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Pathfinders Alternative Educational

Q: Is Pathfinders Alternative Educational a good school?

Pathfinders Alternative Educational ranks 516 th of 800 Michigan high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public, Virtual Grades 6-12

516^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 800 Michigan High Schools

Better than 36% of Michigan high schools

Summary

Pathfinders Alternative Educational is a small alternative school in Dowagiac, MI, serving just 49 students in grades 6 through 12 as part of the Dowagiac Union School District. This school is designed for students who have struggled in traditional settings, and it serves a highly economically disadvantaged population, with over 81% of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch—a rate significantly higher than the district's traditional Union High School (59.6%).

The most important thing for parents to know is that this school is in the middle of a dramatic transformation. While the graduation rate of 40% is still far below the state average of 84%, it has climbed from a staggering 3.8% just three years ago—a tenfold improvement. The dropout rate, however, remains very high at 40%, which is the highest among nearby alternative programs like Cassopolis Alternative Educational (21.4%) and WAY Eau Claire (0%). Interestingly, the school reports a chronic absenteeism rate of just 18%, which is actually lower than the district average (26.5%) and much lower than Union High School (29.1%). This suggests that students who stay enrolled are showing up consistently, but the school may be losing others to sudden dropouts rather than gradual disengagement.

Academically, the picture is mixed but shows some surprising strengths. While 10th-grade English Language Arts proficiency is very low at 20% (compared to 51% at Union High School), the school excels in unexpected areas: 50% of 11th graders are proficient in Social Studies, beating both the district (42%) and state (43.2%) averages, and Science proficiency (30%) is close to the state average. The school spends about $14,937 per student, similar to Union High School. Overall, Pathfinders serves a critical role as a safety net for at-risk students, and its improving state ranking—from the 6th to the 36th percentile over the past decade—suggests recent changes are having a positive impact, even as significant challenges remain.

Students ?

20.4

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,937

Per pupil spending ?

81.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

501 N Paul St
Dowagiac, MI 49047-1662

(269) 782-4471

District: Dowagiac Union School District

Racial breakdown:

White:

57.1%

Two or more races:

18.4%

African American:

12.2%

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Compare Pathfinders Alternative Educational to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 6th percentile in 2016 → 36th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 30 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (35% vs 43% meeting standards)

!Graduation rate below the Michigan average (40% vs 84%)

!Dropout rate above the Michigan average (40% vs 7%)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school35%

District avg32%

Michigan avg43%

516^th of 800

Michigan public high schools ?

Bottom 36%▲ up 30 pts since 2016

From bottom 6% (2016) to bottom 36% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

2^nd of 2High Schools in the Dowagiac Union School District

375^th of 625Dowagiac Union School 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	33.6	516 of 800	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2018	12.3	674 of 824	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	4.2	802 of 852	5.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	15.5	605 of 755	19.9%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Low Socio Economic Status (2018)20th percentile~ school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies50%+3 vs state

English Language Arts31%-30 vs state

Science30%-7 vs state

★

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Schools Near Pathfinders Alternative Educational

