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Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend

Q: Is Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend a good school?

Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend ranks 283 rd of 415 Indiana high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public, Charter Grades 9-12

283^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 415 Indiana High Schools

Better than 32% of Indiana high schools

Summary

Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend is a public charter high school serving 138 students in grades 9–12 in the urban core of South Bend, Indiana, and it operates as its own single-school district. Because it is its own district, its school and district rankings are identical: 271st of 374 Indiana districts, or the 28th percentile, with 1 star.

Its clearest academic strength is reading. On 2025–2026 SAT results, 46.15% of students were proficient in reading — behind only Penn High School (71.69%) among nearby schools, ahead of Adams High School, Mishawaka High School, Career Academy High School, and Washington High School, and only about 6 points below the state average. Math is the opposite story: 7.69% proficiency, well under the state's 25.6% and under every nearby school except a few alternative programs. That 38.5-point reading-to-math gap is the widest in the local group, and math results have drifted downward over four years. Students with disabilities are a genuine bright spot, ranking at the 70th percentile with 4 stars. The school also shows the area's widest internal gap between male students (63rd percentile) and female students (8th percentile).

Completion is where the school lags. The 80.0% graduation rate trails the state's 89.7%, and chronic absenteeism of 58.3% is roughly 3.5 times the state rate. Career Academy High School presents the mirror image — a 97.2% graduation rate with much weaker test scores — so the two schools struggle at different points in the pipeline. The encouraging news is a broad one-year turnaround: graduation rose 22.9 points over two years, absenteeism fell from a 71.0% peak, reading proficiency jumped from 23.08% to 46.15%, and overall rank improved from the 19th to the 32nd percentile. With roughly 30 students per grade, single-year figures can swing widely, so families should watch whether these gains hold.

138

Students ?

9.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$12,394

Per pupil spending ?

61.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

635 S Lafayette Blvd
South Bend, IN 46601

(765) 494-7872

District: Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend

Racial breakdown:

White:

39.1%

Hispanic:

31.9%

African American:

21.0%

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Compare Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 97th percentile in 2022 → 32nd in 2026

Strengths

✓Small classes — about 10 students per teacher

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Indiana average (27% vs 39% meeting standards)

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

!High chronic absenteeism (58% vs 17% Indiana)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school27%

District avg27%

Indiana avg39%

283^rd of 415

Indiana public high schools ?

Bottom 32%▼ down 66 pts since 2022

From top 3% (2022) to bottom 32% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Indiana High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

271^st of 374Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend among Indiana districts

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

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	34.8	283 of 415	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2025	19.6	348 of 429	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	36.0	281 of 432	35.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	47.7	192 of 398	51.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	96.9	11 of 409	97.3%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	9.7	363 of 395	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	9.1	360 of 387	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	25.5	301 of 392	23.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	34.2	265 of 388	31.7%	★★☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2024	28.8	137 of 184	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	25.4	306 of 390	21.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.3	360 of 377	4.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	58.2	122 of 377	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2023	58.3	120 of 379	68.3%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	54.4	145 of 397	63.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	31.8	277 of 386	28.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	35.3	257 of 392	34.4%	★★☆☆☆
2023	58.9	122 of 383	68.1%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	59.3	89 of 292	69.5%	★★★★☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Indiana percentile	Rating
2026	52.6	149 of 387	61.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	57.4	121 of 381	68.2%	★★★☆☆
2023	56.7	116 of 375	69.1%	★★★☆☆

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)

Special Education (2026)70th percentile+38 vs school

Male (2026)63rd percentile+32 vs school

White (2026)61st percentile+30 vs school

Hispanic (2024)26th percentile-9 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)22nd percentile-10 vs school

Female (2026)8th percentile-24 vs school

By subject vs Indiana (2025-2026) ?

