Carbondale Reporter

Murphysboro High School, through a series of tweets, provided insights into various statistics and issues concerning education in Illinois. The tweets, posted on January 31, 2025, cover topics ranging from teacher salaries to student demographics within the Murphysboro Community Unit School District 186.

In a tweet shared on January 31, 2025, Murphysboro High School highlighted the average state teacher salary in Illinois for 2023 as $73,916 and the average administrative salary as $116,908. They also noted that "the average student-to-administrative ratio is 141:1" and "the average student-to-teacher ratio is 17:1." Additionally, it was mentioned that "58% of teachers in Illinois have a master's degree or higher." "Original quotation"

On the same day, another tweet addressed the issue of educator shortages in Illinois. According to the Educator Shortage Survey referenced by Murphysboro High School, there are "3,694 teacher positions filled by alternative measures" such as substitutes and retired educators. Furthermore, they reported that "4,096 teaching positions were unfilled for SY24 at a vacancy rate of 3.0%," with "91% of school leaders indicating a minor, serious, or severe problem with teacher shortages." "Original quotation"

A subsequent tweet focused on specific data regarding Murphysboro Community Unit School District 186. It stated that the district has "147 total teachers earning an average salary of $53,770," with a demographic breakdown showing that "74.9 percent are women and 25.1 percent are men." The district's racial composition was also detailed as being "69 percent White, 15.9 percent Black, 7.1 percent Hispanic," among others. "Original quotation"