Summary:
Almont Community Schools is a small, highly-rated district in Michigan serving approximately 1,389 students across three schools—Orchard Primary School (PK-3), Almont Middle School (4-7), and Almont High School (8-12)—with an overall district ranking of 70th out of 625 Michigan districts (89th percentile).
For parents, the standout school is Almont Middle School, which ranks in the 90th percentile statewide and showed dramatic year-over-year improvement, with 6th grade math proficiency jumping from 46.9% to 56.3% and 6th grade ELA from 55.1% to 64.6%. Orchard Primary School builds strong foundations, with 3rd grade ELA proficiency at 66.3% (+28.1 points over the state) and math at 62.4% (+19.5 points). Almont High School is solid (79th percentile) with exceptional 8th grade PSAT ELA scores (82.1% proficient) and a 91.9% graduation rate, but it lags in 11th grade SAT math (26.3% proficient, slightly below the state average of 26.5%).
Key takeaways for families: ELA performance is consistently excellent across all grade levels, and the district's dropout rate (2.4%) is less than one-third the state rate. However, two challenges stand out. First, math proficiency drops sharply from 44.8% at 10th grade to 26.3% at 11th grade, suggesting a need for targeted high school math support. Second, chronic absenteeism jumps from ~15% at the elementary and middle schools to 27.2% at the high school—essentially matching the state average. Additionally, there's a notable dip in math during the transition to middle school, with 5th grade math (31.5%) falling below the state average (32.2%). Despite these issues, the district's strong early education and middle school performance provide a solid foundation, and its cost efficiency (spending $12,463–$14,373 per student) makes it an attractive option for families seeking high achievement without excessive spending.
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