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Challenger Elementary School

Q: Is Challenger Elementary School a good school?

Challenger Elementary School ranks 405 th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

405^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 73% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Challenger Elementary School in Howell, MI, is a K-5 school serving 465 students as part of the Howell Public Schools district, and it has recently earned its highest state ranking in nearly a decade—climbing to the 73rd percentile (4 stars) for the 2025-2026 school year.

What makes Challenger stand out is its exceptional 5th-grade performance. In the most recent school year, 5th graders significantly outpaced both district and state averages in every subject—for example, 63.9% were proficient in English Language Arts (compared to 47.4% district and 43.8% state) and 52.8% in math (versus 40.5% district and 32.2% state). The school also shows remarkable effectiveness with students from low socio-economic backgrounds, whose subgroup ranking jumped from the 35th to the 74th percentile in just two years. Male students have also shown strong, sustained improvement, now ranking in the 74th percentile. When compared to nearby schools, Challenger holds a higher overall state ranking than Voyager Elementary School (73rd vs. 69th percentile) and Southwest Elementary School (73rd vs. 56th), with lower chronic absenteeism than both.

However, there are two areas of concern. First, 3rd-grade English Language Arts proficiency dropped sharply to just 27.6%—well below the district (36.6%) and state (38.2%) averages—suggesting a potential early literacy challenge. Second, chronic absenteeism spiked dramatically from 19.3% to 39.0% in the last year, which is higher than the district (31.8%) and state (27.9%) averages. This is a critical issue, as high absenteeism can threaten the school's recent academic gains. While Challenger outperforms Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary in 5th-grade math and social studies, it lags significantly in 3rd-grade ELA. Additionally, compared to Hornung Elementary School in the neighboring Brighton Area Schools district, Challenger still has considerable gaps in achievement and a much higher absenteeism rate (39% vs. 11.3%). With higher per-student spending ($15,997) and a favorable student-teacher ratio of 14.3, Challenger has resources in place—but addressing absenteeism and early literacy will be key to sustaining its upward trajectory.

465

Students ?

14.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$15,997

Per pupil spending ?

29%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1066 W Grand River Ave
Howell, MI 48843-1499

(517) 548-6375

District: Howell Public Schools

Students who attend Challenger Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Highlander Way Middle School
High:	Howell High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

92.9%

Hispanic:

3.4%

Two or more races:

3.4%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Challenger Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▲ Ranking trend: Improving — 57th percentile in 2016 → 73rd in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Michigan average (49% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Ranking is trending up — up 16 percentile points since 2016

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Howell Public Schools

Worth a look

!High chronic absenteeism (39% vs 28% Michigan)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school49%

District avg43%

Michigan avg38%

405^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Top 27%▲ up 16 pts since 2016

From top 43% (2016) to top 27% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 7Elementary Schools in the Howell Public Schools

216^th of 625Howell 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)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	70.0	405 of 1492	72.9%	★★★★☆
2025	63.5	517 of 1488	65.3%	★★★☆☆
2024	50.1	694 of 1486	53.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	57.3	582 of 1470	60.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	49.8	621 of 1344	53.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	54.3	460 of 1153	60.1%	★★★☆☆
2019	53.7	610 of 1408	56.7%	★★★☆☆
2018	64.1	540 of 1448	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2017	68.7	370 of 1466	74.8%	★★★★☆
2016	56.4	669 of 1548	56.8%	★★★☆☆
2015	52.3	777 of 1580	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2014	60.4	631 of 1533	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2013	68.5	469 of 1563	70.0%	★★★★☆
2012	69.5	450 of 1566	71.3%	★★★★☆
2011	75.3	338 of 1552	78.2%	★★★★☆
2010	74.5	349 of 1552	77.5%	★★★★☆
2009	71.5	457 of 1589	71.2%	★★★★☆
2008	72.2	419 of 1577	73.4%	★★★★☆
2007	77.7	248 of 1565	84.2%	★★★★☆
2006	80.0	181 of 1545	88.3%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	58.9	492 of 1343	63.4%	★★★☆☆
2025	45.3	689 of 1338	48.5%	★★☆☆☆
2024	42.4	721 of 1342	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.9	811 of 1321	38.6%	★★☆☆☆
2022	40.3	637 of 1106	42.4%	★★☆☆☆
2021	46.8	451 of 902	50.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	58.2	459 of 1171	60.8%	★★★☆☆
2018	64.2	505 of 1443	65.0%	★★★☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	66.2	358 of 1352	73.5%	★★★★☆
2025	52.8	586 of 1346	56.5%	★★★☆☆
2024	35.3	896 of 1381	35.1%	★★☆☆☆
2023	36.8	858 of 1350	36.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	36.8	704 of 1099	35.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	76.9	96 of 749	87.2%	★★★★☆
2019	49.5	562 of 1134	50.4%	★★★☆☆
2018	59.1	537 of 1397	61.6%	★★★☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	70.4	354 of 1372	74.2%	★★★★☆
2025	69.9	370 of 1366	72.9%	★★★★☆
2024	47.7	670 of 1347	50.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.8	483 of 1334	63.8%	★★★☆☆
2022	46.4	583 of 1139	48.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	50.0	421 of 915	54.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	45.0	651 of 1196	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	60.9	552 of 1446	61.8%	★★★☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2023	46.6	100 of 195	48.7%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	59.1	455 of 1199	62.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	51.1	574 of 1206	52.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	36.8	777 of 1204	35.5%	★★☆☆☆
2023	44.6	660 of 1198	44.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	37.7	685 of 1102	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	47.3	494 of 1005	50.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	41.5	670 of 1128	40.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	50.4	631 of 1253	49.6%	★★☆☆☆

