The top reported proficiency rate is 8% in Math.
Original Research by School Decision on Detroit Community Schools Elementary
Detroit Community Schools Elementary is a public charter school on Detroit's west side, serving pre-kindergarten through eighth grade on Burt Road. It operates under the Detroit Community Schools charter district. The school serves a student body that is entirely African American, and nearly every student qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch. The enrollment is modest for a school covering this many grade levels, with roughly thirty students per grade in most years.
On Michigan's M-STEP and PSAT assessments in the most recent school year, proficiency was very low across every tested grade and subject. In math, the share of students scoring proficient or above fell in the lowest reported range for grades three through six and grade eight. Grade seven math was the one bright spot, with a small fraction of test-takers reaching proficiency. English language arts followed a similar pattern, with most grades in the lowest reported range and only grades five and eight showing a sliver of proficiency. Science and social studies results for grades five and eight were also in the lowest reported range. Average scale scores were reported for each grade and subject, which a parent can review in the data sections, but the proficiency picture is consistent: very few students are meeting state benchmarks in any subject at any tested grade.
Against the comparison set of districts in Wayne County, this school's overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quartile. The cohort includes over a hundred districts, and this school's proficiency index is at the very bottom of that range. A parent considering this school may want to ask leadership directly what academic improvement strategies are in place and how the school is responding to these results.
Because the school does not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report. That gap reflects the grade band, not a missing metric. Several other data points were not available in the provided material. Individualized education program counts and English learner counts were both missing, so the share of students receiving special education services or language support is unknown from this source. Staffing numbers, chronic absenteeism rates, discipline data, and course or program offerings were also absent. We looked for the charter district's recent parent-relevant changes, such as curriculum updates or policy shifts, but the research returned nothing specific, so we left that out rather than guess.
The school sits in a Detroit zip code where housing values are far below both the state and national benchmarks. Typical home values in this area are a small fraction of the statewide median, and rents are correspondingly modest. For a family weighing housing costs against school quality, the area is among the more affordable in the region, though that affordability comes in a city that has seen decades of disinvestment in many neighborhoods followed by more recent revitalization concentrated in downtown, Midtown, and along the riverfront. Detroit itself is a major urban center, historically anchored by the automotive industry and culturally recognized for music, art, and design. The city has grown its population for two consecutive years as of recently, driven by immigration and new housing development, though much of that growth and investment is concentrated in specific corridors rather than spread evenly across all neighborhoods.
The school's location on the city's west side places it in a predominantly residential area, away from the downtown and Midtown cores where civic institutions like the Detroit Institute of Arts and the Detroit Public Library are clustered. Public transit options exist through the city's bus system, though the immediate surroundings are more car-dependent than the walkable downtown areas.
What this school offers is a small, community-based charter option for families in this part of Detroit, with a连续 grade span from pre-kindergarten through eighth grade that lets children stay in one building for their entire elementary and middle school career. The academic results, though, are a serious concern. A parent evaluating this school should go in with eyes open about where proficiency stands and should ask direct questions about what the school is doing to move those numbers. The data sections on this page carry the specific figures and scale scores for each grade and subject, and a conversation with school leadership about their improvement plan would be a reasonable next step.
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