South Pekin Elem School

Set in South Pekin, Illinois, South Pekin Elem School is a cozy primary school, one of the schools within South Pekin SD 137. It works with 180 students across grades pre-K through 8. By comparison, Illinois's public schools average about 381 students each, so South Pekin Elem School sits 53% leaner than that benchmark.

South Pekin Elem School is a school of South Pekin SD 137, the district that handles curriculum, staffing, and budget for the campus.

Demographically, South Pekin Elem School reports that nearly all students (92%) are White. Beyond that, the school shows 3% multiracial, 2% Hispanic, 2% Black. That composition is broadly in line with Tazewell County as a whole.

In terms of school funding signals, Staff filings list 14 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.9:1 students per teacher. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 13.9:1 average. Around 54% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is above Tazewell County's rate of about 39%.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, South Pekin Elem School falls in the UNDERPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations residual. Given its student profile, a typical campus would land near 40.4%; this one comes in at 20.7%, -19.7 points off the demographic line.

In the area at large, the surrounding county (Tazewell County) records that median household earnings sit near $77,982, 28% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 6%. In all, Tazewell County runs 56 public schools (combined enrollment of about 18,581 students), of which South Pekin Elem School is one.

The closest other public school is Rankin Elem School, roughly 1.7 miles away. 7 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Among the 8 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), South Pekin Elem School ranks 7th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 35.3%.

The campus sits in a commuter-belt setting.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at South Pekin Elem School has shrank 21%, going from 227 students in 2018 to 180 in 2025. Class-load math has loosened: from 11.8:1 in 2018 to 12.9:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, the feed for South Pekin Elem School typically covers sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.