Sangamon Sun

Nearly 10 in 10 Sangamon County public high school students aren't at grade level in math.

That's according to a Sangamon Sun analysis of 2023 test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 95.6% of Sangamon County's 272 public high school students — approximately 260 students — failed the math portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and have “minimal (or) incomplete… understanding of the knowledge and skills relative to Illinois Learning Standards.”

Students can achieve four proficiencies in their subjects: partially met, approaching, meets, and exceeds standards. This report concludes students who partially met or approached the standards have failed in the subject.

Springfield Southeast High School, the only Sangamon County high school, registered its highest failure (95.6%) rate during 2023, and the lowest (66.1%) in 2022.

Countywide, math test failure rates rose from 68.4% in 2021 to 95.6% in 2023.

Springfield Southeast High School was the only Sangamon County high school to experience an increase in failure rates in 2023, reaching 95.6%.

Statewide, failure rates increased the most in Wayne County, Greene County, Sangamon County, Pike County, and Pulaski County, where the percentage of students who failed the math exam rose to 74.1%, 86.4%, 95.6%, 96.7%, and 100%, respectively.

Statewide, 75.6% of Illinois students failed the 2023 state math exam, up from 64% in 2021.

The SAT test is administered to Illinois high school sophomores “to fulfill the requirement that students take an assessment for college and career readiness in order to receive a regular high school diploma.”

High School	# of Students	Failing % in 2021	Failing % in 2022	Failing % in 2023
Springfield Southeast High School	272	68.4%	66.1%	95.6%