Enrollment is beginning to fall at Washington Community High School after several years of increases.
Sixth-day enrollment figures from August reported by Superintendent Kyle Freeman at the most recent WCHS School Board meeting showed there were 1,360 students at the school – a drop of 44 students, or 3.2%, from the 2024-25 school year.
Enrollment at the high school is predicted to continue falling to less than 1,300 in the 2030-31 school year and below 1,100 in the 2034-35 school year.
District 50, District 51, District 52 and St. Patrick School in Washington also saw enrollment drops from the previous school year according to sixth-day figures, with District 51 losing 48 students, from 1,311 to 1,263 – or 3.6%.
Total enrollment in schools across the city was 4,049, down 125 students (2.9%) from a year ago.
The Morton School District and Pekin Community High School also reported 2025-26 school year enrollment drops, with Morton Superintendent Joe Sander saying enrollment is not just falling in Tazewell County but throughout the region.
Neither Sander, a former WCHS assistant superintendent, nor Freeman expressed concern about their enrollment drop, saying it was expected.
“We’re doing just fine,” Freeman said.
In another enrollment report that Freeman provided to the board, of the 1,355 students at the school as of Sept. 3, there were 364 freshmen, 289 sophomores, 318 juniors and 384 seniors; 705 girls and 650 boys; 164 special education students; and 286 low-income students.
Five Points may request help
Byron Buck, the school board’s representative on the Five Points Washington board, reported that a committee has been formed by Five Points to explore having the taxing bodies that use the multi-purpose facility help fund needed capital improvements.
Projects on summer wish list
Bids for proposed summer 2026 capital improvement projects at WCHS will be sought following the board’s approval.
Among the projects are creating additional space for auto and construction trades classes in the Ashbrook Building; widening the sidewalk along East Jefferson Street from the teachers’ parking lot to North Wilmor Road, and adding lighting; adding lighting to the four tennis courts on the west side of the eight-court tennis complex; building a new ticket booth and sidewalk on the east side of Babcook Field; and moving the weight room out of the Ashbrook Building into a new, larger space.
“Without a doubt, hands down, the weight room is the most used portion of the school,” Freeman said.
WCHS joins mutual aid group
In other action:
• The board approved a mutual aid agreement with other area schools in Regional Office of Education 53 [Tazewell, Woodford and Mason counties] and the Peoria County Regional Office of Education for help in the aftermath of a catastrophic event.
• The board approved the high school’s 2025-26 fiscal year budget, with the education fund balanced at $21.6 million of revenue and expenditures.
• The board approved the hiring of Alex Hurst as boys lacrosse coach, Makenna Beard as competitive cheerleading coach, and Kara Kamienski as unified sports coach.
• The board approved allowing the high school’s athletic department to have a bonfire Oct. 1, as part of the Community Night festivities during homecoming week as long as weather conditions are favorable. Longtime former athletic department secretary Sherry Thurston will receive the Pride of Panther award on Community Night.
• The board approved the creation of a Creative Writing Club now that the club has passed its three-year probation period.
