Enrollment
399
Illinois · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Tolono, IL
Unity West
Federal NCES profile for Unity West, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 32/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 173912004645
👥 S:T ratio 52
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 20
📋 Attendance 28
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Unity West earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% of Illinois schools.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Tolono · Resource Index
- 32
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.1:1
- small classes for Illinois
- 399
- students enrolled
Unity West has class sizes smaller than 70% of Illinois schools. Computed live against every Illinois school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Unity West ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Tolono, IL.
School address
District: Tolono Cusd 7 · Illinois
NCES ID 173912004645 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
33.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.1:1
vs 14:1 Illinois avg
-14% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Unity West compares with Illinois and U.S. medians
What stands out at Unity West
Unity West is a mid-sized elementary school in Tolono, Illinois, enrolling 399 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.1:1 puts it in the smaller third of Illinois schools by student-teacher ratio.
With 399 students, its enrollment sits close to the Illinois median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 3,845 scored Illinois schools.
Its student body is predominantly White (84% of enrollment) (diversity index 29/100).
Counselor availability sits well past the ASCA benchmark, roughly 399 students sharing each counselor, though short of the most stretched campuses.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 28.8% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
The surrounding Tolono Cusd 7 spends $13,072 per pupil, 23% below the Illinois average, a leaner-resourced district than most.
Tolono Cusd 7 also operates Unity High School (480 students) and Unity Jr High School (367 students) alongside Unity West.
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 Unity West compares
Unity West on the metrics families compare, against Illinois and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Illinois | Illinois avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 12.1:1 | ▼ 14% | 14:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Enrollment | 399 | top 45% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.1:1
Leaner classes than 75% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
399
Bigger than 47% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Staffing depth
12.1:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 30% in Illinois - lower ratio than 70% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
28.8%
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
$13,072
per pupil, district-wide
- below Illinois avg of $17,042
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 399 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.3 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.3 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 83.7%
Two or More 8.8%
Hispanic or Latino 4.0%
African American 2.8%
Asian 0.8%
Largest group: White at 83.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 28.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 28.9, Unity West is less mixed than the Illinois school average of 38.9.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Tolono Cusd 7, which includes Unity West.
$13,072
Per student
-23%
vs Illinois
Avg $17,042
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 44.3%
State 46.3%
Federal 9.5%
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 Unity West Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unity High School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Unity Jr High School | Similar size | No free-lunch data | Higher S:T ratio |
| Unity East | Smaller | No free-lunch data | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Unity West's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 480
- Students per teacher
- 14.5:1
- Resource Index
- 22/100
- Enrollment
- 367
- Students per teacher
- 17.5:1
- Resource Index
- 31/100
- Enrollment
- 241
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
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 (~399 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.1:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Unity West's federal record.
- Compare Unity West against another school. Compare schools
- Tolono 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 Unity West
How many students attend Unity West?
Unity West has 399 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Tolono, IL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Unity West?
The student-teacher ratio at Unity West is 12.1:1, which is 14% lower than the Illinois average of 14:1 and 23% 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 Unity West?
The largest demographic group at Unity West is White at 83.7% of enrollment, in Tolono, IL.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Unity West?
Unity West has a Resource Investment Index of 32/100 (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 Unity West rank among public schools in Tolono?
By Resource Investment Index, Unity West ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Tolono, 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 Tolono on the city page.
Is Unity West a good school?
Unity West earns 32/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% of 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 Tolono Cusd 7?
Besides Unity West, Tolono Cusd 7 also operates Unity High School (480 students), Unity Jr High School (367 students), and Unity East (241 students). See the Tolono 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.