The top reported proficiency rate is 50% in Science. The lowest is 26% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Saunemin Elem School
Saunemin Elementary School is a small public school serving about a school-full of students in grades pre-K through 8 in the rural village of Saunemin, Livingston County, in central Illinois. The school sits at 39 Main Street, integrated into the village rather than isolated on its own campus. The enrollment is modest across each grade band, with early grades ranging from about eight to fifteen students and upper elementary and middle grades between nine and eighteen. The student body is predominantly white, with a small share of Hispanic students and a few students identifying as two or more races. Free-and-reduced-price lunch data was not available, and information about special education enrollment and English learners was not provided.
Academically, the school's state test results show performance below the middle of the range among Livingston County districts. On the Illinois Assessment of Readiness for math, proficiency rates in grades three through five fall in the low teens to low twenties. Grade seven shows a modest improvement in the high thirties. Science proficiency in grade five sits at a midpoint level. English language arts results are somewhat stronger: grade three shows a modest rate in the mid-thirties, grade four reaches about half of students, grade five is in the low forties, and grade seven reaches the mid-forties. Grade six and grade eight data for some subjects were not reported, likely reflecting changes in testing grade bands or the unique structure of a school that combines elementary and middle grades. The school achieved near-universal test participation across reported grades. A parent may want to look further with the school about what supports exist for students who are not yet proficient and what interventions or instructional changes are underway to improve these results.
The village of Saunemin itself is very small, with just a handful of businesses and a population that has been declining slightly. The area is primarily agricultural, with employment centered in crop services, dried bean and lentil production, and professional services rather than a single large employer. Saunemin CCSD 438 is a single-school district; the school is the only public K-12 option in the community. Housing values in the area are modest relative to state benchmarks, and the school and village facilities are walkably close together within the small downtown. Civic life centers on Main Street and North Street, where the school, village hall, and community buildings cluster. The housing market shows year-over-year appreciation, though the village's population remains essentially flat or slightly declining. No recent major development projects were identified; the village appears stable in scope rather than growing.
Program details, school discipline and attendance data, staffing information, and district strategic priorities were not available. The school's website, where one exists, was not provided in the data. For a family considering this school, it operates as a true community anchor in a tight-knit rural setting, with the trade-offs that implies: small class sizes and a village-based identity, alongside limited program breadth and academic results that fall below the county median.
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