DeKalb Times

There were 2,042 Black students enrolled in DeKalb County school districts in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that Black students made up 12.7% of the 16,139 students in the county. They were the third most represented ethnicity at the time.

Among the eight districts in DeKalb County, DeKalb Community Unit School District 428 recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 1,855 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with DeKalb 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
DeKalb Community Unit School District 428	27.8%	6,664
Sycamore Community Unit School District 427	3.6%	3,539
Genoa-Kingston Community Unit School District 424	1.6%	1,531
Indian Creek School District 425	1.8%	703
Somonauk Community Unit School District 432	1.6%	744
Sandwich Community Unit School District 430	0.6%	1,858