Star International Academy

The Star International Academy district in Michigan includes two distinct schools—a large PK-12 alternative campus in Dearborn Heights and a smaller PK-8 elementary in Canton—serving a combined 2,098 students in a high-poverty, suburban area near Detroit.

The Star International Academy (Canton) campus is the district's standout improver, jumping 385 spots in a single year to reach the 62nd percentile with a 3-star rating. It outperforms its Dearborn Heights counterpart in most early-grade subjects, with 3rd-grade math at 51% and 5th-grade ELA at 50%, both above state averages. However, Canton shows a dramatic 7th-grade collapse—proficiency falls to 20.6% in ELA and 17.6% in math, roughly half the state average—likely due to very small class sizes that cause large year-to-year swings. Despite spending $3,379 less per student than the Dearborn Heights campus, Canton achieves better results in most grades, suggesting efficient resource use. Its 8th-grade PSAT scores are particularly strong, with ELA at 78.6% and math at 47.6%.

The Star International Academy (Dearborn Heights) campus, serving grades PK-12 with 1,728 students, boasts a perfect 100% graduation rate and zero dropouts, far exceeding state averages. Its 8th-grade science proficiency of 68.2% is nearly double the state rate, though this strength fades by 11th grade (17.5%). College readiness is a concern: SAT math proficiency sits at just 23.7%, and 10th-grade PSAT scores trail state averages significantly. Social studies is a consistent weakness across both campuses, with 5th-grade proficiency at 9.5% (Dearborn Heights) and 17.5% (Canton) versus the state's 27.5%. Chronic absenteeism is lower than the state average at both schools, and the Canton campus maintains a more favorable 14.9:1 student-teacher ratio compared to Dearborn Heights' 17.6:1.