Detroit Service Learning Academy

The Detroit Service Learning Academy district consists of 3 elementary schools located in Detroit, Redford, and Oak Park, Michigan. While these schools serve a predominantly African American student population from low-income backgrounds, they are consistently underperforming academically compared to state averages.

The Detroit Service Learning Academy Campus and Redford Service Learning Academy Campus both have extremely low proficiency rates on standardized tests, with 3rd grade English Language Arts proficiency ranging from just 2.78% to 7.14% versus the state average of 39.6%. Chronic absenteeism is also a major issue, exceeding 60% at the Detroit campus. In contrast, the Oak Park Service Learning Academy OPSLA has a slightly higher 5th grade ELA proficiency rate of 16.67%, though this is still well below the state average.

Across the district, students come from high-poverty backgrounds, with 97-99% qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch. Per-student spending varies widely, from $8,605 at Oak Park to $14,080 at the Detroit campus. The student-teacher ratios are also quite high, ranging from 44.6 to 59.8 students per teacher. These resource disparities and operational challenges likely contribute to the systemic issues facing these schools and the lack of educational opportunities for their students.