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Garvey Academy

Public Grades PK, KG-8

1358^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 9% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Garvey Academy is an elementary school (PK-8) on Detroit’s East Side serving 434 students within the Detroit Public Schools Community District, where roughly 90% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Garvey Academy currently ranks in the bottom 10th percentile of Michigan schools, with a 0-star rating. Test scores in English language arts and math are significantly below state averages—for example, ELA proficiency rates in grades 3-7 range from 12-18%, compared to state averages of 40-50%. The school’s most pressing challenge is chronic absenteeism: 56.4% of students miss enough school to be considered chronically absent, which is roughly double the state average of 27.9%. While this is alarming, it’s actually better than the district average (60.9%) and notably lower than nearby Moses Field Center (77.1%) and Bunche Preparatory Academy (70.6%). There are faint signs of progress: chronic absenteeism has dropped from 72.9% in 2021-2022, and the school’s overall percentile ranking has inched up slightly over the past three years.

The most striking comparison is with schools less than a mile away. Detroit Prep (67th percentile statewide) and The James and Grace Lee Boggs School (55th percentile) achieve ELA proficiency rates 3-4 times higher than Garvey Academy—yet they spend roughly half as much per student ($12,135 and $12,457, respectively, versus Garvey’s $24,673). Detroit Prep also has a chronic absenteeism rate of just 11.1%. This efficiency gap—high spending with low academic returns—is the school’s defining issue. One nuance: Garvey Academy performs relatively better for its African American students (28th percentile statewide) than for its overall student body, and by 8th grade, PSAT ELA scores (31.8%) nearly match the district average (32.1%). These pockets of effectiveness, combined with improving attendance, suggest the school has strengths to build on—but significant work remains to close the gap with nearby schools serving the same community.

434

Students ?

13.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$24,673

Per pupil spending ?

90.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

2301 Van Dyke St
Detroit, MI 48214-3958

(313) 866-7400

District: Detroit Public Schools Community District

Students who attend Garvey Academy usually attend:

High:

Southeastern High School

Racial breakdown:

African American:

97.0%

White:

0.9%

Asian:

0.9%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Garvey Academy to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 7th percentile in 2023 → 9th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (17% vs 40% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (9th percentile)

!High chronic absenteeism (56% vs 28% Michigan)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school17%

District avg16%

Michigan avg40%

Elementary school

1,358^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Bottom 9%▲ up 2 pts since 2023

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

Middle school

826^th of 896

Michigan public middle schools ?

Bottom 8%▼ down 7 pts since 2023

From bottom 14% (2023) to bottom 8% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

35^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	10.7	1358 of 1492	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	10.3	1352 of 1488	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.8	1346 of 1486	9.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	7.6	1373 of 1470	6.6%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	28.7	280 of 388	27.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	29.1	261 of 369	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	28.9	246 of 348	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.7	259 of 321	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	25.7	390 of 475	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	9.5	1274 of 1343	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	8.6	1276 of 1338	4.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	13.7	1187 of 1342	11.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	7.3	1398 of 1443	3.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	15.2	1217 of 1352	10.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	13.8	1223 of 1346	9.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	9.4	1303 of 1381	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	11.7	1233 of 1350	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	10.0	1337 of 1397	4.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	10.5	1268 of 1372	7.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	14.0	1194 of 1366	12.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.5	1015 of 1347	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	17.8	1096 of 1334	17.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	9.8	826 of 896	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	8.9	833 of 890	6.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	14.3	756 of 883	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	26.8	245 of 337	27.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	23.3	276 of 338	18.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	38.7	180 of 310	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	17.3	346 of 366	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	7.3	761 of 789	3.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	17.0	656 of 770	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	5.6	782 of 794	1.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	12.8	769 of 834	7.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	12.3	765 of 832	8.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	24.9	646 of 825	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	7.2	804 of 815	1.3%	☆☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	10.4	749 of 813	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	6.2	788 of 797	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

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)28th percentile+19 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)10th percentile~ school

Male (2026)8th percentile~ school

Female (2026)5th percentile-4 vs school

Middle school

African American (2026)27th percentile+19 vs school

Male (2026)8th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)8th percentile~ school

Female (2026)4th percentile-4 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies16%-23 vs state

