Southern Illinois News

The majority of students in Pulaski County schools were white in the 2021-22 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 776 students attending Pulaski County schools, 57.1% were white. African American students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 33.1% of Pulaski County students.

In the previous school year, white students were the most common group in Pulaski County, representing 56.1% of the student body.

Meridian Elementary School had the most even distribution of races among county schools, including 52.5% African American students, 35.7% white students, and 10.8% multiracial students.

In the 2021-22 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county dropped 2% when compared to the previous year.

In the 2021-22 school year, Illinois had roughly 1.9 million students enrolled across approximately schools. There were more than 130,000 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.

School name	Most prevalent ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrolment
Century Elementary School	White	85.2%	169
Century Junior/Senior High School	White	80.9%	178
Meridian Elementary School	African American	52.5%	305
Meridian High School	African American	51.6%	124