Best Public Schools in Chesterfield, MI

Chesterfield, Michigan is served by 8 schools—6 elementary and 2 middle schools—spanning the L'Anse Creuse Public Schools and Anchor Bay School District, with a combined enrollment of 3,831 students and no high schools within city limits.

For parents, the standout choice is Great Oaks Elementary School, which leads the area with a 4-star rating, 83rd percentile state rank, and exceptional test scores—4th grade math proficiency at 61.8% versus the state's 39.4%. It also has the lowest chronic absenteeism (10.3%) and free/reduced lunch rate (18.16%) in Chesterfield. Dean A Naldrett School is another strong Anchor Bay option, ranking in the 75th percentile with the best attendance (9.3% chronic absenteeism) and lowest student-teacher ratio (14.2:1), though it spends the most per student at $17,461. In the L'Anse Creuse district, Joseph M Carkenord Elementary School, Green Elementary School, and Francis A Higgins Elementary School cluster in the 55-61st percentile with similar demographics, showing consistent weaknesses in 4th grade math and 5th grade social studies. For middle school, Anchor Bay Middle School South outperforms Middle School East, with 8th grade PSAT ELA proficiency at 77.5% versus 69.8%, and a 79th percentile state rank that jumped significantly year-over-year.

The most concerning trend is at Lottie M Schmidt Elementary School, which dropped from the 78th to 50th percentile in two years despite low absenteeism (11.1%) and moderate poverty—math proficiency now sits near 30%, far below district averages. Notably, spending does not predict success: Great Oaks achieves top results with below-average spending ($14,084), while Schmidt spends $15,812 with weak outcomes. Chronic absenteeism is the strongest correlate with performance, as top schools have rates near 10% versus the 27.9% state average, and Anchor Bay Middle School South's 25.4% rate suggests room for improvement despite strong scores. Science is a relative strength across most schools, with several exceeding state averages by 10-28 percentage points, and both middle schools show hidden strengths on PSAT assessments compared to M-Step results.