Milan Area Schools

Milan Area Schools is a unified school district in Milan, Michigan, serving roughly 1,716 students across five buildings—two elementary schools, one middle school, and two high schools—with an overall state ranking in the 66th percentile.

For parents, the standout academic performer is Milan High School, which boasts a 91.9% graduation rate and a remarkably low 1.4% dropout rate, far better than the district and state averages. Its SAT reading proficiency also exceeds the state by 7 points. However, this school reports a puzzling 92.4% chronic absenteeism rate—over three times the state average—which seems contradictory given its strong outcomes and warrants a closer look. At the middle school level, Milan Middle School shines in science, with 8th graders scoring nearly 14 points above the state average in proficiency. Meanwhile, Clayton H Symons Elementary School is the district’s rising star, jumping 9 percentile points in its ranking over two years and exceeding state averages in both 4th grade math and 3rd grade ELA. Paddock Elementary School serves the youngest students (PK-1) with the lowest student-teacher ratio (9.7:1) and highest per-student spending among traditional schools, though no test data is available for this age group.

The most significant concern is Milan Alternative Education, which serves a higher-poverty population (62% free/reduced lunch) but posts a 22.2% graduation rate and a 44.4% dropout rate. Despite spending the most per student ($27,829), it also has the highest student-teacher ratio at 23.9:1, suggesting funds may not be reaching instructional staff. A district-wide pattern shows students enter 3rd grade performing 8 points above the state in ELA but fall 7 points below by 6th grade—a 15-point swing that highlights a problematic transition to middle school. Math follows a similar decline after strong elementary years. On a positive note, science is a genuine district strength, with consistent above-state performance in 8th grade, and 5th grade science recently improved from below to above state averages.