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Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School

Public Grades PK, KG-8

1329^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 11% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School is a public school in Detroit, MI, serving 251 students in grades PK through 8 within the Detroit Public Schools Community District, where over 91% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Mark Twain faces significant challenges, most notably chronic absenteeism. While the rate has improved dramatically from 83.2% in 2021-2022 to 59.6% in 2024-2025, it still remains more than double the state average of 27.9%. This means a majority of students are missing substantial instructional time, which is the primary barrier to academic progress. The school also spends a remarkable $24,774 per student—the highest among all nearby schools, exceeding even the River Rouge Stem Academy at Dunn by over $7,000. Yet this high investment hasn't translated into strong state rankings, as the school consistently places in the bottom 15th percentile of Michigan elementary schools with a current 1-star rating.

However, the picture changes depending on the comparison. When measured against its immediate neighbors, Mark Twain is actually a relatively strong performer. For example, in 2025-2026, its 4th-grade ELA proficiency (11.8%) exceeded that of Ralph J Bunche Academy (8.1%) and Ann Visger K5 Preparatory Academy (3.64%). The school also outperforms its own district in several areas, such as 5th-grade ELA (19% vs. 17.1% district average) and 6th-grade Math (19.4% vs. 12.1%). Additionally, 8th grade shows notable strength, with PSAT ELA proficiency at 28.1% and Social Studies at 18.8%—among the school's highest rates. For families in the immediate area, Mark Twain offers a more stable academic option than many surrounding schools, though the high absenteeism rate remains a critical concern for any parent considering enrollment.

251

Students ?

14.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,774

Per pupil spending ?

91.2%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in Michigan receive free school meals.

92.3%

Kindergartners complete for all required vaccines (2025-26)

Exemptions: 3.8% (any vaccine)

12800 Visger St
Detroit, MI 48217-1056

(313) 386-5530

District: Detroit Public Schools Community District

Students who attend Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School usually attend:

High:

Western International High School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

82.9%

Hispanic:

12.0%

Two or more races:

4.4%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 15th percentile in 2023 → 11th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (16% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (11th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (60% vs 28% Michigan)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school16%

District avg16%

Michigan avg40%

Elementary school

1,329^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Bottom 11%▼ down 4 pts since 2023

From bottom 15% (2023) to bottom 11% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

744^th of 896

Michigan public middle schools ?

Bottom 17%▲ up 11 pts since 2024

From bottom 6% (2024) to bottom 17% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

29^th of 64Elementary 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)

Elementary school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	12.0	1329 of 1492	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.8	1279 of 1488	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	8.7	1370 of 1486	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.2	1246 of 1470	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	24.7	308 of 388	20.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	31.8	239 of 369	35.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.4	265 of 348	23.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	42.7	160 of 321	50.2%	★★★☆☆
2018	21.1	432 of 475	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	11.6	1239 of 1343	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.7	1169 of 1338	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	13.2	1286 of 1443	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	16.9	1187 of 1352	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	19.9	1120 of 1346	16.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	13.3	1254 of 1381	9.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	22.5	1078 of 1350	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	10.2	1332 of 1397	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	10.5	1272 of 1372	7.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.6	1178 of 1366	13.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.0	1133 of 1347	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.1	1018 of 1334	23.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	6.4	1417 of 1446	2.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	16.4	744 of 896	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.7	771 of 890	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	8.6	841 of 897	6.2%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	37.4	187 of 337	44.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	33.8	204 of 338	39.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	39.9	200 of 366	45.4%	★★☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	14.9	684 of 789	13.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.1	695 of 789	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	21.9	660 of 834	20.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.0	745 of 832	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	11.7	769 of 836	8.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	16.7	706 of 815	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	15.5	704 of 813	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	12.9	711 of 798	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.7	617 of 797	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Elementary school

African American (2026)21st percentile+10 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)12th percentile~ school

Female (2026)8th percentile-3 vs school

Male (2026)7th percentile-4 vs school

Middle school

African American (2026)45th percentile+28 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)21st percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)13th percentile-4 vs school

Female (2026)13th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Science19%-21 vs state

