Will County Gazette

There were 32,003 Hispanic students enrolled in Will County school districts in the 2022-23 school year, 1.5% more than the previous year, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.

Data showed that Hispanic students made up 31.2% of the 102,683 students in the county. They were the second most represented ethnicity at the time.

Among the 29 districts in Will County, Valley View Community Unit School District 365U recorded the highest enrollment of Hispanic students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 7,104 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Will 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	Hispanic Student Enrollment Percentage	Total enrollment
Valley View Community Unit School District 365U	47.3%	15,009
Joliet Public School District 86	67.6%	9,508
Plainfield School District 202	25.4%	24,737
Joliet Township High School District 204	58.1%	6,775
Troy Community Consolidated School District 30C	36.8%	3,945
Lockport Township High School District 205	21.8%	3,834
Lincoln Way Community High School District 210	12.3%	6,616
Crete-Monee Community Unit School District 201-U	18.2%	4,331
New Lenox School District 122	11.5%	5,036
Homer Community Consolidated School District 33C	10.8%	3,672
Richland Grade School District 88A	47%	809
Summit Hill School District 161	13.4%	2,476
Beecher Community Unit School District 200U	24.7%	1,018
Will County School District 92	17.2%	1,356
Frankfort Community Consolidated School District 157C	8.3%	2,636
Chaney-Monge School District 88	48.6%	405
Manhattan School District 114	10.4%	1,847
Laraway Community Consolidated School District 70C	43%	426
Fairmont School District 89	59%	293
Mokena School District 159	11.1%	1,545
Channahon School District 17	14.6%	1,161
Peotone Community Unit School District 207U	12.8%	1,267
Reed Custer Community Unit School District 255U	12.2%	1,325
Wilmington Community Unit School District 209U	12.6%	1,231
Rockdale School District 84	51.5%	239
Lockport School District 91	20.9%	550
Elwood Community Consolidated School District 203	27.2%	265
Taft School District 90	23.4%	265
Union School District 81	44.3%	106