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Dowagiac Union School District

At a glance

373^rdof 613 Michigan districts▲ 27

Better than 39% of Michigan districts

Elementary 4 Middle 1 High 2Grades PK, KG-12

243 S Front St
Dowagiac, MI 49047-1738·(269) 782-4402·All Michigan district rankings →

Statewide performance 2017–2025

2025: better than 39.2% of districts

Schools

1,815

Students

Top rankedJustus Gage Elementary School734^th of 1,488 Michigan elementary schools

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Biggest riser

Kincheloe Elementary School up 104 spots statewide this year

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Smallest classes

Sister Lakes Elementary School 13.8 students per teacher

SchoolDigger ratings

3★

2★

1★

1 school without a SchoolDigger rating (too few tested students)

Compare Michigan districts →See the top-ranked Michigan schools →

Summary:

The Dowagiac Union School District in Michigan serves students from preschool through 12th grade across 7 schools, including 4 elementary schools, 1 middle school, and 2 high schools. The district faces significant challenges in improving academic outcomes, particularly at the elementary level, with wide disparities in proficiency rates between the highest and lowest performing schools.

Justus Gage Elementary School stands out as the top performer, with the highest proficiency rates in several subject areas compared to the district and state averages. For example, in 2024-2025, 52.2% of 5th graders were proficient in ELA, well above the district average of 38.7% and the state average of 44.4%. Kincheloe Elementary School also had strong ELA proficiency, with 51.3% and 55.3% of 3rd and 4th graders meeting standards in 2024-2025.

While Union High School has an overall performance below average, it stands out for having a relatively high 4-year graduation rate of 82.8% and a lower dropout rate of 7.6% compared to the district. However, the district as a whole struggles with high poverty levels, with all schools having free/reduced lunch rates above 66%, and high chronic absenteeism rates around 29.5% in 2023-2024, which likely contribute to the academic performance challenges.

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				PSAT English Language Arts (2025)	PSAT Mathematics (2025)	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (2025)	SAT Mathematics (2025)	M-Step English Language Arts (2025)					M-Step Math (2025)					M-Step Science (2025)			M-Step Social Studies (2025)			Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSAT English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 8th Grade	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Science 8th Grade	M-Step Science 11th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 8th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Dowagiac Middle School	Public	6-8	57072 Riverside Dr	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 782-4440	393	21	18.5	70.7%	222 (56.5%)	29 (7.4%)	83 (21.1%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.3%)	0 (0.0%)	50 (12.7%)	47.2	443^rd of 890 public middle schools	50.2%		43.3	479^th of 897 public middle schools	46.6%	36	65.5	26.9						33.6	37.6				21.5	26.3		33.6			50.0		$14,312	$1,227	$13,085
Justus Gage Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	301 Oak St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 782-4460	262	17	15.1	74.8%	174 (66.4%)	17 (6.5%)	42 (16.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (3.1%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (8.0%)	49	734^th of 1488 public elementary schools	50.7%		42.4	810^th of 1486 public elementary schools	45.5%	76					21.2	40.4	52.2			50.0	36.5	28.3			50.0			28.3			$13,948	$1,928	$12,019
Pathfinders Alternative Educational	Public, Virtual	6-12	501 N Paul St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	Yes	No	(269) 782-4471	49	2	20.4	81.6%	28 (57.1%)	6 (12.2%)	6 (12.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (18.4%)								(n/a)																					$14,937	$1,046	$13,891
Patrick Hamilton Elementary	Public	K-5	614 Spruce St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 782-4450	224	15	15.4	83.0%	117 (52.2%)	40 (17.9%)	37 (16.5%)	2 (0.9%)	9 (4.0%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (8.5%)	16.6	1231^st of 1488 public elementary schools	17.3%		14.8	1251^st of 1486 public elementary schools	15.8%	20					17.9	12.2	28.9			25.6	9.8	15.8			26.3			18.4			$14,122	$2,059	$12,063
Sister Lakes Elementary School	Public	K-5	68079 M 152	Benton Harbor	49022	Van Buren County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 782-4468	166	12	13.8	66.9%	94 (56.6%)	1 (0.6%)	55 (33.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (1.2%)	2 (1.2%)	12 (7.2%)	38.1	891^st of 1488 public elementary schools	40.1%		39.2	863^rd of 1486 public elementary schools	41.9%	28					18.2	35.5	40.6			36.4	35.5	37.5			34.4			22.6			$16,995	$2,448	$14,547
Union High School	Public	9-12	701 W Prairie Ronde St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	No	(269) 782-4420	507	28	18.2	59.6%	293 (57.8%)	29 (5.7%)	109 (21.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (14.2%)	44.6	408^th of 739 public high schools	44.8%		44.4	385^th of 743 public high schools	48.2%	23			53.8	9.9													31.9			44.0	$14,963	$1,182	$13,781
Kincheloe Elementary School	Public	K-5	25121 Gage St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 782-4464	214	15	14.4	60.3%	160 (74.8%)	1 (0.5%)	32 (15.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	19 (8.9%)	40.9	850^th of 1488 public elementary schools	42.9%		34	954^th of 1486 public elementary schools	35.8%	104					51.3	55.3	31.9			43.6	34.2	17.0			31.9			14.9			$14,806	$1,935	$12,870

Districts nearby

District	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Heritage Southwest Intermediate School District	1.66 mi	2
Cassopolis Public Schools	6.24 mi	4	464^th
Marcellus Community Schools	8.02 mi	4	134^th
Niles Community Schools	9.08 mi	11	217^th
Berrien Regional Educational Service Agency	10.59 mi	4

See the top MI Michigan districts

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Michigan Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.