Enrollment
454
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Wadsworth, IL
Prairie Trail School
Federal NCES profile for Prairie Trail School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 51/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 171780002074
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 70
📋 Attendance 32
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Prairie Trail School earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Illinois schools. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Illinois schools.
- 51
- Resource Index · Higher
- 11.9:1
- small classes for Illinois
- 454
- students enrolled
Prairie Trail School has class sizes smaller than 73% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Gurnee Sd 56 · Illinois
NCES ID 171780002074 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
38.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.9:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-15% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Prairie Trail School compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Prairie Trail School
Prairie Trail School is a mid-sized elementary school in Wadsworth, Illinois, enrolling 454 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.9:1 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 454 students, its enrollment sits close to the Illinois median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (48%) and African American (22%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 68/100).
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 27.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Among Wadsworth's elementary schools, it stands alongside Newport Elem School (261 students): Prairie Trail School is larger than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (11.9:1 vs 14.5:1).
Gurnee Sd 56 also operates River Trail School (471 students) and Viking School (461 students) alongside Prairie Trail 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 Prairie Trail School compares
Prairie Trail 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 | 11.9:1 | ▼ 15% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 454 | top 37% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.9:1
Leaner classes than 76% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
454
Bigger than 55% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
11.9:1
students per teacher
- 15% below state mean
Top 27% in Illinois - lower ratio than 73% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
27.3%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$19,025
per pupil, district-wide
- above Illinois avg of $17,042
Somewhat above the U.S. public-school average, reflecting higher local or state investment per enrolled student.
Support staff
Counselors0.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 16 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.5 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
Hispanic or Latino 48.2%
African American 22.2%
White 17.4%
Asian 6.2%
Two or More 5.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 48.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 68.1/100
Simpson diversity index - at 68.1, Prairie Trail School is more mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Gurnee Sd 56, which includes Prairie Trail School.
$19,025
Per student
+12%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
+15%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 65.3%
State 27.8%
Federal 6.9%
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 Prairie Trail School Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| River Trail School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
| Viking School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Lower S:T ratio |
| Spaulding Elementary School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Prairie Trail School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 471
- Students per teacher
- 11.2:1
- Resource Index
- 48/100
- Enrollment
- 461
- Students per teacher
- 10.2:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 450
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 34/100
Similar elementary schools in Wadsworth
1 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.
Similar elementary 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 (~454 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Prairie Trail School's federal record.
- Compare Prairie Trail School against another school. Compare schools
- Gurnee Sd 56'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 Prairie Trail School
How many students attend Prairie Trail School?
Prairie Trail School has 454 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Wadsworth, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Prairie Trail School?
The student-teacher ratio at Prairie Trail School is 11.9:1, which is 15% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 24% 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 Prairie Trail School?
The largest demographic group at Prairie Trail School is Hispanic or Latino at 48.2% of enrollment, in Wadsworth, IL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 68.1/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Prairie Trail School?
Prairie Trail School has a Resource Investment Index of 51/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Prairie Trail School a good school?
Prairie Trail School earns 51/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 73% of Illinois schools. It is also more 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 Gurnee Sd 56?
Besides Prairie Trail School, Gurnee Sd 56 also operates River Trail School (471 students), Viking School (461 students), and Spaulding Elementary School (450 students). See the Gurnee Sd 56 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.