Grundy Reporter

The majority of students in Grundy County schools were white in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Of the 11,948 students attending Grundy County schools, 72.8% were white. Hispanic students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 18.4% of Grundy County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common group in Grundy County, representing 74.4% of the student body.

Minooka Intermediate School had the most even distribution of races among county schools, including 64.3% white students, 21.8% Hispanic students, 7.4% African American students, 4.6% multiracial students, and 1.8% Asian students.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 1% 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.

Illinois has increased its state funding for public schools by $350 million, bringing the total to $8.6 billion for the upcoming year. This is in line with a 2017 law aiming to provide adequate funding to all schools by 2027.

However, experts suggest that this goal may be delayed unless education funding jumps to at least $550 million. According to a Center for Tax and Budget Accountability report, there’s currently a funding gap of about $2.3 billion.

School name	Most prevalent ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
Aux Sable Elementary School	White	70.5%	610
Braceville Elementary School	White	80.9%	115
Coal City Early Childhood Center	White	81.7%	416
Coal City Elementary School	White	84.8%	282
Coal City High School	White	88.7%	626
Coal City Intermediate School	White	86.6%	290
Coal City Middle School	White	86%	492
Gardner Elementary School	White	90.1%	151
Gardner-South Wilmington High School	White	87.3%	150
Mazon-Verona-Kinsman Elementary School	White	90.7%	161
Mazon-Verona-Kinsman Middle School	White	86.4%	140
Minooka Community High School	White	68.4%	2,850
Minooka Elementary School	White	65.9%	502
Minooka Intermediate School	White	64.3%	980
Minooka Junior High School	White	68.4%	1,048
Minooka Primary Center	White	61.6%	255
Morris Community High School	White	71.2%	876
Nettle Creek Elementary School	White	89.7%	78
Saratoga Elementary School	White	68%	818
Shabbona Middle School	White	70.4%	311
South Wilmington Grade School	White	88.8%	80
White Oak Elementary	White	71.4%	717