Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 announced on Mar. 10 that it will host a YouTube Live event on March 18 to provide an update on the district’s finances and budgeting process for the upcoming 2026-2027 fiscal year.
The event aims to inform families, staff, and community members about how the district approaches financial planning and decision-making. Transparency is emphasized as a priority, with opportunities for community members to submit questions during the session.
Superintendent Theresa Plascencia said, “As we continue working through the budgeting process, it is important that our families, staff, and community members understand the factors that shape our financial decisions and how we are planning responsibly for the future. Transparency remains a priority, and we believe it is important to share information and provide opportunities for our community to stay informed.” She added that district leaders will discuss the financial outlook, explain how they are planning for the year ahead while prioritizing support for students and schools, and highlight steps taken in recent years to strengthen financial stewardship.
Waukegan Community Unit School District 60 serves Lake County and includes schools such as Andrew Cooke Magnet Elementary School, Carman-Buckner Elementary School, Clearview Elementary School, Daniel Webster Middle School, Early Learning Center, Glen Flora Elementary School, Glenwood Elementary School, Greenwood Elementary School, H.R. McCall Elementary School, Hyde Park Elementary School, Jack Benny Middle School, John S. Clark Elementary School, Little Fort Elementary School, Lyon Magnet Elementary School, Miguel Juarez Middle School, North Elementary School, Oakdale Elementary School, Robert E. Abbott Middle School, Thomas Jefferson Middle School, Washington Elementary School, Waukegan High School and Whittier Elementary School according to Illinois Report Card.
The district enrolled 15,332 students in grades pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade during the 2019-2020 school year according to Illinois Report Card. The student population is made up of approximately 3.2 percent White students; 13.2 percent Black; 79.5 percent Hispanic; and 1.3 percent Asian according to Illinois Report Card.
Financially in 2020 the district spent $23,429 per student with total expenditures reaching $359 million according to Illinois Report Card. The teaching staff consists of over one thousand teachers earning an average salary of $63,524 before pension contributions; about seventy-one percent are women while twenty-nine percent are men; no teacher had more than ten absences in a school year according to Illinois Report Card.
Chronic truancy remains a concern: In the 2020 school year there were over three thousand chronically truant students—defined as missing five percent or more of mandated days without valid excuse—representing twenty-one percent of enrollment compared with a statewide average of nearly ten percent according to Illinois Report Card.
Plascencia concluded by inviting participation: “We hope you will join us for this conversation about how we are thoughtfully planning for the future of Waukegan Public Schools.”
