The top reported proficiency rate is 20% in Math. The lowest is 11% in Social studies.
Original Research by School Decision on Lake Hills Elementary School
Lake Hills Elementary School is a regular public elementary school serving kindergarten through sixth grade in Michigan City, Indiana, part of the Michigan City Area Schools district. The school draws from a community where a substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, placing it among schools with higher economic need. Its student body is racially diverse: the largest group is Black students, followed by White students and students identifying as two or more races, with a smaller Hispanic presence and minimal representation of other groups.
On state assessments administered in the 2024–25 school year, Lake Hills’ results placed well below the midpoint among districts in LaPorte County, in the bottom quarter of that comparison set. Proficiency rates on the ILEARN exams were low across all tested subjects. Reading and math were both below the county median, and science and social studies results were similarly weak. The school’s participation rate on the tests was very high, signaling that nearly all enrolled students were tested. Still, the overall pattern suggests that a large share of students are not yet meeting grade-level expectations. A parent considering Lake Hills may want to ask the school about specific academic support programs, such as tutoring, intervention tiers, or after-school help, since the test data alone points to significant challenges.
The school serves grades that do not include high school, so there is no graduation rate or college readiness data to consider. Information on special education enrollment, English learner populations, chronic absenteeism, discipline, and staffing was not available in the data reviewed, leaving gaps that a family would need to fill by contacting the school directly.
Lake Hills is located in Michigan City, a city on Lake Michigan about an hour’s drive east of Chicago. The city has a mixed economic base: tourism (Lake Michigan beaches, Indiana Dunes National Park, a large casino and hotel, and an outlet mall) sits alongside a state prison, a regional hospital, and some industrial and retail employment. The downtown and north end have been the focus of revitalization efforts for more than a decade, including new park space and a reconfigured South Shore Line rail alignment. Public bus transit became free in late 2025. The city describes itself as working to attract families and investment, and development interest has included new recreational facilities and a major hotel addition at the casino complex.
Housing in the area is moderately priced relative to national benchmarks. Home values in the zip code are below the national typical level, and rents are similarly a bit below national averages. The gap between the cost of renting and owning is small, and mortgage rates in early 2026 were slightly above the national average of recent years. For a family considering the area, the city’s mix of lakefront tourism and more utilitarian industries gives it a different feel than a suburban bedroom community, and the school’s academic profile may be a factor in any home-buying decision.
No recent district-level changes such as referendums, boundary shifts, or curriculum overhauls were found in public reporting, so the district context appears stable but without notable new initiatives that would affect Lake Hills directly. For a family weighing this school, the central facts are a high‑poverty student population, consistently low state test results relative to the county, and a city whose economy and character are shaped by tourism, industry, and ongoing downtown revival.
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