The top reported proficiency rate is 83% in English language arts. The lowest is 61% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Teutopolis Grade School
Teutopolis Grade School serves pre-kindergarten through sixth grade in a small village with a deeply rooted German Catholic heritage in Effingham County. The school sits at the center of town along Main Street, embedded in daily community life rather than on an isolated campus. Enrollment is stable at a modest size for this grade band, with the student body overwhelmingly white and drawn from the surrounding residential neighborhoods and farming areas.
In English language arts, the school shows solid performance. Third graders, fourth graders, and sixth graders all reach proficiency at rates in the low-to-mid eighties. Fifth graders show strength as well. These results reflect consistent competency across the elementary grades in reading and writing. Mathematics tells a different story by grade level. Proficiency is strong in grades three through five, clustering around seventy-five percent. In sixth grade, however, proficiency drops noticeably. A parent may want to look into this further with the school to understand what shifts in instruction, curriculum, or student need occur in that transition year, and whether the school has targeted supports in place. Science assessment data were available only for fifth grade, where roughly six in ten students met proficiency. The school does not report assessment results for grades seven and eight because it serves only through grade six.
The school sits within the top quartile of districts in Effingham County when overall proficiency is measured across all tested subjects and grades, a meaningful strength relative to neighboring districts. This positioning reflects particularly strong performance in ELA pulling up aggregate results. The gap between sixth-grade math and the grades below it remains a soft spot worth understanding in context.
Teutopolis itself is a working village of roughly one thousand people anchored by three manufacturing facilities—Siemer Milling, Farmweld, and Stevens Industries—alongside more than one hundred mostly locally owned businesses. The village's employment base means families here often have roots in skilled manufacturing, equipment operation, or logistics. The housing market is affordable by regional and national standards, with homes valued below state and national benchmarks, and the estimated monthly mortgage well within reach for working families. Property taxes have been on a downward trajectory over the past decade while the district pays down two health and life safety bonds issued for high school construction. The district is also running a multi-year capital improvement program: a high school cafeteria project recently wrapped, a junior high expansion is underway for summer 2026, and an elementary renovation is being planned.
Families considering Teutopolis Grade School should anticipate a small-town setting where the school is integral to community identity, a student population that is nearly entirely white, strong reading and writing outcomes in elementary grades, and a gap in math performance at the sixth-grade level that warrants direct conversation with staff. The village offers a walkable downtown spine, modest but active residential growth, and stable manufacturing-based employment, making it a practical choice for families seeking small-school community and affordability.
See more original research from School Decision →