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Denby High School

Q: Is Denby High School a good school?

Denby High School ranks in the bottom 12.1% of Michigan high schools.

Q: How many students attend Denby High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 464 students attended Denby High School.

Q: What is the racial makeup of Denby High School?

Students at Denby High School are 98% African American.

Q: What schools feed into Denby High School?

Denby High School is fed by the following schools: Elementary : Brewer Academy Elementary : Carleton Elementary School Elementary : Edward Duke Ellington at Beckham Elementary : Wayne Elementary School

Public Grades 9-12

703^rd

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 800 Michigan High Schools

Better than 12% of Michigan high schools

Summary

Denby High School is a public high school in Detroit, MI, serving 464 students in grades 9-12 as part of the Detroit Public Schools Community District.

Denby is a school showing real signs of progress, even as it continues to face significant challenges. The most encouraging news for parents is the school's graduation rate, which has climbed dramatically from 58.1% in 2020-2021 to 81.7% in 2024-2025—now nearly matching the state average of 84.0%. This puts Denby ahead of several nearby schools, including Eastpointe High School (70.0%), Osborn High School (75.0%), and East English Village Preparatory Academy at Finney (76.3%). The dropout rate has also plummeted from 25.1% to just 8.7% in a single year, suggesting that recent efforts to keep students engaged and on track are working.

Academically, the picture is more mixed. Denby has shown a remarkable improvement in 11th-grade Science proficiency, jumping from 6.5% to 24.7%—a rate that now exceeds most neighboring schools, including Harper Woods High School (6.3%) and Chandler Park Academy High School (10.4%). Social Studies proficiency sits at 21.1%, which is competitive with the area. However, Math and English Language Arts proficiency remain critically low, with only 7.2% of 11th graders proficient in Math on the SAT. The school also spends a substantial $23,287 per student, higher than most nearby schools. The biggest concern for families is chronic absenteeism, which affects nearly 80% of students—far above the state average of 27.9%. While Denby is clearly making strides in graduating its students, the high absenteeism rate and low core academic scores suggest that many graduates may still need additional support to be fully prepared for college or career.

464

Students ?

17.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$23,287

Per pupil spending ?

89.9%

Free/discounted lunch ?

12800 Kelly Rd
Detroit, MI 48224-1599

(313) 866-7200

District: Detroit Public Schools Community District

Racial breakdown:

African American:

98.5%

Hispanic:

0.6%

Asian:

0.4%

See top rated Michigan high schools

Compare Denby High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — <1st percentile in 2019 → 12th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 12 percentile points since 2019

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (13% vs 41% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (12th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (80% vs 28% Michigan)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school13%

District avg27%

Michigan avg41%

703^rd of 800

Michigan public high schools ?

Bottom 12%▲ up 12 pts since 2019

From bottom 1% (2019) to bottom 12% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

10^th of 20High Schools in the Detroit Public Schools Community District

541^st of 625Detroit 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
2026	10.0	703 of 800	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	7.2	689 of 739	6.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	2.3	742 of 743	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	2.2	734 of 735	0.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	1.1	666 of 666	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	26.7	184 of 252	27.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	19.4	166 of 192	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	8.1	188 of 188	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	9.0	170 of 170	0.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	6.1	146 of 147	0.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	14.5	579 of 686	15.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	6.1	603 of 629	4.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	12.4	638 of 719	11.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	9.2	591 of 635	6.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	3.2	652 of 654	0.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	2.7	613 of 614	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	4.9	669 of 693	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	1.8	610 of 611	0.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

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 (2026)27th percentile+15 vs school

Female (2026)16th percentile+3 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)11th percentile~ school

Male (2026)3rd percentile-9 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Science25%-10 vs state

