Chambana Sun

There were 2,068 white students enrolled in Ford County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 2.3% less than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that white students made up 83.9% of the 2,465 students during the 2023-24 school year. They were the most represented ethnicity in the county schools.

Among the eight schools in Ford County, Clara Peterson Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of white students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 490 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
Clara Peterson Elementary School	83.8%	585
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley Elementary School	84.5%	498
Paxton-Buckley-Loda High School	83.5%	364
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley High School	89.1%	266
Paxton-Buckley-Loda Junior High School	82%	278
Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley Middle School	84.9%	212
Tri-Point Junior High/Elementary	80.3%	142
Tri Point Elementary School	78.3%	120