NW Illinois News

There were 75 Black students enrolled in Whiteside County County schools in the 2021-22 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education report.

Data showed that Black students made up 0.9% of the 8,253 students during the 2021-22 school year. They were the least represented ethnicity in the county schools.

Among the 28 schools in Whiteside County County, Sterling High School recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in 2021-22 school year, with a total of 23 students.

In 2022, Illinois had 1,925,415 students enrolled in a total of 3,977 schools. There were 130,467 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 15 students, compared to the national average of 1:16.

K-12 enrollment has been declining in Illinois for many years, reflecting demographic changes. Combined public and private K-12 enrollment dropped 3% between the 2019-20 and 2020–21 school years (60,900 students), far more than the typical 0.5% to 1.5% annual enrollment declines in Illinois over the last 5 years.

School name	% of Black students enrolment	Total enrollment
Sterling High School	2.4	978
Rock Falls Township High School	2.7	558
Challand Middle School	1.8	714
Jefferson Elementary School	3.1	418
Merrill Elementary School	4.8	227
Lincoln Elementary School	0	291
Southside School	0	189
River Bend Middle School	0	207
Riverdale Preschool Center	0	133
Rock Falls Middle School	0	255
Dillon Elementary School	0	240
Washington Elementary School	0	397
Franklin Elementary School	0	363
Fulton Elementary School	0	383
Fulton High School	0	283
Northside School	0	229
Early Step Pre-School	0	45
East Coloma - Nelson Elementary School	0	231
Erie Elementary School	0	246
Erie High School	0	188
Erie Middle School	0	184
Tampico Elementary School	0	159
Prophetstown-Lyndon-Tampico Middle School	0	181
Prophetstown Elementary School	0	215
Prophetstown High School	0	199
Montmorency School	0	223
Morrison High School	0	286
Morrison Junior High School	0	231