The top reported proficiency rate is 45% in Math. The lowest is 23% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Frontier International Academy
Frontier International Academy is a small public school district in Wayne County, Michigan, serving students from pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade across two buildings: a main campus and a separate elementary campus. The enrollment is modest, and the grade distribution is unusual in ways a parent will want to understand. The early grades are fairly even, with solid class sizes from kindergarten through fifth grade. Then sixth grade drops sharply, and seventh and eighth grade show no enrolled students at all. High school rebounds with large ninth through twelfth grade cohorts. This gap in the middle grades is a structural feature parents should ask about directly, since it shapes the continuity of the academic pathway from elementary into secondary.
The student body is diverse in a way that stands out for the region. Just over half of students are white, and roughly two-fifths are Asian. Small numbers of Black students and students of two or more races are enrolled, and the district reports no Hispanic or Pacific Islander students. Free-or-reduced-price lunch data was not available, and neither were counts for English learners or students with individualized education programs. These gaps mean the publicly reported picture of economic disadvantage and special populations is incomplete, and a family whose child receives special education or language support services should confirm what is available directly with the district.
On Michigan's M-STEP assessments for the most recent reported year, the academic results are mixed but generally above what is typical for Wayne County. Third grade math is the strongest showing, with a clear majority of tested students reaching proficiency. Fourth grade math drops to well under half proficient, and fifth grade math sits between those two. English language arts results across third, fourth, and fifth grades cluster in a narrow band, with roughly two out of five students proficient in each. Science and social studies in fifth grade are the soft spots, with fewer than a third proficient in science and under a quarter in social studies. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, particularly for families whose children are approaching upper elementary.
Against its county peers, Frontier International Academy compares well on the measures that are available. Its overall proficiency across tested subjects and grades places it in the top quartile among Wayne County's districts. Chronic absenteeism is also in the top quartile, meaning the district's rate is well below the county median, which speaks to consistent student attendance. Per-pupil current spending sits in the lower range compared with neighboring districts, below the county median. This is a neutral characteristic, but it does mean the district operates on a leaner budget than many of its peers.
No graduation rate was available for this district. Given that the district serves high school grades, this is a gap a family with older students should be aware of. The comparison data did not report a four-year graduation figure, and the district's own posted materials did not supply one either.
The district brief turned up no recent parent-relevant changes of lasting impact. Publicly available sources offered only basic directory and demographic information. No program offerings were provided, no civil-rights data was included, and no locale brief for the surrounding community was available. Housing values and rental information were also absent. A family weighing enrollment here is working with a thinner information set than many districts provide, and direct outreach to the district will matter more than usual.
What the available evidence does show is a district with a distinctive international orientation in its name, a diverse enrollment led by white and Asian families, attendance habits that outperform most of the county, elementary test results that are respectable for the area, and a structural question mark in the middle grades that families should resolve before committing. For parents who value a smaller setting and an internationally minded environment, and who are willing to do their own follow-up on the gaps in the data, Frontier International Academy may be worth a close look.
See more original research from School Decision →