South Central Reporter

There were 290 Black students enrolled in Marion County school districts in the 2021-22 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education report.

Data showed that Black students made up 4.7% of the 6,173 students in Marion County during the 2021-22 school year. They were the second least represented ethnicity.

Among the 13 districts in Marion County, Centralia School District 135 recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2021-22 school year, with a total of 203 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Marion 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 Black students enrolment	Total enrollment
Centralia School District 135	18.1	1,121
Centralia High School District 200	7.7	849
Central City School District 133	3.3	360
Odin Public School District 722	4.2	237
Iuka Community Consolidated School District 7	0	220
Raccoon Consolidated School District 1	0	230
Kell Consolidated School District 2	0	65
Salem Community High School District 600	0	691
Salem School District 111	0	913
Sandoval Community Unit School District 501	0	410
Selmaville Community Consolidated School District 10	0	244
South Central Community Unit School District 401	0	612
Patoka Community Unit School District 100	0	221