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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 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 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 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
Pathfinders Alternative Educational	Public, Virtual	6-12	501 N Paul St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	Yes	No	(269) 782-4471	49	2	20.4	81.6%	28 (57.1%)	6 (12.2%)	6 (12.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (18.4%)	33.6	516^th of 800 public high schools	35.5%					(n/a)		45.5	20.0		330.0	318.7	415.0	392.0						30.0		50.0	$14,937	$1,046	$13,891
Union High School	Public	9-12	701 W Prairie Ronde St	Dowagiac	49047	Cass County	Dowagiac Union School District	No	No	No	No	(269) 782-4420	507	28	18.2	59.6%	293 (57.8%)	29 (5.7%)	109 (21.5%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	72 (14.2%)	33.9	510^th of 800 public high schools	36.3%		44.6	408^th of 739 public high schools	44.8%	102		50.4	55.0		16.8	20.0	37.6	6.4						27.5		41.3	$14,963	$1,182	$13,781
Volinia Outcome Base School	Public, Virtual	7-12	54080 Gards Prairie Rd	Decatur	49067	Cass County	Marcellus Community Schools	No	No	Yes	No	(269) 782-9716	40	2	18.8	85.0%	32 (80.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (10.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (5.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (5.0%)								(n/a)			66.7			391.7											$13,920	$1,089	$12,831
Cassopolis High School	Public	9-12	22721 Diamond Cove St	Cassopolis	49031	Cass County	Cassopolis Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(269) 445-5733	281	13	21.4	58.7%	168 (59.8%)	29 (10.3%)	18 (6.4%)	2 (0.7%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	63 (22.4%)	31.1	534^th of 800 public high schools	33.3%		25.2	539^th of 739 public high schools	27.1%	5		52.5	41.9		13.6	6.8	45.9	6.6						27.9		45.9	$15,780	$1,343	$14,437
Cassopolis Alternative Educational	Public	9-12	22721 Diamond Cove St	Cassopolis	49031	Cass County	Cassopolis Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(269) 445-0536	16	2	10.0	81.3%	8 (50.0%)	1 (6.3%)	1 (6.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (37.5%)								(n/a)																	$10,796	$1,286	$9,510
WAY Eau Claire	Public, Virtual	9-12	6295 W Main St	Eau Claire	49111	Berrien County	Eau Claire Public Schools	No	No	Yes	No	(269) 461-3121	35	11	3.0	85.7%	18 (51.4%)	6 (17.1%)	8 (22.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (8.6%)								(n/a)																	$9,787	$1,223	$8,564
Berrien County Juvenile Center	Public	6-12	6414 Deans Hill Rd	Berrien Center	49085	Berrien County	Berrien Regional Educational Service Agency	No	No	No	No	(269) 471-7725	10	3	3.3	70.0%	2 (20.0%)	8 (80.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Eau Claire High School	Public	9-12	7450 Hochberger Rd	Eau Claire	49111	Berrien County	Eau Claire Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(269) 461-6997	180	14	13.0	86.7%	60 (33.3%)	39 (21.7%)	71 (39.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	10 (5.6%)	17.1	629^th of 800 public high schools	21.4%		62.5	249^th of 739 public high schools	66.3%	380		40.4	36.6		12.8	9.8	25.7	393.1						20.0		22.9	$15,864	$1,223	$14,641
Decatur Junior Senior High School	Public	6-12	110 Cedar St	Decatur	49045	Van Buren County	Decatur Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(269) 423-6851	399	20	19.5	58.4%	274 (68.7%)	0 (0.0%)	92 (23.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (8.3%)	39.7	459^th of 800 public high schools	42.6%		51.6	350^th of 739 public high schools	52.6%	109	55.7	54.0	49.2	13.1	26.0	18.6	43.3	425.0	28.8	28.8	23.3	27.1	28.3	25.0	42.4	41.7	$17,322	$1,487	$15,835
Berrien Springs Discovery Academy	Public, Virtual	9-12	242 Sylvester Ave	Berrien Springs	49103	Berrien County	Berrien Springs Public Schools	No	No	Yes	No	(269) 471-2593	74	2	38.9	54.1%	42 (56.8%)	18 (24.3%)	8 (10.8%)	1 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.4%)	4 (5.4%)	32.7	524^th of 800 public high schools	34.5%		41.4	432^nd of 739 public high schools	41.5%	92			50.0			30.0	22.2	392.2						27.8		33.3	$12,178	$795	$11,383

Frequently Asked Questions about Pathfinders Alternative Educational

What district is Pathfinders Alternative Educational in?

Dowagiac Union School District

What is the racial makeup of Pathfinders Alternative Educational?

Students at Pathfinders Alternative Educational are 57% White, 18% Two or more races, 12% African American, 12% Hispanic.

Is Pathfinders Alternative Educational a good school?

Pathfinders Alternative Educational ranks 516^th of 800 Michigan high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Pathfinders Alternative Educational?

In the 2024-25 school year, 49 students attended Pathfinders Alternative Educational.

Rate Pathfinders Alternative Educational!

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Schools in Dowagiac, MI

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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.