Carbondale Reporter

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

Of the 9,809 students attending Williamson County schools, 81% were white. multiracial students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 6.9% of Williamson County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Williamson County, representing 82.2% of the student body.

Lincoln Elementary School had the most even distribution of races among county schools, including 67.1% white students, 12.2% African American students, 8.4% multiracial students, 8% Hispanic students, and 3.5% Asian students.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 0.6% 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
Adams School	White	89.6%	259
Carterville High School	White	80.7%	618
Carterville Intermediate School	White	81.5%	518
Carterville Junior High School	White	83.7%	362
Crab Orchard Elementary School	White	96.7%	336
Crab Orchard High School	White	97.3%	147
Herrin Community Unit School District 4 Elementary School	White	78.4%	677
Herrin High School	White	85.6%	660
Herrin Middle School	White	81.8%	495
Jefferson Elementary School	White	78.4%	393
Jefferson Elementary School	White	92.7%	303
Johnston City High School	White	86.7%	330
Lincoln Elementary School	White	88.2%	136
Lincoln Elementary School	White	67.1%	490
Longfellow Elementary School	White	72.2%	241
Marion High School	White	77%	1,139
Marion Junior High School	White	75.3%	721
North Side Primary Center	White	77.7%	484
Tri-C Elementary School	White	81.9%	700
Washington Elementary School	White	76.8%	487
Washington Middle School	White	89.8%	313