The top reported proficiency rate is 16% in Science. The lowest is 8% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on David Hicks School
David Hicks School is a regular public elementary school serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade in Inkster, Michigan, operated by Wayne-Westland Community School District. The school sits on Helen Street in a community that is itself a product of unusual educational history. Inkster's own school district was dissolved, and its students were redistributed among four surrounding districts by geographic quadrant. Wayne-Westland took responsibility for this part of Inkster, and David Hicks is one of the schools it now operates there. A parent looking at this school is looking at a neighborhood elementary in a residential, working-class suburb with deep roots in the African American community of metro Detroit.
The student body is predominantly Black, with a smaller White population and small numbers of multiracial and Hispanic students. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school among those serving a high-poverty community. The enrollment is moderate for an elementary building, with fairly even distribution across grade levels. Data on special education and English learner populations was not reported, so those figures cannot be described here.
On state assessments, the most recent M-STEP results show proficiency rates that are low across every tested grade and subject. In math, single-digit percentages of students reached proficiency in third, fourth, and fifth grades. English language arts results were similarly low in third and fourth grades, though fifth grade showed a higher proficiency rate. Science and social studies, both tested only in fifth grade, also reflected low proficiency. When measured against other districts in Wayne County, David Hicks sits in the bottom quartile for overall proficiency. These results are a clear soft spot. A parent may want to look into this further with the school, asking what instructional supports, intervention programs, or tutoring are in place and how the building plans to strengthen outcomes.
Because this is an elementary school serving only through fifth grade, there is no graduation rate to report. Chronic absenteeism data was not available. Participation rates for the state assessments were also missing from the data provided.
Inkster itself is a bedroom community roughly fourteen miles southwest of downtown Detroit, with commercial activity concentrated along the Michigan Avenue corridor. The city has a car-oriented, suburban layout with limited walkability typical of metro Detroit communities. Publicly reported sources describe Inkster as historically shaped by African American workers at Henry Ford's Dearborn factories who settled here because they were barred from living in Dearborn. The city's population has declined over recent decades, though publicly reported development along Michigan Avenue includes new residential units and strip malls, and the city was noted for having the highest increase in assessed values in Wayne County at one point. Civic life centers on City Hall, a farmers market, and city parks. Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport sits a short distance to the south.
The housing market in the zip code around the school is very affordable compared with both state and national benchmarks. Home values are well below the state median, and rents are modest. The estimated monthly mortgage on a typical home is close to the typical rent, making ownership financially accessible for many families in this area, though current mortgage rates affect affordability. Wayne County's broader housing market shows a large inventory of active listings with moderate days on market, indicating a market with available supply.
At the district level, Wayne-Westland Community School District received voter approval in 2021 for a bond proposal funding instructional technology upgrades, building renovations, security improvements, athletic facility upgrades, buses, and site improvements. These investments may affect the physical condition of buildings like David Hicks over time, though the specific impact on this school is not detailed in the available data.
No information on specific academic programs, extracurricular offerings, staffing levels, discipline data, or attendance patterns was provided, so those aspects cannot be addressed. A family considering David Hicks would be choosing a small neighborhood elementary in an affordable, historically rooted community, operating under a district based in a neighboring city. The academic results are a central concern, and a parent would want to understand directly from the school and district what is being done to strengthen instruction and student support.
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