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Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue

Public Grades PK, KG-6

1199^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 20% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue is a large public school in Grand Rapids, MI, serving 661 students in grades PK through 6 as part of the Grand Rapids Public Schools district.

This school stands out for its strong attendance culture. Only about 18% of students are chronically absent, which is dramatically better than the district average of 41% and far below many nearby schools like Martin Luther King Leadership Academy (56%) or Sibley School (46%). This consistency suggests families are engaged and kids are showing up ready to learn. Academically, the school shows a pattern of improvement in upper elementary grades. By 4th and 5th grade, students are matching or exceeding district averages in both reading and math, and 5th-grade science scores jumped significantly to nearly 28% proficiency—higher than the district's 23.5%. This could indicate that the bilingual program builds academic skills over time, especially in content-heavy subjects like science.

However, the school faces real challenges. Overall test scores remain low, placing the school in the bottom 20th percentile statewide. While the school spends generously at over $15,000 per student, it maintains a high student-teacher ratio of 21:1—much higher than nearby Dickinson Academy (12:1) or Cesar E Chavez Elementary. The most striking finding is the gap in outcomes: White students at Southwest perform in the 80th percentile statewide, while Hispanic and English Language Learner students score in the single digits. For a school with a bilingual mission, this is a critical area needing attention. Still, the school has been steadily improving its overall ranking over the past five years, and its low absenteeism and pockets of strong performance suggest a solid foundation to build on.

661

Students ?

21.1

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,394

Per pupil spending ?

68.1%

Free/discounted lunch ?

801 Oakland Ave SW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503-5057

(616) 819-2947

District: Grand Rapids Public Schools

Students who attend Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue usually attend:

Middle:	Blandford School
	Burton Middle School
	Center for Economicology
	John Ball Park Zoo School
High:	City High Middle School
	Grand Rapids University Preparatory Academy
	Innovation Central High
	Union High School

Racial breakdown:

Hispanic:

84.4%

White:

7.1%

African American:

5.9%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 14th percentile in 2016 → 20th in 2026

Strengths

✓Ranking is trending up — up 6 percentile points since 2016

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (20% vs 37% meeting standards)

!In the lower quartile statewide (20th percentile)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school20%

District avg21%

Michigan avg37%

1,199^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Bottom 20%▲ up 5 pts since 2016

From bottom 14% (2016) to bottom 20% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

9^th of 20Elementary Schools in the Grand Rapids Public Schools

480^th of 625Grand Rapids Public Schools 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	18.9	1199 of 1492	19.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	17.4	1212 of 1488	18.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	16.1	1235 of 1486	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.8	1174 of 1470	20.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	16.4	1128 of 1344	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	8.3	1097 of 1153	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	14.4	1215 of 1408	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	20.6	1202 of 1448	17.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	12.0	1290 of 1466	12.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	14.2	1329 of 1548	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	17.3	1329 of 1580	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2014	21.7	1262 of 1533	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	18.0	1337 of 1563	14.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	17.8	1387 of 1566	11.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	19.3	1389 of 1552	10.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	18.5	1414 of 1552	8.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2009	9.3	1519 of 1589	4.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	7.0	1520 of 1577	3.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	9.2	1505 of 1565	3.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2006	5.8	1507 of 1545	2.5%	☆☆☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	70.2	87 of 475	81.7%	★★★★☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	12.0	181 of 188	3.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	15.6	152 of 173	12.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	8.5	182 of 184	1.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	18.2	155 of 180	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.6	82 of 98	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	16.5	106 of 117	9.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	29.6	213 of 270	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	13.7	1200 of 1343	10.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	12.7	1207 of 1338	9.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2024	11.8	1212 of 1342	9.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2023	15.0	1151 of 1321	12.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	15.5	987 of 1106	10.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	7.1	880 of 902	2.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	9.6	1106 of 1171	5.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	21.4	1164 of 1443	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	16.1	204 of 225	9.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	17.1	189 of 209	9.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.4	179 of 201	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.7	160 of 188	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	24.3	65 of 86	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	11.6	28 of 30	6.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	21.0	74 of 86	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.9	177 of 222	20.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	18.5	1164 of 1352	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	19.9	1119 of 1346	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	17.6	1185 of 1381	14.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.5	1048 of 1350	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.7	893 of 1099	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	13.0	708 of 749	5.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	19.7	971 of 1134	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.5	1078 of 1397	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	18.5	1136 of 1372	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	15.7	1157 of 1366	15.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	15.8	1158 of 1347	14.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	21.1	1051 of 1334	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	14.0	1017 of 1139	10.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	15.9	1043 of 1196	12.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	19.8	1186 of 1446	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	28.5	318 of 403	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	77.5	237 of 1199	80.2%	★★★★☆

Middle school ranking

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2019	14.2	698 of 792	11.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.8	650 of 838	22.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	19.0	674 of 821	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	27.7	648 of 894	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	36.0	607 of 919	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2014	34.3	650 of 921	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2013	33.6	652 of 919	29.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2012	15.4	800 of 900	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2011	19.1	764 of 858	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	19.2	758 of 851	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	16.9	771 of 847	9.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2008	13.2	773 of 839	7.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2007	22.2	715 of 823	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	6.9	768 of 806	4.7%	☆☆☆☆☆

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 (2018)82nd percentile+65 vs school

White (2026)80th percentile+61 vs school

Special Education (2018)21st percentile+4 vs school

Male (2026)17th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)14th percentile-6 vs school

Female (2026)11th percentile-9 vs school

Hispanic (2026)9th percentile-10 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)4th percentile-16 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Science28%-12 vs state

