Summary:
Bear Lake High School is the only high school in the Bear Lake Schools district, serving grades 7 through 12 with 133 students in a small, rural Michigan community. This combined middle/high school shows dramatic year-to-year swings in its state ranking—from the 23rd percentile in 2023-2024, up to the 70th percentile in 2024-2025, then settling at the 44th percentile in 2025-2026—which makes it hard to judge the school on any single year alone.
The most striking bright spot is the current 7th grade class, which posted exceptional test scores in 2025-2026: 73.3% proficiency in English Language Arts and 66.7% in math, both nearly double the state averages. However, this performance does not carry through the upper grades. Math proficiency drops sharply to 20% in 8th grade, rebounds to 45% in 9th grade, then falls to just 18.8% in 10th grade. Reading scores follow a similar pattern, with 10th graders at 40.6% proficiency versus the state's 58%. The school also shows a notable split on the SAT for 11th graders: 72% proficiency in reading (well above the state's 55.4%) but only 24% in math (below the state's 27.5%).
Graduation and dropout rates are concerning—69.5% of students graduate versus the state's 84%, and the dropout rate of 13% is nearly double the state average. With 60.9% of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch, the school serves a predominantly low-income population. Chronic absenteeism (25.1%) is actually slightly better than the state average. Per-student spending is high at $22,327, yet the student-teacher ratio is also high at 21.8:1, suggesting much of that spending goes toward fixed costs in a small district rather than smaller class sizes. Overall, parents should expect strong literacy instruction but should watch for math struggles and the significant performance drop-off as students move through the upper grades.
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