Education

 Public school districts everywhere have seen dramatic increases in the number of low-income students as overall enrollment has decreased or remained the same. 

Across the county, nearly half of students enrolled in public schools are now low income — a 56 percent increase over a decade ago. 

Among schools with 900 or more students, Rantoul, Champaign and Urbana school districts have the highest percentages of low-income students. Low-income students are defined as all schoolchildren (ages 3 through 17) receiving free or reduced-price lunches or other forms of government aid.