Photo: Paul Sableman · CC BY 2.0Mount Vernon’s public schools score below 90% of Illinois districts on tests and graduation
On the state math tests, 8% of Mount Vernon’s students scored proficient, below the Illinois average (26%). The grade covers the two public school districts serving Mount Vernon, from kindergarten through graduation, on state tests and graduation. Each state writes its own tests, so this is the one TownRatings grade compared within Illinois, not nationally.
From Illinois state tests taken in spring 2021, when nearly all of students in the tested grades sat them, and the class of 2023’s four-year graduation rate, as reported to the U.S. Department of Education.
Mount Vernon’s schools, in brief
Mount Vernon runs its own schools through grade 8, then shares
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center (K–3) and Zadok Casey Middle School (6–8) are Mount Vernon’s own. From grade 9, students attend the Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 with Belle Rive, Bonnie, Dix, Dodds, Field, Ina, McClellan, Moores Prairie, Mount Vernon, Pendleton, Rome, Shiloh, Spring Garden and Webber: Mount Vernon High School in Mount Vernon. The high school’s own results earn a C, the highest on the path. See the path ↓
Results trail the state
In spring 2021, 10% of tested students were proficient in reading and 8% in math, against 30% and 26% statewide; nearly all of students in the tested grades sat the tests. The grade ↓
Graduation
86% of the class of 2023 graduated in four years, against 88% across Illinois. Districts ↓
Spending and class size
Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 spends $21,435 per student and Mount Vernon School District 80 $20,276, against $21,567 across Illinois (FY2024). Neither counts toward the grade. Districts ↓
Written from the figures on this page. Tests are from 2020–21, graduation from the class of 2023; each school’s own letter uses 2020–21 results.
What’s behind Mount Vernon’s grade
D: better than 10% of Illinois school districts, #727 of 768 Illinois towns. Both inputs trail the Illinois average; graduation is the closer of the two to typical.
Where will my kid go?
Pick a grade. These are the public schools that serve Mount Vernon, with each school’s own grade.
Pre-K in Mount Vernon
Dr Andy Hall Early Educ Ctr
Grades PK · 243 students · 17:1 students per teacher
Kindergarten in Mount Vernon
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center
Grades K–3 · 562 students · 14:1 students per teacher
1st grade in Mount Vernon
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center
Grades K–3 · 562 students · 14:1 students per teacher
2nd grade in Mount Vernon
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center
Grades K–3 · 562 students · 14:1 students per teacher
3rd grade in Mount Vernon
Dr Nick Osborne Primary Center
Grades K–3 · 562 students · 14:1 students per teacher
4th grade in Mount Vernon
J L Buford Intermediate Ed Ctr
Grades 4–5 · 260 students · 14:1 students per teacher
5th grade in Mount Vernon
J L Buford Intermediate Ed Ctr
Grades 4–5 · 260 students · 14:1 students per teacher
6th grade in Mount Vernon
Zadok Casey Middle School
Grades 6–8 · 380 students · 12:1 students per teacher
7th grade in Mount Vernon
Zadok Casey Middle School
Grades 6–8 · 380 students · 12:1 students per teacher
8th grade in Mount Vernon
Zadok Casey Middle School
Grades 6–8 · 380 students · 12:1 students per teacher
9th grade in Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,233 students · 14:1 students per teacher
10th grade in Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,233 students · 14:1 students per teacher
11th grade in Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,233 students · 14:1 students per teacher
12th grade in Mount Vernon
Mount Vernon High School
Grades 9–12 · 1,233 students · 14:1 students per teacher
Mount Vernon runs its own schools through grade 8 (Mount Vernon School District 80). From grade 9, students attend the Mount Vernon Township High School District 201, shared with Belle Rive, Bonnie, Dix, Dodds, Field, Ina, McClellan, Moores Prairie, Mount Vernon, Pendleton, Rome, Shiloh, Spring Garden and Webber. Its elementary school is in Mount Vernon. Parts of Mount Vernon (15%, 8%, 8% and 7% of its land) are served by Summersville School District 79, Bethel School District 82, McClellan Community Consolidated School District 12 and Woodlawn Unit District 209 (KG-8) in Mount Vernon instead. To confirm the school for a specific address, ask the district.
Two districts serve Mount Vernon
Spending and class size are shown but don’t count toward the grade. Each district’s own page has every school.
Well below the state in reading
Mount Vernon vs. its neighbors
Schools grades for the Illinois towns that share Mount Vernon’s borders.
| Town | Schools | Main districts |
|---|---|---|
| Mount Vernon | D | Mount Vernon School District 80 PK–8 · Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 9–12 |
| Dodds | C | Spring Garden Community Consolidated School District 178 K–8 · Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 9–12 |
| Mount Vernon Township | — | Field Community Consolidated School District 3 PK–8 · Summersville School District 79 PK–8 · Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 9–12 |
All 2 neighbors share Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 with Mount Vernon for grades 9–12, so their letters differ mainly through the lower grades.
Every school in Mount Vernon
3 schools. Each public school’s letter compares its own 2020–21 reading and math results with Illinois’s other public schools (the newest school-level results we have).
Questions about Mount Vernon’s schools
Are Mount Vernon’s schools good?
On Illinois’s tests they score below most of the state: the public schools Mount Vernon children attend score below 90% of Illinois’s school districts on tests and graduation, a D Schools grade, #727 of 768 Illinois towns. Among towns with similar incomes they beat 9%. Tests are from 2020–21, graduation from the class of 2023.
What school district is Mount Vernon in?
Two districts: Mount Vernon School District 80 runs grades PK–8, and Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 runs grades 9–12, shared with Belle Rive, Bonnie, Dix, Dodds, Field, Ina, McClellan, Moores Prairie, Mount Vernon, Pendleton, Rome, Shiloh, Spring Garden and Webber.
Where do Mount Vernon kids go to high school?
Mount Vernon High School, with 1,233 students; its own test results earn a C.
What is Mount Vernon’s graduation rate?
86% of the class of 2023 in Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 graduated in four years, against 88% across Illinois.
How much does Mount Vernon spend per student?
$21,435 in Mount Vernon Township High School District 201 and $20,276 in Mount Vernon School District 80 (FY2024), against $21,567 across Illinois. Spending doesn’t count toward the grade.
Parents talk
What Mount Vernon families are saying about school.
Looking for colleges? Colleges near Mount Vernon → They have their own page.
School data: state test results (2020–21, with participation) and four-year graduation rates (class of 2023) reported to the U.S. Department of Education (EDFacts via ED Data Express); each school’s own letter uses its 2020–21 results (EDFacts via the Urban Institute); schools and enrollment from NCES (2024–25; private schools 2023–24); spending from the Census Bureau’s school finance survey (FY2024). The School Grade is our own summary, graded within Illinois. Stars are from neighbors.