Summary:
The city of Clarkston, Michigan, is served by the Clarkston Community School District, which operates 11 public schools—six elementary schools, one middle school, three high schools, and one virtual school—for approximately 5,950 students in a predominantly low-poverty suburban area.
For parents, the standout traditional schools are Bailey Lake Elementary School, which has earned a 5-star rating for three straight years with 3rd-grade math proficiency at 74.7%, and Springfield Plains Elementary School, which jumped from 184th to 87th in state rankings thanks to dramatic gains in science and math. At the secondary level, Sashabaw Middle School is the clear leader with a 92nd-percentile ranking, while Clarkston High School remains strong with a 96.9% graduation rate and SAT scores well above state averages, though its ranking dipped slightly from 5-star to 4-star status. The biggest concern is North Sashabaw Elementary School, which ranks in the bottom half of the state (2 stars) despite spending $23,272 per student—far more than other elementaries—and faces high poverty (51% free/reduced lunch) and chronic absenteeism (23.4%).
Two specialized schools serve different missions: Renaissance Alternative High School and Renaissance Virtual School cater to at-risk and non-traditional students, with lower graduation rates (63.8% and 78.5%) but intensive support costing $32,351 and $28,000 per student respectively. A district-wide pattern shows math proficiency consistently trails English language arts—for example, Clarkston High School posts 69% proficiency in reading but only 42.7% in math. Additionally, Clarkston Junior High School is labeled a high school but serves grades 7-12, with test data only covering 8th and 9th grades, making direct comparisons to the main high school misleading. Overall, families seeking top-tier traditional education will find excellent options, but should be aware of the achievement gap at North Sashabaw and the district-wide math challenge.
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