, when it stood at 241 (now 244). Over the same period, the Hispanic share increased from 1% to 6%. The student-to-teacher ratio narrowed from 18.5:1 in 2018 to 14.5:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, members of the Prairie Central Primary West community share and discuss sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.