North Egypt News

The majority of students in Jefferson County schools were white in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 5,335 students attending Jefferson County schools, 77.5% were white. African American students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 10.5% of Jefferson County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Jefferson County, representing 78% of the student body.

J.L. Buford Intermediate Education Center and Mount Vernon High School had the most diverse student body in Jefferson County, including Asian, African American, Hispanic, multiracial, and white.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 1.8% compared to the previous year.

In the 2021-22 school year, Illinois had roughly 1.9 million students enrolled across approximately schools. There were more than 130,000 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 15 students, compared to the national average of 1:16.

Illinois has increased its state funding for public schools by $350 million, bringing the total to $8.6 billion for the upcoming year. This is in line with a 2017 law aiming to provide adequate funding to all schools by 2027.

However, experts suggest that this goal may be delayed unless education funding jumps to at least $550 million. According to a Center for Tax and Budget Accountability report, there’s currently a funding gap of about $2.3 billion.

School name	Most prevalent ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
Bethel Grade School	White	83.3%	156
Bluford Grade School	White	96.9%	261
Dr. Nick Osborne Primary Center	White	46.3%	600
Farrington Elementary School	White	93.9%	49
Field Elementary School	White	93.8%	274
Grand Prairie Elementary School	White	88%	83
J.L. Buford Intermediate Education Center	White	48.9%	278
McClellan Elementary School	White	96.9%	65
Mount Vernon High School	White	71.1%	1,177
Opdyke-Belle Rive Grade School	White	95%	159
Rome Community Consolidated Elementary School	White	93.1%	349
Spring Garden Elementary School	White	95.4%	151
Spring Garden Middle School	White	92.9%	85
Summersville Grade School	White	90.2%	305
Waltonville Grade School	White	95.6%	228
Waltonville High School	White	96.4%	83
Webber High School	White	96.7%	123
Woodlawn Grade School	White	93.2%	337
Woodlawn High School	White	92.4%	172
Zadok Casey Middle School	White	49.5%	400