SE Illinois News

There were 1,952 white students enrolled in White County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 1.1% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that white students made up 94% of the 2,076 students during the 2023-24 school year. They were the most represented ethnicity in the county schools.

Among the nine schools in White County, Norris City-Omaha-Enfield Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of white students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 383 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 White students enrolment	Total enrollment
Norris City-Omaha-Enfield Elementary School	93.4%	410
Carmi-White County High School	93.2%	384
Washington Attendance Center	95.6%	252
Carmi-White County Junior High School	92.3%	207
Norris City-Omaha-Enfield High School	97.3%	184
Lincoln Attendance Center	88.9%	190
Jefferson Attendance Center	93.1%	175
Grayville Junior Senior High School	99.3%	137
Wells Elementary School	96.4%	137