Mercer County School District 404
Mercer County School District 404 is a public school district based in Joy, Illinois, serving 1,274 students in 5 schools. By enrollment it ranks #309 of the 376 Illinois districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 18% of them. Its schools average 255 students each, fewer than the Illinois median of 465. Its superintendent is Stacey Day. It spends about $14,752 per student on day-to-day operations, 12% less than the Illinois median. It has roughly 11.8 students per teacher.
How Mercer County compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Mercer County | Illinois median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $14,752 | $16,815 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $9,030 | $10,013 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $20.6 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $21.9 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 108 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Total staff (full-time equivalent) | 294 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 11.8 | 13.6 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 425 | 490 | 2024-25 |
Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The Illinois median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.
Leadership
Moves tracker →Stacey Day
Source: Illinois State Board of Education, Directory of Educational Entities, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
0 stories matchedWe haven't matched any stories to Mercer County School District 404 yet. Recent Illinois coverage is on the Illinois page.
Peer districts in Illinois
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Peotone CUSD 207UPeotone | 1,280 | 5 | $16,316 | 12.4 | #306 |
| Litchfield CUSD 12Litchfield | 1,279 | 5 | $16,440 | 13.3 | #307 |
| Bradley School District 61Bradley | 1,278 | 3 | $16,513 | 11.3 | #308 |
| Mercer County School District 404Joy · this district | 1,274 | 5 | $14,752 | 11.8 | #309 |
| Farmington Central CUSD 265Farmington | 1,269 | 3 | $14,150 | 14.6 | #310 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perry Central Com Schools CorpLeopold, IN | 1,275 | $8,986 | 16.1 |
| PrattPratt, KS | 1,275 | $10,427 | 13.9 |
| Ovid-Elsie Area SchoolsElsie, MI | 1,275 | $11,310 | 16.1 |
| Payette Joint DistrictPayette, ID | 1,274 | $9,535 | 16.8 |
Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.
Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-il-mercer-county-school-district-404