Peoria Standard

Illini Central Community Unit School District 189 reported 32 suspensions during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois Report Card.

In total, there were 32 disciplinary actions recorded during the school year, representing a rate of approximately 4.8 incidents per 100 of the district’s enrolled students.

Among in-school suspension where a reason was specified, the only case was given for incident involving violence without physical injury. Additionally, two cases were classified under "other reason" or left unspecified.

There were 25 disciplinary incidents involving male students. Another seven incidents involved female students.

Of all suspensions issued in the district, 22 involved elementary or middle school students, while 10 involved high school students.

Out-of-school suspensions most commonly were for incidents involving violence without physical injury, with 11 cases reported. Additionally, seven cases were classified under the "other reason" category.

In terms of ethnicity, white students, who made up 94.8% of the Illini Central Community Unit School District 189 student body, were suspended the most in the district, with 24 suspensions reported during the 2023-24 school year. They were followed by Hispanic students, who made up 2.9% of the student body, and received five suspensions.

Illinois has approved a 2025 budget that allocates $8.6 billion to K-12 education, a $350 million increase from the previous fiscal year—the minimum required under the state 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	-	-
Violence with injury	-	1
Violence without injury	1	11
Drug offenses	-	-
Firearm	-	-
Other dangerous weapons	-	-
Tobacco	-	10
Other reason	2	7
Total	3	29

Duration	In-School Suspension	Out-of-School Suspension
One day or less	-	-
1-2 days	3	10
2-3 days	-	10
3-4 days	-	2
4-10 days	-	7
More than 10 days	-	-