The reported proficiency rate for English language arts is 30%.
Original Research by School Decision on Forest Academy
Forest Academy was a charter school on Comstock Avenue in Kalamazoo, Michigan, operating as its own single-school charter district. The most important fact for any parent or resident reading this is that Forest Academy is no longer open. It closed in 2023, so this is not an active educational option for families considering a move or enrollment. The school served elementary and middle grades, roughly kindergarten through eighth, and was small even while operating. Publicly reported information indicates it served fewer than 70 students before closing, and that it ranked in the lower portion of Michigan schools for test scores.
The academic picture from the last available state assessment cycle is thin, largely because the school was so small. Michigan's M-STEP testing covers grades three through eight in English language arts and math, with science and social studies tested at grade five. For Forest Academy, only third grade had any students reported as tested in the 2022-23 data. In English language arts, roughly a third of the tested third graders reached proficiency. In math, the reported proficiency range for that same group fell at the low end, with no tested third graders reaching the proficient threshold. Every other tested grade at the school, fourth through sixth, had no students reported as tested, so those results were suppressed. Science and social studies results were also suppressed with no tested students. This pattern of near-empty testing rows reflects the school's very small enrollment in its final year rather than a refusal to participate, though participation rates themselves were not available in the data.
No enrollment totals, demographic breakdowns, free-or-reduced-price lunch figures, or special population counts were available in the data provided. The grades-served field listed as a single marker rather than a range, which appears to reflect a data artifact for a closed entity rather than the actual grade span the school served. Because Forest Academy did not serve high school grades, there is no graduation rate to report, and that gap is expected for a school of this grade band.
The surrounding community is Kalamazoo, a mixed-use city with residential neighborhoods, a walkable downtown centered on the Kalamazoo Mall pedestrian shopping area, and a strong higher-education presence. Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, and Kalamazoo Valley Community College are all located in the city, giving it a younger median age than many comparable Michigan cities. The local economy has shifted from its historical paper industry toward pharmaceuticals, medical science, medical equipment, diversified manufacturing, and craft brewing. Healthcare systems described as nationally recognized are among the area's major employers. The city sits along the Kalamazoo River with tributaries like Arcadia Creek winding through, and the Kalamazoo Nature Center offers trails and live-animal exhibits. Kalamazoo is accessible via interstate and is the county seat.
A distinctive civic feature is the Kalamazoo Promise, a scholarship program providing tuition support at public Michigan universities and community colleges for graduates of Kalamazoo Public Schools. This program does not apply to charter school students, so families who were at Forest Academy would not have been eligible for the Promise unless they transferred to and graduated from Kalamazoo Public Schools.
The housing market in the school's zip code shows home values well below the state and national benchmarks, pointing to a relatively affordable part of the Kalamazoo area. Rents are also modest compared with national figures. Both home values and rents have been rising year over year, with rents climbing at a faster pace than home prices. A family looking at this neighborhood would find housing costs accessible, though the rising rent trend is worth watching.
Because Forest Academy has closed, there is no current academic pathway, peer environment, or student support to evaluate here. A parent who lives in this area and is looking for school options would need to look elsewhere, most likely to Kalamazoo Public Schools or other charter and private options in the city. The data does not provide information on where former Forest Academy students enrolled after the closure, so we cannot say where those children went. Any parent researching this address should treat it as a closed institution and direct questions about current options to the Kalamazoo Public Schools district office or the Michigan Department of Education's charter school listings for the area.
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