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)

Male (2026)74th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)74th percentile~ school

Female (2026)63rd percentile-9 vs school

White (2026)62nd percentile-11 vs school

Special Education (2023)49th percentile-12 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Math53%+15 vs state

Science47%+7 vs state

English Language Arts47%+6 vs state

Social Studies42%+14 vs state

★

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Schools Near Challenger Elementary 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 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
Challenger Elementary School	Public	K-5	1066 W Grand River Ave	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(517) 548-6375	465	33	14.3	29.0%	432 (92.9%)	1 (0.2%)	16 (3.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.4%)	70	405^th of 1492 public elementary schools	72.9%		63.5	517^th of 1488 public elementary schools	65.3%	112			27.6	50.6	63.9			51.3	54.4	52.8			47.2		41.7		$15,997	$821	$15,176
Southwest Elementary School	Public	K-5	915 Gay St	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(517) 548-6288	526	33	15.8	38.2%	424 (80.6%)	2 (0.4%)	61 (11.6%)	4 (0.8%)	3 (0.6%)	13 (2.5%)	19 (3.6%)	53.2	656^th of 1492 public elementary schools	56.0%		71.4	397^th of 1488 public elementary schools	73.3%	259			28.4	51.7	39.1			45.3	52.8	39.1			34.5		27.6		$16,803	$918	$15,885
Voyager Elementary School	Public	K-5	1450 Byron Rd	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(517) 552-7500	517	29	17.7	24.4%	488 (94.4%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	14 (2.7%)	66.5	465^th of 1492 public elementary schools	68.8%		62.4	532^nd of 1488 public elementary schools	64.2%	67			36.1	50.6	48.2			44.6	62.9	44.6			50.6		33.7		$13,070	$545	$12,525
Northwest Elementary School	Public	K-5	1233 Bower St	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(517) 548-6297	418	29	14.4	18.4%	394 (94.3%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (3.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (1.7%)	59	574^th of 1492 public elementary schools	61.5%		52.2	683^rd of 1488 public elementary schools	54.1%	109			49.3	34.8	45.3			65.8	43.5	32.8			37.5		31.7		$19,237	$545	$18,692
Parker Middle School	Public	K-8	400 Wright Rd	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(517) 552-4600	1,011	46	21.9	21.4%	916 (90.6%)	4 (0.4%)	55 (5.4%)	5 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.2%)	29 (2.9%)	58.1	583^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	60.9%					(n/a)	71.1	35.6	40.6	45.8	70.0	37.9	30.6	31.3	50.0	65.0	32.6	37.1	55.0	38.7	40.0	44.0	$14,314	$545	$13,769
Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary	Public	K-5	3503 Bigelow Rd	Howell	48855	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(517) 234-6074	416	29	14.5	16.6%	377 (90.6%)	3 (0.7%)	13 (3.1%)	11 (2.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (2.9%)	63.1	511^th of 1492 public elementary schools	65.8%		73.1	368^th of 1488 public elementary schools	75.3%	143			53.7	50.0	49.3			43.3	51.3	40.8			45.1		22.5		$17,114	$545	$16,569
Three Fires Elementary	Public	K-5	4125 Crooked Lake Rd	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Howell Public Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(517) 548-6387	753	46	16.4	33.6%	672 (89.2%)	1 (0.1%)	42 (5.6%)	4 (0.5%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (4.4%)	45.2	773^rd of 1492 public elementary schools	48.2%		54.9	648^th of 1488 public elementary schools	56.5%	125			31.1	43.7	38.5			31.8	42.1	30.3			33.0		33.9		$15,410	$901	$14,509
Natalie Kreeger Elementary School	Public	3-5	430 N Hibbard St	Fowlerville	48836	Livingston County	Fowlerville Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(517) 223-6006	539	31	17.2	33.8%	510 (94.6%)	3 (0.6%)	17 (3.2%)	4 (0.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.7%)	61.3	535^th of 1492 public elementary schools	64.1%		56	631^st of 1488 public elementary schools	57.6%	96			48.7	42.5	48.0			56.5	39.9	32.6			41.1		38.3		$15,211	$1,057	$14,154
Fowlerville Elementary School	Public	K-2	420 N Hibbard St	Fowlerville	48836	Livingston County	Fowlerville Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(517) 223-6005	494	30	16.3	37.4%	453 (91.7%)	5 (1.0%)	28 (5.7%)	3 (0.6%)	2 (0.4%)	1 (0.2%)	2 (0.4%)								(n/a)																	$14,634	$1,135	$13,499
Hornung Elementary School	Public	K-4	4680 Bauer Rd	Brighton	48116	Livingston County	Brighton Area Schools	No	No	No	No	(810) 299-4450	558	31	18.0	9.1%	525 (94.1%)	1 (0.2%)	15 (2.7%)	8 (1.4%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (1.6%)	93.2	80^th of 1492 public elementary schools	94.6%		94.5	60^th of 1488 public elementary schools	96.0%	20			61.2	74.3				67.0	79.6								$13,402	$572	$12,830

Frequently Asked Questions about Challenger Elementary School

What schools do graduates of Challenger Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Challenger Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Highlander Way Middle School
High : Howell High School

How many students attend Challenger Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 465 students attended Challenger Elementary School.

What district is Challenger Elementary School in?

Howell Public Schools

Is Challenger Elementary School a good school?

Challenger Elementary School ranks 405^th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 4 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Challenger Elementary School?

Students at Challenger Elementary School are 93% White, 3% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races.

Rate Challenger Elementary School!

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Schools in Howell, 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.