Best Public Schools in Houghton Lake, MI

The city of Houghton Lake, Michigan is home to 3 schools, including 1 elementary school and 2 high schools, one of which is a community education school. The schools in this area face significant challenges, with consistently low academic performance and high poverty levels among the student population.

Collins Elementary School stands out as the largest school with 553 students, but it has the lowest performance on state assessments, with proficiency rates well below the state averages. Despite the low academic performance, the school spends a relatively high amount per student at $14,708. In contrast, Houghton Lake JrSr High School has shown some improvement in its statewide ranking, moving from the bottom third to the middle third of Michigan high schools, though its performance on state assessments is still mixed. The smaller Houghton Lake Community Education school has consistently low statewide rankings and a very high rate of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch at 86.41%.

Across the Houghton Lake Community Schools district, the schools face significant challenges, with all three schools having very high rates of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch, ranging from 75.35% to 86.41%. This indicates a high-poverty student population, which likely contributes to the academic challenges faced by the schools. Despite the low academic performance, the schools are spending relatively high amounts per student, raising questions about the effective use of resources and the need to explore ways to improve outcomes for the students in this area.