Social Studies21%-22 vs state

English Language Arts15%-44 vs state

Mathematics5%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Denby High School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				PSAT English Language Arts (2026)			PSAT Mathematics (2026)			SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (2026)	SAT Mathematics (2026)	M-Step Science (2026)		M-Step Social Studies (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSAT English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSAT English Language Arts 9th Grade	PSAT English Language Arts 10th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 8th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 9th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 10th Grade	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th 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
Denby High School	Public	9-12	12800 Kelly Rd	Detroit	48224	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 866-7200	464	26	17.8	89.9%	0 (0.0%)	457 (98.5%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	10	703^rd of 800 public high schools	12.1%		7.2	689^th of 739 public high schools	6.8%	14		15.4	14.0		6.7	3.7		7.2		24.7		21.1	$23,287	$3,307	$19,979
Harper Woods Virtual Academy	Public, Virtual, Magnet	6-12	19872 Kelly Rd	Harper Woods	48225	Wayne County	Harper Woods The School District of the City of	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	(800) 297-2119	1,029	5	228.6	76.4%	374 (36.3%)	603 (58.6%)	27 (2.6%)	16 (1.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (0.9%)	3.6	784^th of 800 public high schools	2.0%		3.1	735^th of 739 public high schools	0.5%	49	27.1	29.6	15.2		4.9		8.9			2.3	14.9	4.0	$7,754	$810	$6,944
Chandler Park Academy High School	Public, Charter	9-12	20254 Kelly Rd	Harper Woods	48225	Wayne County	Chandler Park Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 499-3010	688	37	18.5	86.2%	0 (0.0%)	686 (99.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	5.4	760^th of 800 public high schools	5.0%		10.2	663^rd of 739 public high schools	10.3%	97		20.1	23.0		1.6	3.6	18.9			10.4		6.0	$15,157	$2,026	$13,131
Harper Woods High School	Public, Magnet	9-12	20225 Beaconsfield St	Harper Woods	48225	Wayne County	Harper Woods The School District of the City of	No	Yes	No	Yes	(313) 245-3084	877	35	25.0	82.0%	12 (1.4%)	854 (97.4%)	8 (0.9%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	4.4	775^th of 800 public high schools	3.1%		8.2	674^th of 739 public high schools	8.8%	101		19.4	16.9		1.1	2.5	16.0			6.3		11.2	$21,500	$1,851	$19,648
The Harper Woods College and Career Institute	Public	9-12	20570 Kelly Rd	Harper Woods	48225	Wayne County	Harper Woods The School District of the City of	No	No	No	No	(313) 332-8451	0	6	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
East English Village Preparatory Academy at Finney	Public	9-12	5020 Cadieux Rd	Detroit	48224	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 922-5600	639	37	17.2	88.4%	2 (0.3%)	616 (96.4%)	14 (2.2%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	15.4	650^th of 800 public high schools	18.8%		8	676^th of 739 public high schools	8.5%	26		20.3	22.2		9.5	10.4	8.9	14.3		26.1		37.6	$23,684	$3,406	$20,277
Avatar Academy of Excellence	Public, Virtual	9-12	19748 Harper Ave	Harper Woods	48225	Wayne County	Harper Woods The School District of the City of	No	No	Yes	Yes	(313) 912-3948	78	1	78.0	83.3%	1 (1.3%)	77 (98.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	46.3	405^th of 800 public high schools	49.4%					(n/a)			8.3									63.9	$32,938	$799	$32,139
Osborn High School	Public	9-12	11600 E 7 Mile Rd	Detroit	48205	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 866-0343	403	21	19.1	92.8%	4 (1.0%)	392 (97.3%)	5 (1.2%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	8.5	719^th of 800 public high schools	10.1%		4.3	724^th of 739 public high schools	2.0%	5		7.5	8.8		5.0		7.4	9.9		13.5		29.6	$22,782	$3,001	$19,781
Eastpointe Virtual Academy	Public, Virtual	6-12	15501 Couzens Ave	Eastpointe	48021	Macomb County	Eastpointe Community Schools	No	No	Yes	No	(586) 533-3700	128	0		85.2%	7 (5.5%)	114 (89.1%)	1 (0.8%)	1 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (3.9%)								(n/a)			12.5										$5,470	$1,596	$3,875
Eastpointe High School	Public	8-12	15501 Couzens Ave	Eastpointe	48021	Macomb County	Eastpointe Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 533-3700	624	33	18.9	86.7%	45 (7.2%)	514 (82.4%)	9 (1.4%)	8 (1.3%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	44 (7.1%)	5.3	762^nd of 800 public high schools	4.8%		3.6	731^st of 739 public high schools	1.1%	31	25.9	20.6	16.0	3.7	3.7	4.2	15.4		5.9	10.3	10.3	13.0	$18,267	$2,191	$16,075

Frequently Asked Questions about Denby High School

What district is Denby High School in?

Detroit Public Schools Community District

What is the racial makeup of Denby High School?

Students at Denby High School are 98% African American.

How many students attend Denby High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 464 students attended Denby High School.

What schools feed into Denby High School?

Denby High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Brewer Academy
Elementary : Carleton Elementary School
Elementary : Edward Duke Ellington at Beckham
Elementary : Wayne Elementary School

Is Denby High School a good school?

Denby High School ranks in the bottom 12.1% of Michigan high schools.

Rate Denby High School!

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

2025–26 M-Step, PSAT & SAT test scoresNewSep 4, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataJan 6, 2026

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.