English Language Arts21%-19 vs state

Social Studies19%-8 vs state

Math18%-19 vs state

★

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Schools Near Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue

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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
Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue	Public	PK, KG-6	801 Oakland Ave SW	Grand Rapids	49503	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-2947	661	31	21.1	68.1%	47 (7.1%)	39 (5.9%)	558 (84.4%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (2.4%)	18.9	1199^th of 1492 public elementary schools	19.6%		17.4	1212^th of 1488 public elementary schools	18.5%	13			13.6	27.7	25.3	17.6		17.5	22.6	19.3	10.3		27.7		19.3		$15,394	$2,103	$13,291
Cesar E Chavez Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1205 Grandville Ave SW	Grand Rapids	49503	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-2560	437	26	16.9	85.1%	7 (1.6%)	78 (17.8%)	343 (78.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	8 (1.8%)	7.1	1435^th of 1492 public elementary schools	3.8%		5.8	1448^th of 1488 public elementary schools	2.7%	13			1260.7	14.8	6.2			7.9	20.0	4.6			7.7		1461.5		$16,787	$2,459	$14,328
Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center	Public, Charter	K-5	409 Lafayette Ave SE	Grand Rapids	49503	Kent County	Grand Rapids Child Discovery Center	Yes	No	No	Yes	(616) 459-0330	287	17	16.9	29.3%	190 (66.2%)	35 (12.2%)	38 (13.2%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (7.7%)	90.2	130^th of 1492 public elementary schools	91.3%		90.6	113^th of 1488 public elementary schools	92.4%	17			70.8	64.0	73.2			60.4	64.0	53.7			63.4		53.7		$12,794	$458	$12,336
Grove Montessori A Wildflower Public School	Public, Charter	K-6	1545 Buchanan Ave SW	Grand Rapids	49507	Kent County	Grove Montessori: A Wildflower Public School	Yes	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(989) 400-0058	0				0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Gerald R Ford Academic Center	Public	PK, KG-8	851 Madison Ave SE	Grand Rapids	49507	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-2640	213	13	16.1	85.4%	2 (0.9%)	109 (51.2%)	95 (44.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.3%)	21.1	1158^th of 1492 public elementary schools	22.4%		19.8	1164^th of 1488 public elementary schools	21.8%	6	17.7	331.8	15.0	30.3	50.0	1572.3	20.0	20.0	9.1	14.3	1563.3	1674.0	14.3	1765.9	10.7	1778.8	$19,106	$2,985	$16,121
Buchanan Elementary	Public	PK, KG-5	1775 Buchanan Ave SW	Grand Rapids	49507	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-2252	379	23	16.5	84.4%	8 (2.1%)	49 (12.9%)	317 (83.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (1.3%)	10.2	1366^th of 1492 public elementary schools	8.4%		8.7	1378^th of 1488 public elementary schools	7.4%	12			10.9	17.9	20.3			25.0	8.9	8.6			10.2		6.8		$20,069	$3,021	$17,048
GodfreyLee Early Childhood Center	Public	PK, KG-2	961 Joosten St SW	Wyoming	49509	Kent County	Godfrey-Lee Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 452-8703	355	25	14.0	94.4%	18 (5.1%)	46 (13.0%)	268 (75.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (6.5%)								(n/a)																	$21,581	$2,337	$19,244
Sibley School	Public	PK, KG-5	943 Sibley St NW	Grand Rapids	49504	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-3139	308	27	11.5	83.8%	40 (13.0%)	106 (34.4%)	130 (42.2%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (9.4%)	17.5	1228^th of 1492 public elementary schools	17.7%		13.4	1288^th of 1488 public elementary schools	13.4%	60			16.7	10.9	31.8			41.7	10.9	7.0			18.6		13.6		$22,716	$2,713	$20,003
Martin Luther King Leadership Academy	Public	PK, KG-8	645 Logan St SE	Grand Rapids	49503	Kent County	Grand Rapids Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 819-2600	299	16	18.4	92.3%	14 (4.7%)	216 (72.2%)	51 (17.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	18 (6.0%)	11.6	1339^th of 1492 public elementary schools	10.3%		8.2	1392^nd of 1488 public elementary schools	6.5%	53	23.1	323.1	10.8	1369.5	1456.0	23.1	1668.4	13.5	10.3	1454.9	12.0	1654.3	1463.3	1774.1	1461.1	1779.2	$19,053	$2,965	$16,087
Godfrey Elementary School	Public	3-5	1920 Godfrey Ave SW	Wyoming	49509	Kent County	Godfrey-Lee Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(616) 243-0533	325	20	16.4	94.8%	24 (7.4%)	27 (8.3%)	263 (80.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (3.4%)	11.3	1344^th of 1492 public elementary schools	9.9%		11.2	1335^th of 1488 public elementary schools	10.3%	9			13.7	17.8	22.6			15.8	11.1	10.4			16.2		12.3		$18,613	$2,126	$16,487

Frequently Asked Questions about Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue

What district is Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue in?

Grand Rapids Public Schools

What is the racial makeup of Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue?

Students at Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue are 84% Hispanic, 7% White, 6% African American, 2% Two or more races.

Is Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue a good school?

Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue ranks in the bottom 19.6% of Michigan elementary schools.

What schools do graduates of Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue attend?

Students who attend Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue usually go on to attend:

Middle : Blandford School
Middle : Burton Middle School
Middle : Center for Economicology
Middle : John Ball Park Zoo School
High : City High Middle School
High : Grand Rapids University Preparatory Academy
High : Innovation Central High
High : Union High School

How many students attend Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue?

In the 2024-25 school year, 661 students attended Southwest Elementary Academia Bilingue.

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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.