NW Illinois News

There were 560 Hispanic students enrolled in Stephenson County school districts in the 2021-22 school year, 7.9% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education report.

Data showed that Hispanic students made up 9.8% of the 5,725 students in Stephenson County during the 2021-22 school year. They were the third most represented ethnicity.

Among the five districts in Stephenson County, Freeport School District 145 recorded the highest enrollment of Hispanic students in the 2021-22 school year, with a total of 459 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Stephenson County.

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.

District	% of Hispanic students enrolment	Total enrollment
Freeport School District 145	13.4%	3,427
Lena Winslow Community Unit School District 202	5.1%	799
Pearl City Community Unit School District 200	8.4%	416
Dakota Community Unit School District 201	3.2%	771
Orangeville Community Unit School District 203	0%	312