Best School Systems in Michigan
What are the best school systems in Michigan?
First of all this article is going to concentrate on the top school districts around the Detroit area that includes Wayne County, Oakland County, Livingston County, Macomb County, and Washtenaw County. If you are moving to Michigan you may not know that these are the five major areas around metro Detroit. Metro Detroit is a great place to live. There are so many great things about the Detroit area that you may not know about. So let’s begin by talking about the top schools and school districts in the suburbs of Detroit and in the South Eastern Michigan. Each year in the spring students are tested by the state. I believe it is called M STEP….it used to be called the MEAP. It is standardized testing for all the students. You can look up more information about it at https://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,4615,7-140-22709—,00.html
First I want to say that many of the rankings that you see on the internet are going to be different especially from year to year. Some of the rankings are subjective and most of them have their own ranking systems. So how do you figure out which schools will be the best for your children? Which community and school district will be the best fit for your children may be some of the questions. Below I have listed three different rankings by different websites from different years. What you have to take out of this article is if the school system you are looking at is in one or more of these top of schools around metro Detroit.
When you are moving to the South East Michigan area and have school age children finding the best schools in Michigan is going to one of the top factors in choosing a community for you. I am going to give you a list of some of the top schools systems in SE Michigan. If you do not know this you will want to remember this as you look for homes in South eastern Michigan. Many cities have multiple school systems that serve the city. If you find a school system that you like it may encompass several cities. You may love a particular city and a particular schools system, but the home you choose in the city may actually fall into a different schools system. So do your research and double check with your Michigan relocation real estate agent to make sure the home you have chosen falls into the school system that you want.
Here is a list of some of the top ranked school systems in Michigan according to Niche.com. This is how Niche.com came to rank these schools.
| Factor | Description | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Academics Grade | Based on state assessment proficiency, SAT/ACT scores, and survey responses on academics from students and parents. | 50.0% |
| Teachers Grade | Based on teacher salary, teacher absenteeism, state test results, and survey responses on teachers from students and parents. | 15.0% |
| Culture & Diversity Grade | Based on racial and economic diversity and survey responses on school culture and diversity from students and parents. | 10.0% |
| Parent/Student Surveys on Overall Experience | Niche survey responses scored on a 1-5 scale regarding the overall experience of students and parents in the district. | 10.0% |
| Health & Safety Grade | Based on chronic student absenteeism, suspensions/expulsions, and survey responses on the school environment from students and parents. | 5.0% |
| Resources & Facilities Grade | Based on expenses per student, staffing, and survey responses on facilities from students and parents. | 5.0% |
| Clubs & Activities Grade | Based on expenses per student and survey responses on clubs and activities from students and parents. | 2.5% |
| Sports Grade | Based on the number of sports, participation, and survey responses on athletics and athletic facilities from students and parents. | 2.5 |
One caveat that I have to say is that these are three different website’s rankings. I myself would rank some other school districts in here. I would also rank some of them differently. You should use these lists as just one of the ways to rank school districts in the suburbs of Detroit. It is not an absolute list.
| Rank (of 640) | District | Grades | # Elementary Schools | # Middle Schools | # High Schools | # Alt. Schools | City | County | Rank score (2018) | Rank (2017) | Rank change from 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14th | Northville Public Schools | PK, KG-12 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Northville | Wayne | 0.95 | 9 | 5 |
| 17th | Dexter Community School District | PK, KG-12 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Dexter | Washtenaw | 0.944 | 26 | 9 |
| 25th | Bloomfield Hills Schools | PK, KG-12 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 3 | Bloomfield Hills | Oakland | 0.932 | 24 | 1 |
| 26th | Novi Community School District | PK, KG-12 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | Novi | Oakland | 0.93 | 15 | 11 |
| 28th | Grosse Ile Township Schools | PK, KG-12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | Grosse Ile | Wayne | 0.921 | 29 | 1 |
| 30th | Birmingham Public Schools | PK, KG-12 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 0 | Beverly Hills | Oakland | 0.911 | 32 | 2 |
| 32nd | Rochester Community School District | PK, KG-12 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 1 | Rochester | Oakland | 0.903 | 22 | 10 |
| 33rd | Lake Orion Community Schools | PK, KG-12 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | Lake Orion | Oakland | 0.897 | 35 | 2 |
| 36th | Troy School District | PK, KG-12 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 1 | Troy | Oakland | 0.883 | 36 | |
| 47th | Berkley School District | PK, KG-12 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | Oak Park | Oakland | 0.86 | 62 | 15 |
| 56th | Ann Arbor Public Schools | PK, KG-12 | 22 | 5 | 6 | 0 | Ann Arbor | Washtenaw | 0.843 | 57 | 1 |
| 63rd | Grosse Pointe Public Schools | PK, KG-12 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0 | Grosse Pointe | Wayne | 0.825 | 30 | 33 |
| 68th | Brighton Area Schools | PK, KG-12 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | Brighton | Livingston | 0.814 | 81 | 13 |
| 71st | Saline Area Schools | PK, KG-12 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 | Saline | Washtenaw | 0.808 | 100 | 29 |
| 76th | South Lyon Community Schools | PK, KG-12 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 1 | South Lyon | Oakland | 0.8 | 44 | 32 |
| 79th | Plymouth-Canton Community Schools | PK, KG-12 | 16 | 5 | 1 | 3 | Plymouth | Wayne | 0.795 | 109 | 30 |
| 82nd | Walled Lake Consolidated Schools | PK, KG-12 | 12 | 4 | 3 | 1 | Walled Lake | Oakland | 0.792 | 90 | 8 |
| 88th | Trenton Public Schools | PK, KG-12 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | Trenton | Wayne | 0.773 | 86 | 2 |
I have to tell you a story that impacted me. I once dated a women that used to get mad at me when I would mention that my real estate clients thought Waterford Schools were a bad school district based on website rankings. Her comment back to me has stuck with me and makes sense. She said “It also boils down to parental involvement. My son and many others from Waterford schools went on to college, graduated, and have good jobs. In fact one kid down the street went to University of Michigan which is the top ranked University in Michigan. You have to have a very high grade point and good ACT/SAT scores to get in. Yet he went to Waterford schools.” She was right in some aspects. If you are involved and push your kids to do well in school then many times it’s not just about the school district.
