Summary:
NexTech High School is the only high school in the NexTech High School district, serving 144 students in grades 9-12 in Grand Rapids, MI, where nearly 85% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
This small school faces significant challenges but is showing promising signs of improvement. The most urgent concern is student persistence: only 52.3% of students graduate, compared to the state average of 84.0%, and the dropout rate of 19.0% is nearly triple the state's 7.1%. Chronic absenteeism also runs high at 32.9%. However, academic performance is trending upward. Between the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years, science proficiency doubled from 11.9% to 23.8%, social studies proficiency rose from 19.0% to 26.2%, and SAT reading/writing proficiency increased from 22.5% to 30.2%. While these scores still trail state averages—for example, only 30.2% of 11th graders are proficient in SAT reading/writing versus 52.1% statewide—the trajectory is encouraging.
One notable pattern is a "ninth grade cliff" in English language arts: 50.0% of 9th graders are proficient on the PSAT, but that drops to 38.1% by 10th grade. This may signal where students begin to disengage, potentially contributing to the high dropout rate. The school's state ranking has also rebounded dramatically, from the 9th percentile (0 stars) in 2024-2025 to the 28th percentile (1 star) in 2025-2026. For parents, this school serves a high-need population with real struggles around graduation and attendance, but the recent academic gains suggest that interventions may be taking hold. The combination of high poverty, elevated absenteeism, and improving test scores paints a picture of a school working hard to overcome substantial obstacles, though retention remains the critical area needing attention.
Thank you for your feedback!