Illinois Valley Times

There were 359 Black students enrolled in LaSalle 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 2.5% of the 14,467 students in LaSalle County during the 2021-22 school year. They were the second least represented ethnicity.

Among the 26 districts in LaSalle County, Streator Elementary School District 44 recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2021-22 school year, with a total of 76 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with LaSalle 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
Streator Elementary School District 44	5.1	1,477
Ottawa Elementary School District 141	3.3	1,748
La Salle Elementary School District 122	5.3	885
LaSalle-Peru Township High School District 120	3.3	1,213
Streator Township High School District 40	4.8	816
Ottawa Township High School District 140	2.4	1,260
Mendota Community Consolidated School District 289	2.7	1,013
Wallace Community Consolidated School District 195	3.6	418
Marseilles Elementary School District 150	2.7	517
Peru Elementary School District 124	1.4	937
Oglesby Elementary School District 125	0	449
Allen-Otter Creek Community Consolidated School District 65	0	92
Leland Community Unit School District 1	0	239
Lostant Community Unit School District 425	0	63
Earlville Community Unit School District 9	0	375
Rutland Community Consolidated School District 230	0	72
Mendota Township High School District 280	0	503
Miller Township Community Consolidated School District 210	0	168
Tonica Community Consolidated School District 79	0	131
Seneca Township High School District 160	0	383
Seneca Community Consolidated School District 170	0	466
Community Unit School District 2	0	638
Waltham Community Consolidated School District 185	0	205
Deer Park Community Consolidated School District 82	0	63
Dimmick Community Consolidated School District 175	0	150
Grand Ridge Community Consolidated School District 95	0	186