Southern Illinois News

The majority of students in Massac County schools were white in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 2,068 students attending Massac County schools, 80.9% were white. multiracial students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 7.7% of Massac County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Massac County, representing 80.3% of the student body.

Massac County High School, Massac Junior High School, and Metropolis Elementary School had the most diverse student body in Massac County, including African American, Hispanic, multiracial, and white.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 1.7% 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.

Illinois has increased its state funding for public schools by $350 million, bringing the total to $8.6 billion for the upcoming year. This is in line with a 2017 law aiming to provide adequate funding to all schools by 2027.

However, experts suggest that this goal may be delayed unless education funding jumps to at least $550 million. According to a Center for Tax and Budget Accountability report, there’s currently a funding gap of about $2.3 billion.

School name	Most prevalent ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
Brookport Elementary School	White	77.3%	176
Franklin Elementary School	White	86.8%	136
Jefferson Elementary School	White	91.7%	121
Joppa Junior & Senior High School	White	87.6%	97
Maple Grove Elementary School	White	88.3%	128
Massac County High School	White	79.1%	555
Massac Junior High School	White	78.9%	246
Metropolis Elementary School	White	74.2%	481
Unity Elementary School	White	93%	128