Chambana Sun

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

Of the 2,233 students attending Ford County schools, 85.8% were white. Hispanic students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 6.9% of Ford County students.

In the previous school year, white students were the most common group in Ford County, representing 88% of the student body.

Clara Peterson Elementary School had the most diverse student body in Ford County, including African American, Hispanic, multiracial, and white.

In the 2021-22 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased 0.4% 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
Clara Peterson Elementary School	White	81.4%	571
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley Elementary School	White	86.6%	478
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley High School	White	89.5%	277
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley Middle School	White	90.6%	202
Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School	White	85.7%	413
Paxton-Buckley-Loda Junior High School	White	86%	292