Galesburg Reporter

There were 646 Black students enrolled in Knox County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 2.4% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that Black students made up 10.5% of the 6,150 students during the 2023-24 school year. They were the second most represented ethnicity in the county schools.

Among the 16 schools in Knox County, Galesburg High School recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 158 students.

As of the 2023-24 school year, Illinois public schools enrolled approximately 1.85 million students across nearly 4,000 schools. There was roughly one teacher for every 15 students, slightly better than the national average of 1:16.

K-12 enrollment has been declining in Illinois for many years, reflecting the state's demographic changes. Between the 2019–20 and 2022–23 school years, Illinois public school enrollment declined from approximately 1.98 million to 1.85 million students, a decrease of about 127,000 students or 6.4%. This decline is significantly higher than the typical annual decreases of 0.5% to 1.5% observed in the preceding years, reflecting broader demographic shifts within the state.

School name	% of Black students enrolment	Total enrollment
Galesburg High School	13.6%	1,158
Steele School	26.6%	519
King Elementary School	20.6%	506
Lombard Middle School	18.1%	513
Churchill Junior High School	16.2%	543
Silas Willard Elementary School	15%	433
ROWVA Elementary School	0%	376
Hedding Grade School	0%	382
Williamsfield Elementary School	0%	112
Williamsfield High School	0%	97
Williamsfield Middle School	0%	77
Mable Woolsey Elementary School	0%	397
Knoxville Junior High School	0%	247
Knoxville Senior High School	0%	292
ROWVA Junior/Senior High School	0%	229
Abingdon-Avon High School	0%	269