English Language Arts16%-24 vs state

Mathematics16%-18 vs state

Math15%-21 vs state

Social Studies12%-27 vs state

★

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Schools Near Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle 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 Vaccination Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				PSAT English Language Arts (2026)	PSAT Mathematics (2026)	M-Step English Language Arts (2026)					M-Step Math (2026)					M-Step Science (2026)		M-Step Social Studies (2026)		Vaccination (2025-26)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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 Mathematics 8th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Science 8th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 8th Grade	Vaccination: Kindergartners complete for all required vaccines	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School	Public	PK, KG-8	12800 Visger St	Detroit	48217	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 386-5530	251	17	14.7	91.2%	2 (0.8%)	208 (82.9%)	30 (12.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (4.4%)	12	1329^th of 1492 public elementary schools	10.9%		13.8	1279^th of 1488 public elementary schools	14.0%	50	28.1	15.6	1263.0	11.8	19.0	12.5	21.2	15.2	9.1	14.3	19.4	18.2	19.0	1773.1	7.1	18.8	92.3%	3.8%	$24,774	$2,109	$22,665
Ralph J Bunche Academy	Public	1-4	503 Hyacinthe St	Ecorse	48229	Wayne County	Ecorse Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 294-4710	316	12	26.3	83.5%	20 (6.3%)	245 (77.5%)	44 (13.9%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.6%)	4.2	1492^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	0.0%					(n/a)			7.8	8.1				3.3	5.8										$16,752	$3,192	$13,560
Allendale Elementary School	Public	K-3	3201 Oakwood Blvd	Melvindale	48122	Wayne County	Melvindale-Northern Allen Park Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 389-4664	914	43	21.2	91.8%	644 (70.5%)	64 (7.0%)	174 (19.0%)	8 (0.9%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	22 (2.4%)								(n/a)			14.7					17.7									86.4%	4.7%	$15,948	$2,133	$13,815
Lafayette School	Public	PK, KG-5	1360 Lafayette Blvd	Lincoln Park	48146	Wayne County	Lincoln Park School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 389-0224	441	27	16.5	97.5%	107 (24.3%)	70 (15.9%)	244 (55.3%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	17 (3.9%)	15.7	1259^th of 1492 public elementary schools	15.6%		18.2	1190^th of 1488 public elementary schools	20.0%	69			17.3	31.9	31.1			14.7	15.3	8.2			19.7		6.6		90.9%	6.1%	$21,360	$2,702	$18,658
Mohamed Said Elementary School	Public	4-5	3303 Oakwood Blvd	Melvindale	48122	Wayne County	Melvindale-Northern Allen Park Schools	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(313) 203-3600	0			—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	11.7	1337^th of 1492 public elementary schools	10.4%					(n/a)				17.5	23.3				16.5	11.9			16.5		3.7
Baby Birds Early Childhood Center	Public	PK-K	3303 Oakwood Blvd	Melvindale	48122	Wayne County	Melvindale-Northern Allen Park Schools	No	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(313) 389-3604	0			—	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)																	93.5%	3.2%
Raupp School	Public	PK, KG-5	1351 Ethel Ave	Lincoln Park	48146	Wayne County	Lincoln Park School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 389-0226	261	19	14.0	94.3%	67 (25.7%)	70 (26.8%)	105 (40.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.4%)	18 (6.9%)	19.1	1193^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	20.0%		14.7	1264^th of 1488 public elementary schools	15.1%	71			36.1	20.8	30.3			25.0	12.5	1467.6			15.6		9.4		77.1%	8.6%	$21,623	$2,680	$18,943
Ann Visger K5 Preparatory Academy	Public	PK, KG-5	11121 W Jefferson Ave	River Rouge	48218	Wayne County	River Rouge School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 297-9648	625	30	20.8	86.9%	40 (6.4%)	473 (75.7%)	69 (11.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	39 (6.2%)	4.9	1484^th of 1492 public elementary schools	0.5%		4.4	1484^th of 1488 public elementary schools	0.3%				10.5	3.6	10.5			15.1	2.7	1453.4			4.8		3.9		80.4%	5.4%	$18,001	$1,486	$16,515
Brenda Hague Early Learning Village	Public	PK-K	50 W Josephine St	Ecorse	48229	Wayne County	Ecorse Public Schools	No	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(313) 294-4750	85	8	10.8	87.1%	8 (9.4%)	64 (75.3%)	9 (10.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (4.7%)								(n/a)																	92.8%	1.2%	$21,326	$2,171	$19,155
River Rouge Stem Academy at Dunn	Public	PK, KG-8	163 Burke St	River Rouge	48218	Wayne County	River Rouge School District of the City of	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 297-9663	370	21	17.6	78.9%	14 (3.8%)	320 (86.5%)	23 (6.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.5%)	12.2	1327^th of 1492 public elementary schools	11.1%		17.1	1221^st of 1488 public elementary schools	17.9%	106	43.2	18.2	15.4	20.5	22.7	14.5	21.7	23.1	6.7	6.8	11.3	12.8	18.2	25.0	1476.1	29.5	77.8%	22.2%	$17,609	$2,515	$15,095

Frequently Asked Questions about Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School

What schools do graduates of Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School attend?

Students who attend Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School usually go on to attend:

High : Western International High School

What is the racial makeup of Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School?

Students at Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School are 83% African American, 12% Hispanic, 4% Two or more races.

Is Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School a good school?

Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School ranks in the bottom 10.9% of Michigan elementary schools.

How many students attend Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 251 students attended Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School.

What district is Mark Twain ElementaryMiddle School in?

Detroit Public Schools Community District

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

2021–22 through 2025–26 immunization rates (updated)NewOct 19, 2026

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

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 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.