Mount Clemens Community School District

The Mount Clemens Community School District serves approximately 2,000 students across three schools in Mount Clemens, Michigan, a small city in Macomb County, and includes one elementary school, one middle school, and one high school.

This district faces significant challenges, with high poverty rates and academic struggles across all grade levels. Seminole Academy (PK-5) has the highest percentage of students on free/reduced lunch at 92.38% and shows the most concerning proficiency rates—only 4.84% of 3rd graders were proficient in ELA in 2025-2026, compared to the state's 38.2%. Mount Clemens Middle School (6-8) shows a notable drop in performance from elementary levels, with 6th-grade math proficiency at just 6.25% (state: 31.9%). However, it does show a relative strength in 8th-grade Social Studies, where 15.6% of students were proficient—still far below the state's 50.3% but significantly better than its other subjects. Mount Clemens High School (9-12) is the district's bright spot, showing upward momentum in its state ranking from the 8th percentile to the 18th percentile over two years. Its SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing proficiency is 22.2% (state: 52.1%), and 11th-grade Social Studies proficiency is 40.5%, nearly matching the state average.

The most critical issue district-wide is chronic absenteeism, which exceeds 55% at every school—more than double the state average of 27.9%. Seminole Academy has the highest rate at 65.3%, followed by the middle school at 64.2% and the high school at 55.0%. This directly correlates with low academic outcomes. The district also spends heavily—between $15,978 and $18,931 per student—yet results remain low, suggesting resources aren't being effectively translated into achievement. The high school's 4-year graduation rate is 70.1% (state: 84.0%), with a 14.0% dropout rate. While the high school's improvement is encouraging, the district as a whole needs a holistic approach addressing attendance, early intervention, and family support to reverse these trends.