Most of the schools systems in Metro Detroit are good. Yes there are some bad schools systems or low ranked school systems that you want to avoid but we will get into that later.
I am only going to include the top school districts in South eastern Michigan on how they ranked.
- Bloomfield Hills Schools Oakland County
- Troy Schools Oakland County
- Birmingham Schools Oakland County
- Grosse Pointe Schools Wayne County
- Novi Schools Oakland County
- Saline Schools Washtenaw County
- Northville Schools Wayne Count
- Rochester Schools Oakland County
- Ann Arbor Schools Washtenaw County
- Oakland Schools Oakland County
- Berkley Schools Oakland County
- Brighton Schools Livingston County
- Grosse Ilse Schools Wayne County
- Walled Lake Schools Oakland County
- Plymouth – Canton Schools Wayne County
- Dexter Schools Washtenaw County
- Lake Orion Schools Oakland County
- West Bloomfield Schools Oakland County
- Hartland Schools Livingston County
- Trenton Schools Wayne County
- Fraser Schools Oakland County
- Livonia Schools Wayne County
- Utica Schools Macomb County
- Farmington Schools Oakland County
- Clarkston Schools Oakland County
Here is a third list from background checks
Top School Districts in Michigan, 2018
| State Rank | School District | County |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Novi Community School District | Oakland County |
| 2 | Rochester Community School District | Oakland County |
| 3 | Troy School District | Oakland County |
| 6 | Birmingham Public Schools | Oakland County |
| 7 | Bloomfield Hills Schools | Oakland County |
| 8 | Northville Public Schools | Wayne County |
| 9 | South Lyon Community Schools | Oakland County |
| 10 | Saline Area Schools | Washtenaw County |
| 12 | Plymouth-Canton Community Schools | Wayne County |
| 13 | Ann Arbor Public Schools | Washtenaw County |
| 14 | Lake Orion Community Schools | Oakland County |
| 18 | Grosse Pointe Public Schools | Wayne County |
| 24 | Brighton Area Schools | Livingston County |
| 25 | Dexter Community School District | Washtenaw County |
| 26 | West Bloomfield School District | Oakland County |
| 29 | Oxford Community Schools | Oakland County |
| 30 | Clarkston Community School District | Oakland County |
| 31 | Walled Lake Consolidated Schools | Oakland County |
| 32 | Howell Public Schools | Livingston County |
| 34 | Berkley School District | Oakland County |
| 37 | Grosse Ile Township Schools | Wayne County |
| 46 | School District Of The City Of Royal Oak | Oakland County |
| 53 | Hartland Consolidated Schools | Livingston County |
| 55 | Huron Valley Schools | Oakland County |
| 56 | Clawson Public Schools | Oakland County |
| 64 | Farmington Public School District | Oakland County |
| 65 | Livonia Public Schools School District | Wayne County |
| 88 | Pinckney Community Schools | Livingston County |
| 95 | Utica Community Schools | Oakland County |
So here you have three different websites with different opinions on which are the best school districts are the tops. Like I said this is just another source to help you determine the top schools in Michigan. If you have questions about moving to Michigan feel free to call, text, or email me. I have lived here in Southeastern Michigan my whole life and I know the communities very well. I am a full time experienced real estate agent that will make your relocation easier by providing the answers you need to make a good decision on which community fits your family the best.
So reach out anytime.
Russ Ravary your Southeastern Michigan real estate relocation specialist
(248) 310-6239
YesMyRealtor@gmail.com
