West Massachusetts News

There were 430 African American students enrolled in Hampshire County districts in the 2022-23 school year, 2.7% less than the previous year, according to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Data showed that Hampshire County districts welcomed a total of 15,813 students during the 2022-23 school year. Among them, African American pupils comprised 2.7% of the student body to be the third least represented ethnicity in the county districts.

Among the 19 districts in Hampshire County, Amherst Public Schools recorded the highest enrollment of African American students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of 117 students.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Hampshire County.

Students in Massachusetts are predominantly white, making up 53% of the student population in the state. Hispanic students come in second, representing over 25% of Massachusetts' student body.

However, across the state, Hispanic and Native American students suffered the highest high school dropout rates.

Underrepresentation is also found among educators in Massachusetts. The Rennie Center reported that only 9% of teachers are people of color.

District	% of African American Students Enrolment	Total Enrollment
Amherst Public Schools	11.1%	1,050
Amherst-Pelham Regional Public Schools	7.6%	1,230
Belchertown Public Schools	1.2%	2,125
Chesterfield-Goshen Regional School District	0.7%	145
Easthampton Public School District	1.3%	1,413
Gateway Regional School District	0.4%	775
Granby Public Schools	0.3%	718
Hadley Public Schools	4.3%	494
Hampshire Regional School District	0.5%	662
Hatfield Public Schools	0.3%	345
Northampton Public Schools	2.9%	2,573
Northampton-Smith Vocational Agricultural School District	0.9%	566
Pelham School District	5.3%	131
South Hadley Public Schools	1.8%	1,678
Southampton Public Schools	0%	477
Ware Public Schools	2.6%	1,124
Westhampton School District	0%	104
Williamsburg School District	0.8%	127
Worthington School District	0%	76