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Steel City Academy

Public, Charter, Alternative Grades K-12

777^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,015 Indiana Alternative Schools

Better than 23% of Indiana alternative schools

Summary

Steel City Academy is a standalone K–12 alternative school in Gary, Indiana, serving 286 students at 2650 W 35th Avenue. It operates as its own small district and has made striking progress on attendance and graduation, while academic proficiency remains well below state levels.

Graduation has climbed from 54.0% in 2020–21 to 80.0% in 2024–25, cutting the gap to the state from 31.4 points to 9.7 points. Chronic absenteeism fell from 56.4% to 16.4% over the same period—0.3 points better than the state average of 16.7%. That is notable because 78.67% of students qualify for free/reduced lunch. Compared with nearby schools, the school’s absenteeism is far lower than Gary Lighthouse Charter School (36.3%) and Gary Virtual Academy (59.3%), even though Gary Virtual has a lower poverty rate (62.22%). Thea Bowman Leadership Academy posts an even lower 6.7%.

Academics are improving but uneven. In 2025–26, all-grades proficiency was 21.21% in ELA, 13.74% in math, and 30% in science—roughly 20–25 points below state in ELA and 25–35 points below in math. Math is a deep concern: grades 5, 7, and 8 each reported 0% proficiency, and SAT math has been 0% for three consecutive years. Fourth grade is a bright spot, beating the state in math (63.16% vs. 52%) and ELA (47.37% vs. 42.2%). Biology End-of-Course rose to 43.48% in 2024–25, close to the state’s 45.6%; the 2025–26 figure is suppressed by the state. The school spends $18,967 per student and has 8.9 students per teacher, and it leads Gary alternatives in math and science proficiency, including 21st Century Charter School of Gary (math 13.61%, science 18.52%). The school is getting more students to graduation, but not yet to grade-level proficiency.

286

Students ?

8.9

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,967

Per pupil spending ?

78.7%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2650 W 35th Avenue
Gary, IN 46408

(219) 750-1010

District: Steel City Academy

Racial breakdown:

African American:

92.0%

Hispanic:

3.1%

Two or more races:

3.1%

See top rated Indiana elementary schools

Compare Steel City Academy to nearby alternative schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Recently slipping — 37th percentile in 2025 → 18th in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 9 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Indiana average (19% vs 42% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (23rd percentile)

!Graduation rate below the Indiana average (80% vs 90%)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school19%

District avg19%

Indiana avg42%

Elementary school

777^th of 1,015

Indiana public elementary schools ?

Bottom 23%▲ up 17 pts since 2022

From bottom 7% (2022) to bottom 23% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

422^nd of 486

Indiana public middle schools ?

Bottom 13%▲ up 11 pts since 2019

From bottom 2% (2019) to bottom 13% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

High school

339^th of 415

Indiana public high schools ?

Bottom 18%▼ down 46 pts since 2021

From top 35% (2021) to bottom 18% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	24.8	777 of 1015	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	8.5	945 of 1005	6.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	4.8	999 of 1011	1.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	4.9	998 of 1016	1.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	8.1	951 of 1020	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	14.4	422 of 486	13.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	18.4	389 of 480	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	20.3	385 of 491	21.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.7	381 of 489	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.7	397 of 490	19.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.6	411 of 483	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	3.8	459 of 470	2.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

High school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	18.5	339 of 415	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	38.7	272 of 429	36.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	16.7	361 of 432	16.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	7.2	373 of 398	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	6.7	378 of 409	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	55.9	137 of 388	64.7%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	48.4	54 of 133	59.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	59.9	31 of 132	76.5%	★★★★☆
2024	45.1	51 of 132	61.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	22.3	105 of 125	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	30.7	79 of 125	36.8%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	11.2	354 of 395	10.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	50.5	183 of 387	52.7%	★★★☆☆
2024	16.9	331 of 392	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	7.1	373 of 388	3.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	37.3	247 of 390	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2025	51.7	166 of 377	56.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	26.9	291 of 377	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	10.1	355 of 379	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

High school

African American (2026)59th percentile+41 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)37th percentile+18 vs school

Female (2026)10th percentile-8 vs school

By subject vs Indiana (2025-2026) ?

Evidence-based Reading and Writing37%-15 vs state

Science30%

English Language Arts21%

Math14%

Social Studies14%-34 vs state

Mathematics0%-26 vs state

★

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Schools Near Steel City Academy

