Key issues impacting Belleville high school education

This collection of stories explores the factors shaping education in Belleville high schools. Local schools have taken steps such as equipping high school staff with panic buttons to address safety and adjusting to severe weather by shifting to e-learning days during winter storms.

The articles also describe plans for major upgrades in District 118 schools, including security cameras and improved playgrounds, and highlight ongoing funding questions as home values rise and school tax rates change. The set discusses the options local leaders consider for cellphone policies in response to a possible state ban, and how addressing the teacher shortage leads some districts to use retired educators and alternate staffing models. Other stories follow new administrative appointments in Belleville schools and how leadership promotes belonging through parent engagement, along with proposals to use federal funding for full-service community school models in neighboring East St. Louis. Read the stories below.

Avant Elementary School Principal Quanshanda Nicholson (left), American Federation of Teachers Secretary-Treasurer Fedrick Ingram (center) and East St. Louis Federation of Teachers President Terry Turley (right) observe children practicing group math exercises at Avant Elementary in Washington Park, Ill., on Oct. 8, 2024. By Joshua Carter

NO. 1: CAN GRANT-FUNDED ‘FULL SERVICE COMMUNITY SCHOOLS’ IMPROVE STUDENT OUTCOMES IN EAST ST. LOUIS?

“It has great promise. It’s proven: kids do better. They learn better. Attendance is better, the whole nine yards.” | Published October 9, 2024 | Read Full Story by ksmits@bnd.comKelly Smits

NO. 2: BELLEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS WILL WEAR PANIC BUTTONS TO HELP HEAD OFF EMERGENCIES

The same system was used at Apalachee High School in Georgia, which law enforcement officials said likely saved lives. | Published October 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kelly Smits

NO. 3: HOME VALUES SURGED IN BELLEVILLE. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN FOR THE SCHOOLS’ PROPERTY TAX RATE?

“I think in the 18 years I’ve been up here, that is the largest projected increase in our equalized assessed valuation,” one superintendent said. | Published November 21, 2024 | Read Full Story by Kelly Smits

Four Madison County high schools have reportedly been identified by name and logo in threads on an anonymous website where users ask for nude photos of women by name and graduating class. By Fotolia

NO. 4: BILL WOULD BAN CELLPHONES IN ILLINOIS CLASSROOMS. WHAT’S SCHOOL POLICY IN THE METRO-EAST?

From “locked” pouches to exceptions for educational purposes, southwestern Illinois schools’ cellphone policies are diverse. Could proposed legislation change that? | Published March 14, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert

Outside of Belleville 118’s school district building. By Joshua Carter

NO. 5: BELLEVILLE 118 BOARD CONSIDERING $12M IN UPGRADES AT 11 SCHOOLS. HERE’S WHAT’S INCLUDED

“We are probably going to be able to get more things done this summer for the amount of money we are spending than ever before,” Superintendent Ryan Boike said. | Published March 25, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert

NO. 6: FIFTH GRADE TEACHER, BELLEVILLE WEST COACH JOINS DISTRICT 118 ADMINISTRATION

“She’s always just had an amazing heart for kids,” Principal Monet Webster said of the new assistant principal. | Published April 17, 2025 | Read Full Story by Madison Lammert

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.