South West Illinois News

There were 3,249 white students enrolled in Randolph County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 1.4% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that white students made up 85.1% of the 3,816 students during the 2023-24 school year. They were the most represented ethnicity in the county schools.

Among the 13 schools in Randolph County, Red Bud Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of white students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 563 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.

School name	% of White students enrolment	Total enrollment
Red Bud Elementary School	93.1%	605
Sparta Lincoln School	69.3%	732
Chester Elementary School	81.2%	623
Red Bud High School	95.1%	385
Chester High School	88.6%	317
Steeleville Elementary School	92.3%	273
Sparta High School	76.6%	316
Steeleville High School	92.6%	136
Prairie Du Rocher Elementary School	99.1%	117
Evansville Attendance Center	97.3%	113
Coulterville Elementary School	90.1%	81
Coulterville High School	91%	67
Coulterville Junior High School	90.2%	51