Enrollment
523
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Gillespie, IL
Ben-Gil Elementary School
Federal NCES profile for Ben-Gil Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 33/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 171668001973
👥 S:T ratio 50
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 53
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Ben-Gil Elementary School earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Illinois median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Illinois schools.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Gillespie · Resource Index
- 33
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.5:1
- students per teacher
- 523
- students enrolled
Ben-Gil Elementary School has class sizes near the Illinois median. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Ben-Gil Elementary School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Gillespie, IL.
School address
District: Gillespie Cusd 7 · Illinois
NCES ID 171668001973 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
42.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.5:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-11% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Ben-Gil Elementary School compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Ben-Gil Elementary School
Ben-Gil Elementary School is a mid-sized combined-grade school in Gillespie, Illinois, enrolling 523 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.5:1 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by student-teacher ratio.
Enrollment of 523 puts it in the larger third of Illinois schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (95% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 11/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 523 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 18.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 15.7% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Gillespie Cusd 7 also operates Gillespie High School (328 students) and Gillespie Middle School (244 students) alongside Ben-Gil Elementary School.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Ben-Gil Elementary School compares
Ben-Gil Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.5:1 | ▼ 11% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 523 | top 27% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.5:1
Leaner classes than 71% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
523
Bigger than 65% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
12.5:1
students per teacher
- 11% below state mean
Top 35% in Illinois - lower ratio than 65% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
18.9%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
In the 15-20% range, nearing the "high" absenteeism threshold.
Funding equity
$14,112
per pupil, district-wide
- below Illinois avg of $17,042
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 523 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 11 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 2.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 94.5%
African American 2.7%
Hispanic or Latino 1.1%
Two or More 1.1%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: White at 94.5% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 10.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 10.6, Ben-Gil Elementary School is less mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Gillespie Cusd 7, which includes Ben-Gil Elementary School.
$14,112
Per student
-17%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
-15%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 22.1%
State 62.2%
Federal 15.7%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Ben-Gil Elementary School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gillespie High School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Gillespie Middle School | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Ben-Gil Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 328
- Students per teacher
- 12.6:1
- Resource Index
- 20/100
- Enrollment
- 244
- Students per teacher
- 14.4:1
- Resource Index
- 24/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Illinois, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~523 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Ben-Gil Elementary School's federal record.
- Compare Ben-Gil Elementary School against another school. Compare schools
- Gillespie Cusd 7's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Ben-Gil Elementary School
How many students attend Ben-Gil Elementary School?
Ben-Gil Elementary School has 523 students enrolled. It is a public school in Gillespie, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Ben-Gil Elementary School?
The student-teacher ratio at Ben-Gil Elementary School is 12.5:1, which is 11% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 20% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Ben-Gil Elementary School?
The largest demographic group at Ben-Gil Elementary School is White at 94.5% of enrollment, in Gillespie, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Ben-Gil Elementary School?
Ben-Gil Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 33/100 (typical reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Ben-Gil Elementary School rank among public schools in Gillespie?
By Resource Investment Index, Ben-Gil Elementary School ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Gillespie, IL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Gillespie on the city page.
Is Ben-Gil Elementary School a good school?
Ben-Gil Elementary School earns 33/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Illinois median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Illinois schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Gillespie Cusd 7?
Besides Ben-Gil Elementary School, Gillespie Cusd 7 also operates Gillespie High School (328 students) and Gillespie Middle School (244 students). See the Gillespie Cusd 7 district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.