South West Illinois News

The majority of students in Monroe County schools were white in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 5,049 students attending Monroe County schools, 93.2% were white. Hispanic students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 3% of Monroe County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Monroe County, representing 93.8% of the student body.

Columbia High School had the most diverse student body in Monroe County, including Asian, Hispanic, multiracial, and white.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 1.3% compared to the previous year.

In the 2021-22 school year, Illinois had roughly 1.9 million students enrolled across approximately schools. There were more than 130,000 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 15 students, compared to the national average of 1:16.

Illinois has increased its state funding for public schools by $350 million, bringing the total to $8.6 billion for the upcoming year. This is in line with a 2017 law aiming to provide adequate funding to all schools by 2027.

However, experts suggest that this goal may be delayed unless education funding jumps to at least $550 million. According to a Center for Tax and Budget Accountability report, there’s currently a funding gap of about $2.3 billion.

School name	Most prevalent ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
Columbia High School	White	90.8%	630
Columbia Middle School	White	92.1%	607
Eagleview Elementary School	White	90.5%	315
Gardner Elementary School	White	95.2%	398
Parkview Elementary School	White	92.1%	432
Rogers Elementary School	White	94.5%	365
Valmeyer Elementary School	White	98%	148
Valmeyer High School	White	95.7%	116
Valmeyer Junior High School	White	95.3%	86
W.J. Zahnow Elementary School	White	93.9%	478
Waterloo High School	White	93.1%	861
Waterloo Junior High School	White	94.8%	613