Original Research by School Decision on Waterford Mott High School
Waterford Mott High School is a regular public high school serving grades nine through twelve in Waterford Township, part of the Waterford School District in Oakland County, Michigan. The school sits on Scott Lake Road in a sprawling suburban community defined by its three dozen named lakes, strip commercial corridors along Dixie Highway and Highland Road, and low-density residential subdivisions. There is no traditional walkable downtown in Waterford; civic life centers on the Civic Center Complex that houses Township Hall, the police station, and the district court. The township lost two major commercial tax sources when Summit Place Mall and a General Motors facility closed, and its current largest employers are government and educational institutions, including Oakland County government, the intermediate school district headquartered here, and Oakland Community College's Highland Lakes Campus.
The school's enrollment is moderate for a single high school, with students distributed fairly evenly across the four grade levels. About half of the students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a substantial share that reflects the township's mixed economic character. The student body is majority white, with a large Hispanic population, a sizable Black population, and smaller groups of Asian students, students of two or more races, and a very small number of American Indian or Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander students. Data on special education enrollment and English learner status was not reported, so those population shares are not available here.
Academic performance data was not available in the records we reviewed. State assessment results, a multi-year trend series, graduation rate, and chronic absenteeism figures were all missing. The neighbor comparison set, which positions this school relative to districts in Oakland County, could not place Mott on proficiency, graduation, or attendance because those entity values were absent. A parent evaluating academic outcomes will want to ask the school directly for current test results, graduation rates, and attendance data, since the picture here is incomplete.
Program offerings, course access, staffing levels, discipline data, and Title I status were also not reported in the available records. What is clear from publicly reported district news is that Mott is entering a period of transition. In June 2025, the Waterford School District Board of Education voted to close Kettering High School, the district's oldest high school, and consolidate its students into Mott and Durant beginning with the 2026-2027 school year. The decision will redraw attendance boundaries and shift where many students go to high school. The district cited a long-term enrollment decline spanning two decades as the driving factor, and the consolidation is expected to save money annually. For families at Mott, this means the school will likely grow and absorb new students from the Kettering attendance area, which could change class sizes, peer composition, and possibly program capacity. How the district manages that transition will matter a great deal to current and incoming families.
The district has also passed two bond measures in recent years. A no-mill bond approved in November 2022 funds roof replacements, parking lot and sidewalk work, school safety improvements, technology upgrades, athletic facility improvements, and conversion of classroom spaces into STEM labs, all without raising the tax rate. A second bond approved in May 2024 focuses on safety and security improvements, technology, and facility upgrades across the district. These investments should reach Mott alongside other buildings, though specific project lists by school were not detailed in the available material.
Housing in the school's zip code is relatively affordable compared with both state and national benchmarks, with typical home values well below the statewide figure and considerably below the national one. Rents are moderate. The broader Oakland County housing market shows a healthy supply of active listings, with inventory growing year over year and median days on market in the mid-thirties. Median listing prices in the county have eased somewhat compared with a year ago, and the market appears to be cooling slightly, with demand scores drifting down. For families moving into the area, this means reasonable access to housing options relative to much of Oakland County, without the intense competition seen in hotter suburban markets nearby.
What the data does not tell you is how Mott performs academically, how many students graduate on time, or what programs the school offers. Those gaps are large enough that they should be the first questions a parent brings to the school. What the data does tell you is that Mott is a diverse, moderately sized comprehensive high school in an affordable suburban township, entering a consolidation that will reshape its student body and possibly its identity over the next few years. Families who want stability should watch that transition closely. Families open to a school in flux may find opportunity in a building that is receiving fresh investment and new students.
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