Middle Schools in Detroit Public Schools Community District

The five middle schools within the Detroit Public Schools Community District—Clippert Academy, Greenfield Union ElementaryMiddle School, J E Clark Preparatory Academy, Blackwell Institute, and Ann Arbor Trail Magnet School—serve grades 2 through 8 in a high-poverty urban area, with enrollments ranging from just 68 students to 424 and free/reduced lunch rates above 89% at every school.

If you’re looking for the strongest academics, Ann Arbor Trail Magnet School stands out despite being the smallest school. It earned 3 stars in both recent rankings and posted an 8th grade PSAT math proficiency of 46.15%—more than four times the district average of 9.9% and well above the state’s 30.4%. Its ELA scores (61.54%) also approach the state average. Blackwell Institute is the most improved, jumping from a 0-star rating (7th percentile) to 3 stars (53rd percentile) in just two years, with 7th grade ELA and math proficiency both exceeding state averages—all while serving the highest percentage of low-income students (96.74%). Clippert Academy is the most consistent large school, earning 2 stars for three straight years and achieving 57.8% proficiency on 8th grade PSAT ELA, nearly double the district average. In contrast, J E Clark Preparatory Academy and Greenfield Union ElementaryMiddle School lag behind, with lower test scores and chronic absenteeism rates above 52%.

Money doesn’t tell the whole story. Ann Arbor Trail spends $41,883 per student—more than double Clippert Academy’s $19,836—yet Clippert’s ELA scores are comparable while serving six times more students. Small class sizes help but don’t guarantee success: Greenfield Union has a 12.1:1 ratio but still struggles. The biggest red flag is attendance. All five schools exceed the state’s 27.9% chronic absenteeism rate, with Greenfield Union at 64.5%. Notably, Clippert Academy has the lowest absenteeism (34.1%) and the most consistent results, suggesting that getting kids to school matters more than funding or size. Some schools also show surprising strengths in social studies, with Greenfield Union exceeding the state average in 8th grade social studies despite overall low rankings.