Smithton Elem School, Smithton IL

Original Research by School Decision on Smithton Elem School

Smithton Elementary School is a small public school serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade in a quiet residential village in the Metro East region of Greater St. Louis. The school enrolls roughly a midsize cohort of students, with enrollment distributed fairly evenly across its grade bands; the upper elementary and middle grades each serve around a comparable population. The village itself is predominantly white, educated, and higher-income for the region, and the school's enrollment mirrors that composition.

Academic performance shows a pattern of strength in reading and significant weakness in mathematics, with some variation by grade level. In English language arts, the school registers solid proficiency across most grades: fourth and sixth grade students perform well, and seventh and eighth graders test substantially above the midline. Reading comprehension and literacy instruction appear to be relative strengths. Mathematics performance is more uneven. Third and fourth graders post reasonable proficiency rates, but fifth grade sees a marked drop, and seventh grade falls notably lower still. Eighth grade recovers somewhat. Science testing is available only for two grades: fifth grade shows middling proficiency, while eighth grade registers strongly. Overall, the school ranks in the top quartile of St. Clair County districts on a composite proficiency measure across all tested subjects and grades, a position that reflects above-average reading outcomes offsetting below-average mathematics.

A parent considering this school should look into the mathematics program with the school directly. The grades-five-through-seven dip in math proficiency is substantial enough to warrant conversation about curriculum, instructional approach, whether students identified as struggling receive intervention, and what transition supports exist as students move to high school. The gap between how this school performs in reading and math is steeper than typical, and understanding why may help families decide whether the school's strengths align with their own student's needs.

Smithton Elementary is a regular public school with no charter status, magnet programs, or special designations. It draws from the Smithton CCSD 130 district, a single-school district encompassing just this elementary building. No major shifts in district funding, governance, or curriculum priorities were found in recent years, suggesting continuity in how the school operates.

The community is stable and growth-oriented. Smithton itself is a small village that has been adding residential subdivisions, especially on its north and south sides, and new construction continues. Home values have risen modestly and remain affordable relative to state and national benchmarks. The village has a civic core along Main Street anchored by Village Hall and the public library, which serves as a community gathering place. Residents commute to jobs in nearby Belleville, O'Fallon, and Fairview Heights; there is no public transportation system within the village, so daily life and school access depend on private vehicles. The Smithton Public Library District is tightly linked to school operations and often closes on snow days when Smithton schools close, a signal of how interwoven school and civic life are.

Smithton Elementary offers a traditional neighborhood school experience serving its residential community, with reliable performance in reading and middle-ground performance overall among its county peers, offset by mathematics outcomes a parent may want to explore further with the school.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 363%

School 63% · District 63%

▲ 17 pts above state median · ▲ 22 pts above county median

Grade 474%

School 74% · District 74%

▲ 37 pts above state median · ▲ 37 pts above county median

Grade 549%

School 49% · District 49%

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 26 pts above county median

Grade 659%

School 59% · District 59%

▲ 35 pts above state median · ▲ 33 pts above county median

Grade 736%

School 36% · District 36%

▲ 7 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 848%

School 48% · District 48%

▲ 25 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 364%

School 64% · District 64%

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 478%

School 78% · District 78%

▲ 30 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 565%

School 65% · District 65%

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 9 pts above county median

Grade 675%

School 75% · District 75%

▲ 25 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 790%

School 90% · District 90%

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 27 pts above county median

Grade 886%

School 86% · District 86%

▲ 33 pts above state median · ▲ 24 pts above county median

Science

Grade 560%

School 60% · District 60%

▲ 23 pts above state median · ▲ 25 pts above county median

Grade 886%

School 86% · District 86%

▲ 47 pts above state median · ▲ 43 pts above county median

This schoolSmithton CCSD 130, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.