Evidence-based Reading and Writing46%-6 vs state

Mathematics8%-18 vs state

★

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Schools Near Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend

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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 (2026)				Ranking (2025)				SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	ILEARN English Language Arts (2026)				ILEARN Math (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 (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SAT Evidence-based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th 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 6th Grade	ILEARN Math 7th Grade	ILEARN Math 8th Grade	ILEARN Math All Grades	ILEARN Biology End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend	Public, Charter	9-12	635 S Lafayette Blvd	South Bend	46601	St. Joseph County	Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend	Yes	No	No	No	(765) 494-7872	138	14	9.8	61.6%	54 (39.1%)	29 (21.0%)	44 (31.9%)	2 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (6.5%)	34.8	283^rd of 415 public high schools	31.8%		19.6	348^th of 429 public high schools	18.9%	65	46.2	7.7										$12,394	$3,495	$8,899
Riley High School	Public	9-12	1902 Fellows St	South Bend	46613	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-5100	1,238	99	12.5	57.4%	319 (25.8%)	492 (39.7%)	302 (24.4%)	10 (0.8%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.2%)	112 (9.0%)	15.5	350^th of 415 public high schools	15.7%		15.9	363^rd of 429 public high schools	15.4%	13	30.2	6.5									19.2	$15,942	$2,472	$13,470
Adams High School	Public	9-12	808 S Twyckenham Dr	South Bend	46615	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-5300	1,966	130	15.1	48.5%	634 (32.2%)	561 (28.5%)	568 (28.9%)	41 (2.1%)	4 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	158 (8.0%)	44.2	230^th of 415 public high schools	44.6%		41.4	258^th of 429 public high schools	39.9%	28	43.0	20.8									39.4	$12,765	$2,490	$10,275
Rise Up Academy at Eggleston	Public	9-12	740 N Eddy Street	South Bend	46617	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-3500	149	22	6.8	67.1%	19 (12.8%)	71 (47.7%)	46 (30.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (8.7%)	5.9	407^th of 415 public high schools	1.9%		4.4	428^th of 429 public high schools	0.2%	21	4.9	2.4									8.3	$21,785	$4,499	$17,286
Excel Center - South Bend	Public, Charter	9-12	2721 Kenwood Avenue	South Bend	46628	St. Joseph County	Excel Center - South Bend	Yes	No	No	No	(574) 314-5570	296	8	37.0	11.5%	61 (20.6%)	123 (41.6%)	90 (30.4%)	1 (0.3%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (6.1%)								(n/a)												$4,336	$137	$4,199
Washington High School	Public	9-12	4747 W Washington Ave	South Bend	46619	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-5500	795	73	10.8	65.3%	75 (9.4%)	426 (53.6%)	228 (28.7%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	61 (7.7%)	7.4	397^th of 415 public high schools	4.3%		6.1	408^th of 429 public high schools	4.9%	11	21.9	1.6									9.5	$15,710	$3,323	$12,387
Cavemen Academy of Virtual Excellence	Public, Virtual	6-12	1402 S Main St.	Mishawaka	46544	St. Joseph County	School City of Mishawaka	No	(n/a)	Yes	(n/a)	(574) 254-4500	162	12	13.5	67.9%	111 (68.5%)	12 (7.4%)	10 (6.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (17.9%)	14.7	353^rd of 415 public high schools	14.9%					(n/a)	29.6	3.7			7.7	16.7			0.0	4.2
Clay High School	Public	9-12	19131 Darden Rd	South Bend	46637	St. Joseph County	South Bend Community School Corp	No	No	No	No	(574) 393-4900	0	2	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)												$19,967	$2,944	$17,022
Mishawaka High School	Public	9-12	1202 Lincolnway E	Mishawaka	46544	St. Joseph County	School City of Mishawaka	No	No	No	No	(574) 254-7300	1,327	90	14.7	31.3%	849 (64.0%)	190 (14.3%)	150 (11.3%)	8 (0.6%)	9 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	121 (9.1%)	33.4	285^th of 415 public high schools	31.3%		41.5	257^th of 429 public high schools	40.1%	28	38.8	16.5									32.0	$12,758	$650	$12,108
Career Academy High School	Public, Charter	9-12	3801 Crescent Circle	South Bend	46628	St. Joseph County	Career Academy High School	Yes	No	No	No	(574) 299-9800	481	47	10.2	53.8%	214 (44.5%)	166 (34.5%)	53 (11.0%)	5 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	42 (8.7%)	18.3	340^th of 415 public high schools	18.1%		26.5	320^th of 429 public high schools	25.4%	20	35.0	3.9									23.7	$16,034	$5,545	$10,489

Frequently Asked Questions about Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend

What district is Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend in?

Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend

Is Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend a good school?

Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend ranks 283^rd of 415 Indiana high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend?

In the 2024-25 school year, 138 students attended Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend.

What is the racial makeup of Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend?

Students at Purdue Polytechnic High School South Bend are 39% White, 32% Hispanic, 21% African American, 7% Two or more races, 1% Asian.

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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.