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Honest take: what's the hardest part about being a student at Sugar Creek Elem School?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
468
Elementary
DISTRICT 354 · STATE 381
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MCLEAN COUNTY USD 5·NCES 172862003005
Sugar Creek Elementary School
200 N Towanda Ave, Normal, IL 61761 · (309) 557-4425 · McLean County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY22-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL468 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
18.5:1
25 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 14.9:1 · STATE 13.9:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
60%
283 students
DISTRICT 40% · STATE 56%
Community
5
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 197 | 42% |
| Kindergarten | 49 | 10% |
| Grade 1 | 39 | 8% |
| Grade 2 | 51 | 11% |
| Grade 3 | 50 | 11% |
| Grade 4 | 44 | 9% |
| Grade 5 | 38 | 8% |
This year's kindergarten class (49) is 29% larger than its 5th grade class (38).
Student demographics
71%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 66% · STATE 69% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
IAR + ISA 2024-25 . % Proficient (Levels 4-5)English Language Arts
37.8%
IL avg 51.0% . +0.7pp since 2023
Math
28.6%
IL avg 37.9% . +10.0pp since 2023
What this means: On the IAR + ISA, Illinois's statewide test, about 38 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 29 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Illinois schools, those numbers are about 51 and 38. Reading and writing scores have held steady since 2023, while math scores are up about 10 points.
IAR + ISA results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 37.8% | 28.6% |
| 2023-24 | 37.1% | 18.6% |
% Proficient (Levels 4-5), all students and all tested grades.
Source: IAR + ISA. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
34.9%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
36.6%
based on IL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-1.7pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 35% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 37% typical for Illinois schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Illinois's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Sugar Creek Elementary School
Sugar Creek Elementary School's state test result (34.9% proficient) is higher than 1 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sugar Creek Elementary School this school | 468 | 60.5% | 34.9% |
| Leal Elementary School Urbana | 373 | 59.5% | 37.1% |
| Westview Elementary School Champaign | 434 | 55.3% | 35.3% |
| Kenwood Elementary School Champaign | 402 | 56.7% | 36.5% |
| William Holliday Elementary School Fairview Heights | 418 | 65.3% | 30.5% |
| Butler Elementary School Springfield | 367 | 56.9% | 42.5% |
Matched among Illinois elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Sugar Creek Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Illinois | In McLean County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 34.9% | #1,093 of 1,925 | #21 of 29 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 28.6% | #1,330 of 2,077 ▼ 84 | #24 of 29 ▼ 4 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 37.8% | #1,422 of 2,077 ▼ 537 | #24 of 29 ▼ 9 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 468 | #668 of 2,419 | #5 of 32 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 18.5:1 | #1,947 of 2,035 | #29 of 30 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 71.0% | #118 of 2,042 | #7 of 30 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 60.5% | #998 of 2,132 | #8 of 31 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -10.5% | #889 of 1,461 | #13 of 23 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
468
+93 (+25%) vs 2020
+36% since 1990-91, when it was 343
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 468 | 25.3 | 18.5:1 | 60% (283) |
| 2023-24 | 421 | 31.2 | 13.5:1 | 61% (258) |
| 2022-23 | 414 | 30.5 | 13.6:1 | 57% (237) |
| 2020-21 | 375 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| 2017-18 | 523 | 30.5 | 17.2:1 | 59% (307) |
| 2015-16 | 540 | 28 | 19.3:1 | 53% (288) |
| 2010-11 | 416 | 22 | 18.9:1 | 25% (106) |
| 2000-01 | 305 | 20 | 15.3:1 | N/A |
| 1990-91 | 343 | 18 | 19.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Sugar Creek Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 11% (523 to 468); teachers down 17% (30.5 to 25.3).
About Sugar Creek Elementary School
Sugar Creek Elementary School serves students in Normal, Illinois, as a mid-sized elementary school. Enrollment stands at 468 students, covering pre-K through 5. That puts enrollment 23% larger than the 381-student average for elementary schools in Illinois.
McLean County USD 5 operates 24 schools. Combined enrollment is 12,407 students.
White students account for 39% of enrollment at Sugar Creek Elementary School, more than any other group. Other groups make up 33% Black, 13% multiracial, 9% Hispanic, and 6% Asian. County-wide, 78% of McLean County residents are White. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 71%.
There are 25.3 full-time-equivalent teachers at Sugar Creek Elementary School, giving a ratio of 18.5:1. By comparison, the average for elementary schools in Illinois is 13.9:1. A total of 283 students, or 60%, are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The rate at public schools in McLean County averages 40%, lower than here.
In Illinois, Sugar Creek Elementary School is in the middle band of BeatsExpectations: 34.9% actual against a predicted 36.6%.
American Community Survey estimates for McLean County show that the median household earns about $79,905 a year, about 47% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 7%. Across McLean County, 60 public schools serve about 23,759 students.
Sugar Creek Elementary School's nearest public school is Colene Hoose Elementary School (about 0.9 miles). There are at least 8 more public schools inside five miles. Sugar Creek Elementary School places 7th of 8 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
The federal government classifies Sugar Creek Elementary School's location as Suburb: Mid-size.
Since 2020-21, enrollment has grown 25%, from 375 to 468.
You can use this page to share news and ask questions about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. Current and former families are welcome to add their experience.
McLean County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
171,556
Census ACS
Median income
$79,905
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
47%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
60
23,759 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in McLean County USD 5
- Normal Community High SchoolHigh · 2,079 students
- Normal Community West High SchoolHigh · 1,590 students
- Evans Junior High SchoolMiddle · 778 students
- Kingsley Jr High SchoolMiddle · 730 students
- Benjamin Elementary SchoolElementary · 607 students
- Parkside Jr High SchoolMiddle · 598 students
Other schools in Normal
- Normal Community High SchoolHigh · 2,079 students
- Normal Community West High SchoolHigh · 1,590 students
- Kingsley Jr High SchoolMiddle · 730 students
- University High SchoolHigh · 624 students
- Parkside Jr High SchoolMiddle · 598 students
- Chiddix Jr High SchoolMiddle · 597 students
Other Sugar Creek Elementary schools
7 other US public schools in 8 states are named Sugar Creek Elementary. Sugar Creek Elementary School is the 5th largest of the 8.
- Sugar Creek ElementaryFort Mill, SC · 755 students
- Sugar Creek ElementaryVerona, WI · 645 students
- Sugar Creek Elementary SchoolLester, AL · 631 students
- Sugar Creek Elementary SchoolWaukee, IA · 630 students
- SUGAR CREEK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLBENTONVILLE, AR · 381 students
Nearby schools
- Colene Hoose Elementary School0.9 mi · 413
- Chiddix Jr High School1.1 mi · 597
- Northpoint Elementary School1.3 mi · 472
- Prairieland Elementary School1.4 mi · 450
- Stevenson Elementary School1.5 mi · 299
- Glenn Elementary School1.7 mi · 272
Frequently asked questions
About Sugar Creek Elementary SchoolHow large is Sugar Creek Elementary School?
Sugar Creek Elementary School enrolls approximately 468 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Sugar Creek Elementary School serve?
Sugar Creek Elementary School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Sugar Creek Elementary School?
Approximately 18.5:1 students per teacher at Sugar Creek Elementary School.
How diverse is Sugar Creek Elementary School?
Sugar Creek Elementary School reports a student body of 39% White, 9% Hispanic, 33% Black, 6% Asian, 13% Two or more.
Who oversees Sugar Creek Elementary School?
Sugar Creek Elementary School is overseen by McLean County USD 5 in McLean County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.