The top reported proficiency rate is 26% in English language arts. The lowest is 22% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center is a kindergarten-through-third-grade school in Mount Vernon, a county-seat city in southern Illinois where manufacturing, healthcare, and distribution logistics drive the economy. The school sits in a place of slow population decline but ongoing revitalization effort, with a developing downtown and new housing plans. The housing market is moderately priced relative to national benchmarks and rents are affordable as a share of income.
The school itself serves a student body of about that size for its grade band, with enrollment distributed fairly evenly across kindergarten through third grade and one student in fourth grade, likely a data anomaly. The student composition is mixed: slightly less than half white, about a quarter Black, a significant share identifying as two or more races, and smaller numbers of Hispanic and Asian students. The school does not report free-or-reduced-price-lunch rates, counts of students with IEPs, or English learner counts, so a parent may want to look into those categories directly with the school to understand what support infrastructure exists.
State assessment data is available only for third grade, the highest grade the school serves that Illinois tests. In math, about a quarter of third graders met proficiency. In English language arts, roughly the same proportion met proficiency. These are weak results. The state changed its proficiency cut scores for 2024-25, so direct year-over-year comparison is not available. When placed against other districts in Jefferson County, the school's overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quartile. A parent may want to look into what literacy and numeracy interventions the school offers, especially for students below proficiency, and what progress-monitoring systems are in place.
The school is not a charter, magnet, or Title I designated school. The data provided does not include information about class sizes, teacher experience, discipline patterns, chronic absenteeism, or specialized programs. These are concrete details worth asking about in conversation with the school. The district brief found no major recent policy or referendum changes affecting Mount Vernon SD 80, so the school is operating in a stable, if gradually shrinking, district context.
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