2023-24 school year saw 5,875 students enrolled in Stephenson County

Dr. Donna Leak Vice-Chair - Flossmoor | solutiontree.com

By NW Illinois News

Apr 5, 2025

Stephenson County schools welcomed 5,875 students in the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

This is an increase of 2.9% over the previous school year, when there were 5,709 students enrolled in the county.

Stephenson County had the 33rd highest enrollment numbers in the state.

Of all the students welcomed at the time, 51.5% identified as male, and 48.5% as female.

Most of the students enrolled in the county were white, representing 61.4% of its student body.

Within Stephenson County, Freeport High School had the highest enrollment in the school year, welcoming 1,056 students.

As of the 2023-24 school year, Illinois public schools enrolled approximately 1.85 million students across nearly 4,000 schools. There was roughly one teacher for every 15 students, slightly better than the national average of 1:16.

K-12 enrollment has been declining in Illinois for many years, reflecting the state's demographic changes. Between the 2019–20 and 2022–23 school years, Illinois public school enrollment declined from approximately 1.98 million to 1.85 million students, a decrease of about 127,000 students or 6.4%. This decline is significantly higher than the typical annual decreases of 0.5% to 1.5% observed in the preceding years, reflecting broader demographic shifts within the state.

Enrollment in Stephenson County Schools Over 7 Years

Enrollment of Stephenson County County Schools in 2023-24 School Year

School	City	Enrollment
Black Hawk Elementary School	Freeport	323
Carl Sandburg Middle School	Freeport	428
Center Elementary School	Freeport	280
Dakota Elementary School	Dakota	405
Dakota Junior Senior High School	Dakota	341
Empire Elementary School	Freeport	303
Freeport High School	Freeport	1,056
Freeport Middle School	Freeport	472
German Valley Grade School	German Valley	80
Jones-Farrar, an International Baccalaureate World School	Freeport	336
Lena-Winslow Elementary School	Lena	421
Lena-Winslow High School	Lena	235
Lena-Winslow Junior High School	Lena	169
Lincoln-Douglas Elementary School	Freeport	314
Orangeville Elementary School	Orangeville	143
Orangeville High School	Orangeville	95
Orangeville Junior High School	Orangeville	62
Pearl City Elementary School	Pearl City	205
Pearl City High School	Pearl City	131
Pearl City Junior High School	Pearl City	76