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Central High School

Public Grades 9-12

708^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 739 Michigan High Schools

Better than 4% of Michigan high schools

Summary

Central High School is a public high school in Detroit, Michigan, serving 392 students in grades 9-12. The school is part of the Detroit Public Schools Community District, which is ranked 549 out of 613 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Central High School consistently ranks among the lowest-performing high schools in Michigan, with academic performance significantly below state and district averages across various subjects. For example, in 2024-2025, only 3.95% of 11th-grade students were proficient or better in M-Step Science, compared to 12.4% in the district and 34.9% statewide. The school also struggles with high dropout rates, ranging from 7.6% to 22.1% in recent years, and extremely high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 29.5% to 86.7%. Central High School ranks among the lowest-performing schools in Michigan for various student subgroups, including female students, male students, African American students, and low socioeconomic status students.

The challenges faced by Central High School are not unique, as nearby traditional public schools, such as Detroit Lions Academy, Frederick Douglass Academy for Young Men, and Northwestern High School, also struggle with low academic performance, high dropout rates, and high chronic absenteeism. However, some charter schools in the area, like Oakland International Academy High School and University Preparatory Academy PSAD High School, show relatively better academic performance compared to the traditional public schools.

403

Students ?

17.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$21,510

Per pupil spending ?

93.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2425 Tuxedo St
Detroit, MI 48206-1299

(313) 252-3000

District: Detroit Public Schools Community District

Feeder schools for Central High School:

Elementary:	Durfee ElementaryMiddle School
	Noble ElementaryMiddle School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

98.3%

Hispanic:

1.0%

White:

0.2%

See top rated Michigan high schools

Compare Central High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 1st percentile in 2024 → 4th in 2025

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (10% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (4th percentile)

!Graduation rate below the Michigan average (70% vs 83%)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school10%

District avg22%

Michigan avg40%

708^th of 739

Michigan public high schools ?

Bottom 4%▲ up 3 pts since 2024

From bottom 1% (2024) to bottom 4% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

13^th of 17High Schools in the Detroit Public Schools Community District

549^th of 613Detroit Public Schools Community District among Michigan districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	5.5	708 of 739	4.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.3	737 of 743	0.8%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	14.4	178 of 192	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.3	184 of 188	2.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	3.0	623 of 629	1.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	6.4	612 of 635	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.9	654 of 654	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2025	4.6	606 of 628	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

African American (2025)7th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2025)4th percentile~ school

Male (2025)4th percentile~ school

Female (2025)1st percentile-3 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2024-2025) ?

Social Studies14%-28 vs state

Evidence-Based Reading and Writing14%-41 vs state

Mathematics6%-21 vs state

Science4%-31 vs state

★

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Schools Near Central High School

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)	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 (2024)
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	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 8th Grade	M-Step Science 11th 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
Central High School	Public	9-12	2425 Tuxedo St	Detroit	48206	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 252-3000	403	23	17.5	93.1%	1 (0.2%)	396 (98.3%)	4 (1.0%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5.5	708^th of 739 public high schools	4.2%		3.3	737^th of 743 public high schools	0.8%	29		14.1	6.4						4.0		14.1	$21,510	$2,289	$19,221
Covenant School Spectrum	Public, Charter	7-12	1961 Lincoln St	Highland Park	48203	Wayne County	Covenant Schools Detroit	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(313) 558-9022	93	7	14.1	80.6%	22 (23.7%)	65 (69.9%)	3 (3.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (3.2%)								(n/a)												$13,238	$2,023	$11,215
Frederick Douglass Academy for Young Men	Public	9-12	9026 Woodward Ave	Detroit	48202	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 596-3555	68	11	6.1	82.4%	0 (0.0%)	67 (98.5%)	1 (1.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)												$37,742	$4,978	$32,765
Northwestern High School	Public	9-12	2200 W Grand Blvd	Detroit	48208	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 596-0700	305	23	13.2	87.9%	2 (0.7%)	299 (98.0%)	3 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)								(n/a)											8.9	$26,974	$2,939	$24,035
University Preparatory Art Design MiddleHigh	Public, Charter	6-12	485 W Milwaukee St	Detroit	48202	Wayne County	University Preparatory Art & Design	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 481-4000	855	37	23.1	73.3%	3 (0.4%)	847 (99.1%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.4%)	7	692^nd of 739 public high schools	6.4%		11.9	655^th of 743 public high schools	11.8%	37	48.1	22.1		16.8	15.3	6.5	6.5	30.2	9.3	22.8	13.3	$11,952	$3,252	$8,700
University Preparatory Academy PSAD High School	Public, Magnet, Charter	9-12	600 Antoinette St	Detroit	48202	Wayne County	University Preparatory Academy (PSAD)	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	(313) 874-4340	559	39	14.3	66.7%	2 (0.4%)	548 (98.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.4%)	17.8	594^th of 739 public high schools	19.6%		14.4	634^th of 743 public high schools	14.7%	40		38.7	11.7						14.8		22.1	$16,012	$3,441	$12,571
Detroit Lions Academy	Public	6-12	2001 W Warren Ave	Detroit	48208	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 852-9677	400	34	11.7	91.3%	5 (1.3%)	384 (96.0%)	8 (2.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)								(n/a)	11.1							7.4		17.9		$25,343	$1,973	$23,370
Oakland International Academy 912	Public, Charter	9-12	2619 Florian St	Hamtramck	48212	Wayne County	Oakland International Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 285-8990	614	16	39.2	88.4%	402 (65.5%)	62 (10.1%)	4 (0.7%)	142 (23.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.7%)	28.6	515^th of 739 public high schools	30.3%		8.6	678^th of 743 public high schools	8.7%	163		32.2	20.7						21.1		36.0	$11,664	$1,727	$9,937
Hamtramck High School	Public	9-12	11410 Charest St	Hamtramck	48212	Wayne County	Hamtramck School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 591-7401	926	51	18.1	80.8%	428 (46.2%)	123 (13.3%)	1 (0.1%)	367 (39.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (0.8%)	21.3	573^rd of 739 public high schools	22.5%		20.9	596^th of 743 public high schools	19.8%	23		27.7	14.4						19.6		31.8	$00	$00	$00
Horizon High School	Public	9-12	3225 Caniff St	Hamtramck	48212	Wayne County	Hamtramck School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 591-7404	125	11	11.6	76.0%	34 (27.2%)	48 (38.4%)	0 (0.0%)	40 (32.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (2.4%)								(n/a)		12.1										$00	$00	$00

Frequently Asked Questions about Central High School

What district is Central High School in?

Detroit Public Schools Community District

How many students attend Central High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 403 students attended Central High School.

What is the racial makeup of Central High School?

Students at Central High School are 98% African American.

What schools feed into Central High School?

Central High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Durfee ElementaryMiddle School
Elementary : Noble ElementaryMiddle School

Is Central High School a good school?

Central High School ranks in the bottom 4.2% of Michigan high schools.

Rate Central High School!

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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.