West Central Reporter

School administrators within McDonough County reportedly handed out 349 suspensions solely during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois Report Card.

In total, there were 350 disciplinary actions recorded during the school year, of which 349 were suspensions representing an average of 0.1 actions per student in the county. There was an additional case of a student being removed to alternative settings rather than being suspended or expelled.

Among the 11 schools in the county, Macomb Junior High School reported the highest number of disciplinary actions at the time, with a total of 104—or 29.7% of all incidents countywide.

The county reported that most in-school suspensions where a reason was specified were given for incidents involving violence without physical injury, with 23 recorded cases. There were also nine incidents involving tobacco. Additionally, 62 cases were classified under "other reason" or left unspecified.

There were 250 disciplinary incidents involving male students. Another 99 incidents involved female students.

Of all suspensions issued in the McDonough County schools, 219 involved elementary or middle school students, while 130 involved high school students.

Out-of-school suspensions most commonly were for incidents involving violence without physical injury, with 65 cases reported. Additionally, 126 cases were classified under the "other reason" category.

In terms of ethnicity, white students, who made up 79.2% of the student body in McDonough County schools, were suspended the most in the county, with 230 suspensions reported during the 2023-24 school year (65.9% of all disciplinary actions). They were followed by Black students, who made up 8.6% of the student body, and received 56 suspensions (16%).

Some schools or districts may not publish complete disciplinary data due to privacy protections or reporting limitations, which could affect the totals.

Illinois allocated $8.6 billion to K-12 education in its 2025 budget—a $350 million increase over FY 2024, meeting the minimum required under the state’s school funding formula.

In 2024, Illinois registered a teacher retention rate of almost 90%. Yet, around 91% of superintendents reported having a 'serious' problem teacher shortage problem. In total, almost 4,100 teaching positions remained vacant by the end of the year.

“They’re putting a substitute in there, that’s somebody with a four-year degree that’s not in teaching. They’re using a retired teacher…or worse than that, they’re canceling the class, putting the kids in other classrooms, putting them in study hall, but those are strategies we have to use if there’s no qualified teacher,” said Beth Crider, regional superintendent of Peoria County Regional Office of Education #48.

Type of Incident	In-School Suspension	Out-of-School Suspension
Alcohol	-	1
Violence with injury	7	11
Violence without injury	23	65
Drug offenses	4	10
Firearm	-	-
Other dangerous weapons	-	1
Tobacco	9	30
Other reason	62	126
Total	105	244

Duration	In-School Suspension	Out-of-School Suspension
One day or less	16	27
1-2 days	68	152
2-3 days	13	30
3-4 days	7	23
4-10 days	1	9
More than 10 days	-	3