New Branches Charter Academy, Grand Rapids MI

Original Research by School Decision on New Branches Charter Academy

New Branches Charter Academy sits on the southeast side of Grand Rapids, serving students from kindergarten through eighth grade. It is a charter school authorized by Central Michigan University, and publicly reported information confirms its charter was renewed in 2024, extending authorization through 2029. That renewal gives currently enrolled and prospective families some assurance of continuity for the next several years. Grand Rapids itself is Michigan's second-largest city and the economic anchor of West Michigan, with a downtown core along the Grand River that draws people for museums, breweries, Van Andel Arena, and the annual ArtPrize competition. The city carries a furniture-manufacturing legacy alongside a diversified economy built around healthcare, retail, and education, with Corewell Health, Meijer, and Steelcase as major employers. The Medical Mile corridor has drawn heavy investment in health-sciences institutions, signaling ongoing urban revitalization. Outer neighborhoods, where the school is located, tend to be more car-dependent than the walkable downtown.

The school enrolls a modest number of students spread across nine grade levels, with the largest cohorts in the early grades. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Black, with a large Hispanic presence and smaller groups of multiracial, white, and Asian students. Information on special education and English learner populations was not available in the data provided, so those details are left out rather than estimated. No graduation rate, chronic absenteeism figure, or discipline data appears in the available records, which is expected for a kindergarten-through-eighth-grade charter that does not issue diplomas or report those metrics at this level.

State assessment results from the most recent school year show a clear split between subjects. In English language arts, proficiency climbs steadily as students move through the grades. Third-grade proficiency starts quite low, but by sixth grade roughly a third of tested students meet or exceed standards, and by eighth grade well over half do. That upward trajectory through the grade band is a genuine bright spot and suggests the school's literacy instruction may gain traction as students spend more years in the building. Social studies follows a similar pattern, with eighth-grade proficiency running well ahead of fifth-grade.

Mathematics tells a different story. Proficiency rates in math stay low across every tested grade, hovering in a narrow band from the upper single digits through the low twenties. Unlike ELA, there is no strong upward trend from lower to upper grades. Science, tested only in fifth and eighth grades, lands in the upper teens and upper twenties respectively. Taken together, the school's overall proficiency index sits below the midpoint relative to districts in Kent County, a comparison set of about four dozen districts. A parent weighing this school may want to ask specifically how math instruction is structured and what interventions support students who are behind grade level.

Housing in the school's zip code is moderately priced by national standards, with typical home values sitting below the national benchmark but above the Michigan state benchmark. Rents are in a range that many Grand Rapids families would find manageable relative to the broader metropolitan market. Mortgage rates nationally remain elevated, which affects affordability for families considering a home purchase near the school.

What New Branches offers is a small, community-oriented charter option in an urban Grand Rapids neighborhood, with a student body that reflects the racial and economic diversity of the surrounding area. The academic picture is mixed: strong and improving ELA outcomes in the upper grades, paired with persistently low math proficiency throughout. Families drawn to a smaller setting with a K-through-8 continuity and a majority-nonwhite peer environment may find it worth a closer look, with particular attention to how the school addresses its math gap.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 319%

School 19% · District 19%

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 31 pts below county median

Grade 413%

School 13% · District 13%

▼ 25 pts below state median · ▼ 34 pts below county median

Grade 59%

School 9% · District 9%

▼ 22 pts below state median · ▼ 28 pts below county median

Grade 610%

School 10% · District 10%

▼ 18 pts below state median · ▼ 24 pts below county median

Grade 714%

School 14% · District 14%

▼ 14 pts below state median · ▼ 18 pts below county median

Grade 824%

School 24% · District 24%

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 311%

School 11% · District 11%

▼ 27 pts below state median · ▼ 38 pts below county median

Grade 422%

School 22% · District 22%

▼ 19 pts below state median · ▼ 26 pts below county median

Grade 529%

School 29% · District 29%

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 633%

School 33% · District 33%

even with state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 743%

School 43% · District 43%

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 7 pts above county median

Grade 856%

School 56% · District 56%

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

Science

Grade 519%

School 19% · District 19%

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 31 pts below county median

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 28%

▼ 9 pts below state median · ▼ 12 pts below county median

Social studies

Grade 516%

School 16% · District 16%

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 19 pts below county median

Grade 836%

School 36% · District 36%

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 10 pts below county median

This schoolNew Branches Charter Academy, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.