McLean County Times

There were 3,102 Black students enrolled in McLean County school districts in the 2022-23 school year, 0.3% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that Black students made up 13.7% of the 22,663 students in the county. They were the second most represented ethnicity at the time.

Among the eight districts in McLean County, McLean County Unit School District 5 recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 1,826 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with McLean County.

In 2022, Illinois had 1,925,415 students enrolled in a total of 3,977 schools. There were 130,467 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.

District	Black Student Enrollment Percentage	Total enrollment
McLean County Unit School District 5	14.8%	12,308
Bloomington School District 87	25.7%	4,866
Tri-Valley Community Unit School District 3	1.4%	1,084
Olympia Community Unit School District 16	0.6%	1,739