South Central Reporter

There were 1,162 white students enrolled in Southwestern Community Unit School District 9 in the 2021-22 school year, 4.5% less than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education report.

Data showed that Southwestern Community Unit School District 9 welcomed 1,422 students during the 2021-22 school year. Among them, white students comprised 94.8% of the student body to be the most represented ethnicity in the district.

Southwestern Community Unit School District 9 roughly covers schools within Macoupin County and has a main office in Brighton.

Among the five schools in Southwestern Community Unit School District 9, Southwestern High School recorded the highest enrollment of white students in the 2021-22 school year, with a total of 365 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 three percent 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.

Year	Total District Enrollment	Total of White Students	White students %
2022	1,226	1,162	94.8%
2021	1,274	1,217	95.5%
2020	1,360	1,304	95.9%
2019	1,418	1,354	95.5%
2018	1,422	1,354	95.2%