Dupage Policy Journal

There were 17 Black students enrolled in Wayne 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 0.7% of the 2,356 students in Wayne County during the 2021-22 school year. They were the second least represented ethnicity.

Among the seven districts in Wayne County, Fairfield Public School District 112 recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2021-22 school year, with a total of 17 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Wayne 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
Fairfield Public School District 112	2.8	614
Fairfield Community High School District 225	0	423
Jasper Community Consolidated School District 17	0	178
New Hope Community Consolidated School District 6	0	189
North Wayne Community Unit School District 200	0	378
Wayne City Community Unit School District 100	0	496
Geff Community Consolidated School District 14	0	78