Winthrop Harbor School District 1 reported 57 suspensions just during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Illinois Report Card.
In total, there were 59 disciplinary actions recorded during the school year, of which 57 were suspensions representing a rate of approximately 9.8 incidents per 100 of the district’s enrolled students. There were an additional two cases of students being removed to alternative settings rather than being suspended or expelled.
Among in-school suspensions where a reason was specified, the most common cause was incidents involving violence without physical injury, with four recorded cases. There were also two incidents involving drugs. Additionally, 27 cases were classified under “other reason” or left unspecified.
There were 40 disciplinary incidents involving male students. Another 17 incidents involved female students.
All 57 suspensions issued in the district involved elementary or middle school students.
Out-of-school suspensions most commonly were for incidents involving drugs, with four cases reported. Additionally, 15 cases were classified under the “other reason” category.
Hispanic and white students were tied for the highest number of suspensions in Winthrop Harbor School District 1, each with 23 suspensions during the 2023-24 school year.
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 | 4 | 2 |
| Drug offenses | 2 | 4 |
| Firearm | – | – |
| Other dangerous weapons | 1 | – |
| Tobacco | 1 | – |
| Other reason | 27 | 15 |
| Total | 35 | 22 |
| Duration | In-School Suspension | Out-of-School Suspension |
|---|---|---|
| One day or less | 12 | 10 |
| 1-2 days | 21 | 4 |
| 2-3 days | 1 | 1 |
| 3-4 days | 1 | 2 |
| 4-10 days | – | 4 |
| More than 10 days | – | 1 |