English Language Arts15%-25 vs state

Math15%-21 vs state

Science11%-28 vs state

★

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Schools Near Garvey Academy

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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)	M-Step English Language Arts (2026)					M-Step Math (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 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	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Garvey Academy	Public	PK, KG-8	2301 Van Dyke St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 866-7400	434	33	13.1	90.1%	4 (0.9%)	421 (97.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.9%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	4 (0.9%)	10.7	1358^th of 1492 public elementary schools	9.0%		10.3	1352^nd of 1488 public elementary schools	9.1%	6	31.8	339.8	14.6	12.5	1464.3	17.8	13.2	14.6	1368.4	1450.6	1559.3	1661.0	1463.4	11.1	1461.3	15.6	$24,673	$1,716	$22,956
The James and Grace Lee Boggs School	Public, Charter	K-8	7600 Goethe St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	The James and Grace Lee Boggs School	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 923-2301	172	10	18.1	68.6%	46 (26.7%)	101 (58.7%)	9 (5.2%)	1 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (8.7%)	52	670^th of 1492 public elementary schools	55.1%		43.9	812^th of 1488 public elementary schools	45.4%	142	496.4	45.5	37.5	52.4	50.0	47.8	43.8	31.3	14.3	29.2	43.5	37.5	37.5	45.5	25.0	72.7	$12,457	$00	$12,457
Moses Field Center	Public	PK, KG-8	1100 Sheridan St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	No	(313) 866-5790	69	12	5.7	87.0%	7 (10.1%)	55 (79.7%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (7.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (2.9%)								(n/a)																	$50,251	$5,217	$45,033
Nichols ElementaryMiddle School	Public	PK, KG-8	3000 Burns St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 852-0800	311	18	17.7	92.0%	4 (1.3%)	295 (94.9%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (3.2%)	13.3	1307^th of 1492 public elementary schools	12.4%		17.8	1203^rd of 1488 public elementary schools	19.2%	104	335.6	318.8	10.6	17.6	12.1	26.5	1666.2	11.1	1359.5	1462.6	17.6	1664.9	1471.3	1767.7	1464.6	90.6	$23,079	$1,760	$21,320
Detroit Prep	Public, Charter	K-8	8411 Sylvester St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	Detroit Achievement Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 343-1495	418	24	17.7	54.5%	147 (35.2%)	221 (52.9%)	8 (1.9%)	6 (1.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	35 (8.4%)	64.5	497^th of 1492 public elementary schools	66.7%		66.8	467^th of 1488 public elementary schools	68.6%	30	492.6	61.8	49.0	56.0	45.1	57.1	54.2	51.0	48.0	29.4	51.0	46.8	39.2	58.8	23.5	73.5	$12,135	$1,049	$11,087
Hutchinson ElementaryMiddle School	Public	PK, KG-8	2600 Garland St	Detroit	48214	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 866-4169	379	27	14.1	90.0%	1 (0.3%)	367 (96.8%)	10 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11.7	1336^th of 1492 public elementary schools	10.5%		9.3	1369^th of 1488 public elementary schools	8.0%	33	27.9	14.0	1268.3	5.9	25.0	13.9	22.2	1271.7	1360.2	14.8	11.8	25.9	1468.5	1771.7	1463.8	25.6	$23,734	$2,028	$21,706
Bunche Preparatory Academy	Public	PK, KG-8	2715 Macomb St	Detroit	48207	Wayne County	Detroit Public Schools Community District	No	No	No	Yes	(313) 494-8350	401	32	12.6	91.8%	3 (0.7%)	380 (94.8%)	4 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (0.7%)	2 (0.5%)	9 (2.2%)	5.3	1477^th of 1492 public elementary schools	1.0%		12.9	1301^st of 1488 public elementary schools	12.6%	176	42.9	341.4	11.4	8.3	8.6	6.8	31.6	1255.8	1356.9	1447.0	1555.9	18.4	1470.4	21.4	1458.8	25.0	$24,085	$1,814	$22,270
Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	2985 E Jefferson Ave	Detroit	48207	Wayne County	Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 259-1744	694	37	19.0	98.7%	0 (0.0%)	689 (99.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.6%)	9.2	1386^th of 1492 public elementary schools	7.1%		6.6	1435^th of 1488 public elementary schools	3.6%	49			15.9	18.7	15.4			21.0	8.9	3.8			9.5		6.8		$15,171	$2,569	$12,603
Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences Middle School	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	2985 E Jefferson Ave	Detroit	48207	Wayne County	Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences	Yes	No	No	Yes	(313) 259-1744	339	21	16.5	98.8%	0 (0.0%)	336 (99.1%)	2 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)								(n/a)	30.8	12.5				13.6	28.2				11.3	9.4		16.7		26.5	$14,903	$2,730	$12,174
Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences-Early Elementary	Public, Charter	PK, KG-8	3100 E Jefferson Ave	Detroit	48207	Wayne County	Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences	Yes	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(313) 259-1744	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)

Frequently Asked Questions about Garvey Academy

What is the racial makeup of Garvey Academy?

Students at Garvey Academy are 97% African American.

Is Garvey Academy a good school?

Garvey Academy ranks in the bottom 9.0% of Michigan elementary schools.

How many students attend Garvey Academy?

In the 2024-25 school year, 434 students attended Garvey Academy.

What schools do graduates of Garvey Academy attend?

Students who attend Garvey Academy usually go on to attend:

High : Southeastern High School

What district is Garvey Academy in?

Detroit Public Schools Community District

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

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

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.