High Schools in Eastpointe Community Schools

Eastpointe Community Schools in Michigan is served by two high schools—Eastpointe High School, a traditional school for grades 8-12 with 624 students, and Eastpointe Virtual Academy, an online option for grades 6-12 with 128 students—both operating in a district ranked in the bottom 1% statewide and serving predominantly low-income families (over 85% qualify for free/reduced lunch).

For parents, the most striking difference is that the traditional high school spends over three times more per student ($18,267 vs. $5,470) yet still struggles mightily. Eastpointe High School has a slightly better graduation rate (70% vs. 67.1%) but a much higher dropout rate (19% vs. 6.2%). The virtual academy keeps more students enrolled, but its chronic absenteeism is a staggering 79.7%—meaning nearly 4 in 5 students are regularly missing school—compared to 61.2% at the traditional school. Both rates are more than double the state average of 27.9%. Academically, the traditional school shows severe gaps: only 10.3% of 11th graders are proficient in science, 13% in social studies, and just 4.2% of 10th graders in PSAT math, all far below state averages. The virtual academy reports almost no test data, making its true academic quality impossible to verify.

The most alarming trend is the math crisis, with proficiency rates between 3.7% and 4.2% across grades 8-10—roughly 27-29 points below state averages. There's also a progressive decline in ELA scores as students advance: 25.9% proficiency in 8th grade drops to 16% by 10th grade, suggesting the high school experience isn't building on earlier learning. While Eastpointe Virtual Academy offers a cheaper, more flexible alternative that reduces dropouts, its high absenteeism and lack of assessment data raise serious questions about whether it's truly educating students or simply holding space for disengaged learners. Parents should view both schools with caution given the district's bottom-1% ranking and the systemic challenges evident across every metric.