Summary:
Suttons Bay Senior High School is the only high school in the Suttons Bay Public Schools district, serving grades 9-12 in a small, rural Michigan community with just 125 students.
This school stands out for its exceptional student retention: 94.2% of students graduate, and the dropout rate is just 2.8%—far better than the district’s 10.1% and the state’s 7.1%. The school also invests heavily in its students, spending $28,060 per pupil and maintaining a favorable 13.8:1 student-teacher ratio. However, academic proficiency on state tests is mixed. In the most recent year, 11th graders outperformed the state in social studies (50% vs. 43.2%) but lagged significantly in SAT reading/writing (31% vs. 52.1%) and science (26.7% vs. 35.2%). The most concerning area is 9th-grade math, where only 15.8% of students are proficient compared to the state’s 33.5%. Test scores also fluctuate dramatically year-to-year—science proficiency dropped from 44.4% to 26.7% in one year—likely due to the very small class sizes, making single-year comparisons unreliable.
For parents, the key takeaway is that this school excels at keeping students engaged and on track to graduate, which is especially valuable given that 61.6% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Yet chronic absenteeism affects 37.4% of students (above the state’s 27.9%), which likely contributes to the academic gaps. The school’s state ranking has bounced between the 38th and 54th percentiles over three years, reflecting cohort-driven volatility rather than a clear trend. While the school’s heavy per-student spending hasn’t translated into top test scores, its strength in social studies and its success in graduating economically disadvantaged students suggest a focus on holistic support over test optimization. Parents should weigh the school’s strong graduation outcomes and small classes against its below-average proficiency in math and reading when making decisions.
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