The top reported proficiency rate is 57% in English language arts. The lowest is 41% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Villa Grove Elem School
Villa Grove Elementary School is a small public school serving pre-K through sixth grade in a rural, owner-occupied residential community in central Illinois. The school has a stable, homogeneous enrollment, with the student body roughly evenly distributed across grades. Enrollment is modest and the town itself is actively seeking residential growth through new subdivisions.
In early elementary grades, the school shows modest achievement on state assessment measures. Third and fourth graders in English language arts cluster around the middle range, with proficiency rates in the low to mid fifty percent range. Third grade math proficiency is above fifty percent, but fourth grade math drops notably, and fifth and sixth grade math proficiency falls further. Sixth grade English language arts is the strongest tested area. Fifth grade science sits at the midpoint. The school's overall proficiency index places it in the top quartile among the four districts in Douglas County, though this reflects the baseline rather than a strong absolute position. A parent may want to look into how the school is addressing the pattern of declining math proficiency from grade to grade.
The school's enrollment includes predominantly white families, a small Hispanic population, and very few students from other racial or ethnic backgrounds. Free and reduced lunch eligibility data was not available, so family income composition cannot be assessed from the data here. Special education and English learner populations are not disclosed. The school participates fully in state assessments with no attendance gaps.
Villa Grove CUSD 302 is undertaking a substantial multi-building facilities improvement program that includes a remodeled front entrance and office designed to improve security, new heating systems, updated bathrooms, new elementary classrooms, and a new gymnasium. These capital projects reshape the physical environment and are directly relevant to families considering the district. The school sits on a single consolidated campus near the residential center of town, not on a separate outlying site.
The town of Villa Grove is a small, mainly owner-occupied community of roughly stable population along the Embarras River. Housing values are modest and mortgage-to-income ratios favor affordability relative to state and national benchmarks. The compact downtown area has a few local restaurants and services, though daily freight trains crossing through town interrupt traffic and pedestrian movement. The Union Pacific rail operation is a historic fixture and small employer. Many residents commute to Tuscola or the Champaign-Urbana area for work. The town is actively promoting growth through development partnerships and new subdivisions, and has recently completed infrastructure upgrades including a higher-elevation bridge and water system improvements.
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