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking ()				Ranking ()				SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	ILEARN English Language Arts (2026)							ILEARN Math (2026)							ILEARN Science (2026)			ILEARN Social Studies (2026)	ILEARN Biology (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	SchoolDigger Rating ()	Average Standard Score ()	Statewide Rank ()	State Percentile ()	Rank Change from Previous Year	SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 3rd Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 4th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 5th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 6th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 7th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts 8th Grade	ILEARN English Language Arts All Grades	ILEARN Math 3rd Grade	ILEARN Math 4th Grade	ILEARN Math 5th Grade	ILEARN Math 6th Grade	ILEARN Math 7th Grade	ILEARN Math 8th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Science 4th Grade	ILEARN Science 6th Grade	ILEARN Science All Grades	ILEARN Social Studies 5th Grade	ILEARN Biology End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Steel City Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	2650 W 35th Avenue	Gary	46408	Lake County	Steel City Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(219) 750-1010	286	32	8.9	78.7%	5 (1.7%)	263 (92.0%)	9 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (3.1%)								(n/a)	36.8	0.0	8.7	47.4	13.6	28.6	22.7	12.0	21.2	17.4	63.2	0.0	10.0	0.0	0.0	13.7	36.8	23.8	30.0	13.6		$18,967	$8,599	$10,368
Gary Virtual Academy	Public, Alternative	K-12	1800 E 35th Ave	Gary	46409	Lake County	Gary Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(219) 881-5466	45	2	20.0	62.2%	2 (4.4%)	39 (86.7%)	1 (2.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (6.7%)								(n/a)	0.0	0.0							0.0							0.0						$11,053	$4,617	$6,436
Gary Lighthouse Charter School	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	725 Clark Road	Gary	46406	Lake County	Gary Lighthouse Charter School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(219) 977-9583	1,138	75	15.1	98.9%	14 (1.2%)	985 (86.6%)	101 (8.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	37 (3.3%)								(n/a)	13.7	0.0	19.7	13.0	11.5	3.3	9.4	20.5	12.6	25.8	16.7	9.1	6.5	8.2	10.1	11.9	13.0	2.3	6.3	14.3	16.5	$16,928	$7,371	$9,557
Thea Bowman Leadership Academy	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	3401 W 5th Ave	Gary	46406	Lake County	Thea Bowman Leadership Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(219) 944-3100	773	45	17.1	63.8%	0 (0.0%)	717 (92.8%)	38 (4.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (2.3%)								(n/a)	31.3	3.1	15.7	28.6	10.1	18.2	13.1	8.5	14.7	11.8	4.8	2.9	14.0	8.8	1.7	6.9	19.1	15.4	17.3	10.3	12.7	$14,770	$5,689	$9,081
21st Century Charter School of Gary	Public, Charter, Alternative	K-12	556 Washington St	Gary	46402	Lake County	21st Century Charter School of Gary	Yes	No	No	Yes	(219) 886-9339	1,180	10	118.0	77.4%	1 (0.1%)	1,088 (92.2%)	64 (5.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (2.2%)								(n/a)	20.3	0.0	15.6	21.7	22.4	18.5	21.4	27.2	20.8	21.9	28.3	12.0	7.8	10.0	4.9	13.6	23.3	15.7	18.5	10.7	15.8	$13,965	$3,768	$10,197
Region Virtual Academy	Public, Alternative	K-12	602 N Raymond	Griffith	46319	Lake County	Griffith Public Schools	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(219) 924-4250	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Griffth Junior/Senior High School	Public, Alternative	4-12	600 N Wiggs St	Griffith	46319	Lake County	Griffith Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(219) 924-4281	1,112	70	16.0	55.9%	465 (41.8%)	236 (21.2%)	347 (31.2%)	7 (0.6%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.3%)	53 (4.8%)								(n/a)	51.2	22.6				29.4	37.8	25.9	31.3				34.9	23.7	24.3	27.2		36.0	36.0		29.5	$10,281	$547	$9,735
Eagle Park Community School	Public, Alternative	K-12	2150 W 97th Place	Crown Point	46307	Lake County	NW Indiana Special Education Coop	No	No	No	No	(219) 769-4000	87	8	10.8	26.4%	53 (60.9%)	8 (9.2%)	21 (24.1%)	1 (1.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.6%)								(n/a)									13.3							0.0						$00
Porter County Education Services	Public, Alternative	K-12	750 Ransom Rd	Valparaiso	46385	Porter County	Porter County Education Services	No	No	No	No	(219) 464-9607	0	18	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)									0.0							0.0
Northwest Indiana Online School	Public, Virtual, Alternative	K-12	601 W Morgan Ave	Chesterton	46304	Porter County	Duneland School Corporation	No	No	Yes	No	(219) 983-3743	130	1	117.1	33.1%	92 (70.8%)	7 (5.4%)	25 (19.2%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.8%)								(n/a)	45.0	10.0				70.0	46.2	36.4	40.4				50.0	0.0	9.5	16.1			50.0		52.4	$8,966	$2,746	$6,220

Frequently Asked Questions about Steel City Academy

Is Steel City Academy a good school?

Steel City Academy ranks in the bottom 23.4% of Indiana alternative schools.

How many students attend Steel City Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 286 students attended Steel City Academy.

What is the racial makeup of Steel City Academy?

Students at Steel City Academy are 92% African American, 3% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races, 2% White.

What district is Steel City Academy in?

Steel City Academy

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Latest Indiana data All new data »

2025–26 ILEARN & SAT test scoresNewSep 25, 2026

2024–25 graduation ratesJan 5, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataSep 4, 2025

2022–23 through 2023–24 school spending dataJul 16, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Indiana Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.