Macon Reporter

Arcola Elementary School had the highest enrollment among Douglas County schools, welcoming 404 students during the 2021-22 school year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education report.

Out of all the students welcomed in the 2021-22 school year, 51% of the students were girls, and 49% were boys.

Data also showed that most of the students were white, representing 54.5% of the student body at Arcola Elementary School.

Among the 12 schools in Douglas County, North Ward Elementary School ranked second in enrollment with 372 students, while Villa Grove Elementary School welcomed 320 students to be ranked third in the 2021-22 school year.

Arcola Elementary School is a part of Arcola Consolidated Unit School District 306, which generally encompasses schools within Douglas County with its main office in Arcola.

In the previous school year, North Ward Elementary School had the highest number of students among Douglas County schools.

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	City	Total Enrolment
Arcola Elementary School	Arcola	404
North Ward Elementary School	Tuscola	372
Villa Grove Elementary School	Villa Grove	320
East Prairie Middle School	Tuscola	303
Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-Hammond High School	Arthur	298
Arcola High School	Arcola	297
Arthur Grade School	Arthur	297
Tuscola High School	Tuscola	272
Atwood-Hammond Grade School	Atwood	256
Villa Grove High School	Villa Grove	191
Lovington Grade School	Lovington	173
Villa Grove Junior High School	Villa Grove	98