Baldwin Junior High School

Baldwin Junior High School is a small middle school in Baldwin, MI, serving just 112 students in grades 6 through 8 within the Baldwin Community Schools district, where nearly all students (99%) come from economically disadvantaged households.

When parents compare schools, the most striking difference is the academic achievement gap between Baldwin and Reed City Middle School, located just 17 miles away. In the most recent testing year, only 17.2% of Baldwin 8th graders were proficient in ELA, compared to 64.8% at Reed City. Math scores tell a similar story—just 7.3% of Baldwin 7th graders met proficiency standards versus 28.3% at Reed City. This pattern holds across nearly every subject and grade level, with Baldwin's proficiency rates running roughly one-third to one-quarter of Reed City's. What makes this particularly puzzling is that Baldwin spends $25,498 per student—nearly double Reed City's $13,810—and maintains a better student-teacher ratio of 14.3:1. Despite these advantages, the school's state ranking has slipped to the 6th percentile, down from the 15th percentile just one year earlier.

Chronic absenteeism appears to be a major underlying challenge, with 37.6% of students missing 10% or more of school days—well above the state average of 27.9% and up dramatically from just 16.7% before the pandemic. This means nearly 4 in 10 students are regularly missing instructional time, which directly impacts learning. There are a few bright spots worth noting: 8th grade science proficiency improved from 11.4% to 25% over two years, and 8th grade ELA scores showed a strong jump to 42.9% in the 2024-2025 school year, though these gains fluctuate significantly year-to-year. For parents considering this school, the data suggests that while resources and staffing are in place, the combination of concentrated poverty and high absenteeism creates significant obstacles that the school has not yet overcome.