The top reported proficiency rate is 15% in Math. The lowest is 5% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Lincoln International Studies School
Lincoln International Studies School sits on North Burdick Street in Kalamazoo, serving pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as part of Kalamazoo Public Schools. It is a regular public school, and its name signals an international-studies focus, though the available data does not include specific program offerings, so a parent would want to ask the school directly what that theme looks like day to day in the classroom.
The student body is small for an elementary school, with most grades carrying roughly comparable class sizes. A very large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places the school among the higher-need buildings in the district. The enrollment is predominantly Black, with smaller white, multiracial, and Hispanic populations also present. Data on English learners and students with individualized education programs was not reported, so those population sizes are unknown here.
On Michigan's M-STEP assessments for the most recent school year, Lincoln's proficiency rates were low across every tested subject and grade. Math results in third and fourth grade landed below what most county schools post, and fifth-grade math fell into the lowest reported range. English language arts followed a similar pattern, with fourth and fifth grade showing single-digit or low-teen proficiency and third grade in the bottom range. Fifth-grade science and social studies were also reported at the lowest levels. When measured against other districts in Kalamazoo County on overall proficiency, the school sits in the bottom quartile. These results are plainly stated as fact. A parent may want to look into how the school is responding to these numbers, what intervention supports are in place, and whether the international-studies theme is being leveraged to strengthen core instruction.
Because Lincoln serves only elementary grades, there is no graduation rate to report. Chronic absenteeism data was also not available. Participation rates for the state assessments were missing across all tested grades, so it is unclear whether all enrolled students were tested.
The surrounding neighborhood is in the heart of Kalamazoo, a city whose identity is shaped by its universities and its civic institutions. Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo College, and Kalamazoo Valley Community College all call the city home, giving it a young population and a steady academic-cultural presence. Downtown Kalamazoo, anchored by the pedestrian-oriented Kalamazoo Mall along Burdick Street, offers independent shops and restaurants within a short distance of the school. The city has a history rooted in paper manufacturing that has since diversified into pharmaceuticals, medical equipment, and craft brewing. Publicly reported sources note nationally recognized healthcare systems and a range of parks, lakes, and the Kalamazoo Nature Center among local amenities.
Housing in the school's zip code is quite affordable relative to both state and national benchmarks. Home values sit well below the Michigan statewide figure, and rents are modest. The area has seen a healthy year-over-year increase in home values, suggesting some market activity, but prices remain accessible for the region. A family buying a home near the school would face monthly costs that are generally manageable, and renting remains cheaper than carrying a mortgage at current rates, though both are within reach for many households.
The Kalamazoo Promise is a defining feature of the broader district context. Publicly reported information describes it as a scholarship program covering tuition and mandatory fees at Michigan public universities and community colleges for Kalamazoo Public Schools graduates. For a family at Lincoln, this means the entire K-12 pathway through the district leads toward a major college-access benefit, provided the student remains enrolled and graduates from the district. That long-range incentive is something few communities can offer and is worth weighing alongside the current academic results at the elementary level.
We looked for recent district-level changes that parents might care about but found little meeting the bar for lasting impact, so that material is left out rather than guessed. Specific program details, staffing ratios, discipline data, and attendance figures were also absent from the available information.
What a parent has here is a small, high-need elementary school with an international-studies identity, located in an affordable, walkable, university-anchored city, inside a district whose Promise scholarship sets it apart. The academic results are currently weak, and understanding the school's plan for improvement would be the most useful next step before making any decision.
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