Carbondale Reporter

Murphysboro Community Unit School District 186 reported 981 suspensions just during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois Report Card.

In total, there were 983 disciplinary actions recorded during the school year, of which 981 were suspensions representing a rate of approximately 53.1 incidents per 100 of the district’s enrolled students. There were an additional two cases of students being removed to alternative settings rather than being suspended or expelled.

Among in-school suspensions where a reason was specified, the most common cause was incidents involving violence without physical injury, with 72 recorded cases. There were also seven incidents involving tobacco. Additionally, 610 cases were classified under "other reason" or left unspecified.

There were 613 disciplinary incidents involving male students. Another 368 incidents involved female students.

Of all suspensions issued in the district, 294 involved elementary or middle school students, while 687 involved high school students.

Out-of-school suspensions most commonly were for incidents involving violence without physical injury, with 176 cases reported. Additionally, 95 cases were classified under the "other reason" category.

In terms of ethnicity, white students, who made up 66.3% of the Murphysboro Community Unit School District 186 student body, were suspended the most in the district, with 414 suspensions reported during the 2023-24 school year. They were followed by Black students, who made up 16% of the student body, and received 389 suspensions.

Illinois has approved a 2025 budget that allocates $8.6 billion to K-12 education, a $350 million increase from the previous fiscal year—the minimum required under the state funding formula.

In 2024, Illinois registered a teacher retention rate of almost 90%. Yet, around 91% of superintendents reported having a 'serious' problem teacher shortage problem. In total, almost 4,100 teaching positions remained vacant by the end of the year.

“They’re putting a substitute in there, that’s somebody with a four-year degree that’s not in teaching. They’re using a retired teacher…or worse than that, they’re canceling the class, putting the kids in other classrooms, putting them in study hall, but those are strategies we have to use if there’s no qualified teacher,” said Beth Crider, regional superintendent of Peoria County Regional Office of Education #48.

Type of Incident	In-School Suspension	Out-of-School Suspension
Alcohol	-	-
Violence with injury	-	-
Violence without injury	72	176
Drug offenses	-	12
Firearm	-	-
Other dangerous weapons	-	5
Tobacco	7	4
Other reason	610	95
Total	689	292

Duration	In-School Suspension	Out-of-School Suspension
One day or less	278	27
1-2 days	375	143
2-3 days	27	25
3-4 days	8	61
4-10 days	1	33
More than 10 days	-	3