Carbondale Reporter

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

Of the 6,449 students attending Jackson County schools, 57.1% were white. African American students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 22.8% of Jackson County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Jackson County, representing 58.3% of the student body.

Thomas Elementary School had the most even distribution of races among county schools, including 53.8% African American students, 20.1% white students, 12.5% Hispanic students, 9.6% multiracial students, and 4% Asian students.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county dropped 0.4% 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
Carbondale Community High School	White	49.6%	938
Carbondale Middle School	African American	49.4%	429
Carruthers Elementary School	White	65.7%	399
DeSoto Elementary School	White	83.1%	183
Elverado High School	White	89.6%	106
Elverado Intermediate School	White	79.7%	79
Elverado Junior High School	White	92.6%	68
Elverado Primary School	White	78.9%	109
General John A. Logan Attendence Centre	White	61.3%	393
Giant City Elementary School	White	79%	233
Lewis School	African American	54.3%	291
Murphysboro High School	White	65.4%	575
Murphysboro Middle School	White	71.1%	436
Parrish Elementary School	African American	53.8%	480
Thomas Elementary School	African American	53.8%	303
Trico Elementary School	White	80.3%	442
Trico Junior High School	White	85.2%	162
Trico Senior High School	White	88.7%	230
Unity Point Elementary School	White	55.5%	593