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Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary

Q: Is Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary a good school?

Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary ranks 511 th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades K-5

511^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 1,492 Michigan Elementary Schools

Better than 66% of Michigan elementary schools

Summary

Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary is a K-5 public school in Howell, MI, serving 416 students within the Howell Public Schools district, and it consistently ranks among the stronger elementary schools in the area.

Hutchings stands out for its exceptional English Language Arts (ELA) results. In the most recent testing year, proficiency rates ranged from 53.7% in 3rd grade to 49.3% in 5th grade, beating the district average by 3 to 17 percentage points and the state average by 6 to 15 points across all grade levels. The school also shows a remarkable ability to support students from lower-income households—this subgroup jumped from the 57th to the 77th percentile statewide in a single year. When compared to nearby schools, Hutchings outperforms most of its Howell peers, including Three Fires Elementary and Southwest Elementary, though it trails the elite performers in the neighboring Hartland Consolidated Schools, such as Creekside Elementary School and Hartland Lakes Elementary School, where proficiency rates often reach 60-80%.

The most pressing concern is a dramatic spike in chronic absenteeism, which jumped from 10.2% in 2023-2024 to 35.3% in 2024-2025—well above the district (31.8%) and state (27.9%) averages. This means more than one in three students is missing significant school days, a trend that could threaten the school's strong academic standing over time. Interestingly, test scores have remained resilient despite this attendance crisis, suggesting that the students who are present are performing very well. Another area of volatility is Social Studies, where proficiency dropped from 38.5% to 22.5% in one year, falling below district and state averages. Special Education performance has also been inconsistent, swinging from the 55th to the 20th percentile and back to the 59th percentile over three years. With a favorable student-teacher ratio of 14.5 and spending of $17,114 per student—higher than most district peers—Hutchings has solid resources. The key challenge for school leadership will be addressing the absenteeism issue to ensure all students can benefit from the school's clear academic strengths.

416

Students ?

14.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,114

Per pupil spending ?

16.6%

Free/reduced lunch eligible (2024-25) ?

All students in Michigan receive free school meals.

3503 Bigelow Rd
Howell, MI 48855-9752

(517) 234-6074

District: Howell Public Schools

Students who attend Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary usually attend:

Middle:	Highlander Way Middle School
High:	Howell High School

Racial breakdown:

White:

90.6%

Hispanic:

3.1%

Two or more races:

2.9%

See top rated Michigan elementary schools

Compare Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 87th percentile in 2016 → 66th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the Michigan average (45% vs 38% meeting standards)

✓Above the Michigan median (66th percentile)

Worth a look

!High chronic absenteeism (35% vs 28% Michigan)

!Ranking has slipped — down 21 percentile points since 2016

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

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school45%

District avg43%

Michigan avg38%

511^th of 1,492

Michigan public elementary schools ?

Top 34%▼ down 21 pts since 2016

From top 13% (2016) to top 34% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

3^rd 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	63.1	511 of 1492	65.8%	★★★☆☆
2025	73.1	368 of 1488	75.3%	★★★★☆
2024	64.2	495 of 1486	66.7%	★★★☆☆
2023	60.0	550 of 1470	62.6%	★★★☆☆
2022	59.7	487 of 1344	63.8%	★★★☆☆
2021	62.4	360 of 1153	68.8%	★★★☆☆
2019	77.9	262 of 1408	81.4%	★★★★☆
2018	74.9	361 of 1448	75.1%	★★★★☆
2017	81.0	203 of 1466	86.2%	★★★★☆
2016	83.1	201 of 1548	87.0%	★★★★☆
2015	72.6	401 of 1580	74.6%	★★★★☆
2014	79.8	250 of 1533	83.7%	★★★★☆
2013	87.6	121 of 1563	92.3%	★★★★★
2012	86.3	145 of 1566	90.7%	★★★★★
2011	81.7	130 of 1552	91.6%	★★★★★
2010	78.7	179 of 1552	88.5%	★★★★☆
2009	78.4	252 of 1589	84.1%	★★★★☆
2008	72.2	425 of 1577	73.1%	★★★★☆
2007	71.7	401 of 1565	74.4%	★★★★☆
2006	75.3	283 of 1545	81.7%	★★★★☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	54.0	551 of 1343	59.0%	★★★☆☆
2025	58.9	493 of 1338	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2024	56.9	519 of 1342	61.3%	★★★☆☆
2023	53.7	549 of 1321	58.4%	★★★☆☆
2022	50.5	518 of 1106	53.2%	★★★☆☆
2021	56.6	336 of 902	62.7%	★★★☆☆
2019	69.3	300 of 1171	74.4%	★★★★☆
2018	71.4	397 of 1443	72.5%	★★★★☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	68.7	317 of 1352	76.6%	★★★★☆
2025	68.1	334 of 1346	75.2%	★★★★☆
2024	52.4	596 of 1381	56.8%	★★★☆☆
2023	46.8	682 of 1350	49.5%	★★☆☆☆
2022	44.1	593 of 1099	46.0%	★★☆☆☆
2019	70.5	226 of 1134	80.1%	★★★★☆
2018	73.1	269 of 1397	80.7%	★★★★☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	61.3	479 of 1372	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2025	75.9	296 of 1366	78.3%	★★★★☆
2024	61.1	479 of 1347	64.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	56.1	548 of 1334	58.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	59.7	420 of 1139	63.1%	★★★☆☆
2021	52.3	399 of 915	56.4%	★★★☆☆
2019	77.2	218 of 1196	81.8%	★★★★☆
2018	74.2	341 of 1446	76.4%	★★★★☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	54.7	100 of 246	59.3%	★★★☆☆
2025	27.2	202 of 252	19.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	50.0	102 of 225	54.7%	★★★☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	49.2	593 of 1199	50.5%	★★★☆☆
2025	64.6	400 of 1206	66.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	52.6	541 of 1204	55.1%	★★★☆☆
2023	48.1	620 of 1198	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2022	50.5	535 of 1102	51.5%	★★★☆☆
2021	55.9	402 of 1005	60.0%	★★★☆☆
2019	69.0	309 of 1128	72.6%	★★★★☆
2018	66.2	390 of 1253	68.9%	★★★☆☆

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 (2026)77th percentile+11 vs school

Male (2026)65th percentile~ school

Special Education (2026)59th percentile-6 vs school

Female (2026)59th percentile-7 vs school

White (2026)51st percentile-15 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

English Language Arts51%+10 vs state

Math45%+7 vs state

Science45%+5 vs state

Social Studies22%-5 vs state

5.0

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What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, February 7, 2019

New school with the MOST AMAZING STAFF!!!! Total prepared my child for Middle school! We moved from Ann Arbor- where you would think "they" have the best schools. Which was not the case! Just because kids can pass a test, doesn't mean they are learning and preparing for their future! Close Quote

Schools Near Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary

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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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Charyl Stockwell Academy	Public, Charter	K-5	9758 E Highland Rd	Howell	48843	Livingston County	Charyl Stockwell Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(810) 632-2200	696	40	17.5	15.1%	652 (93.7%)	5 (0.7%)	10 (1.4%)	3 (0.4%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (3.6%)	77.7	296^th of 1492 public elementary schools	80.2%		73.9	351^st of 1488 public elementary schools	76.4%	55			52.3	52.0	67.3			47.7	55.1	46.5			62.4		39.6		$11,531	$416	$11,115
Creekside Elementary School	Public	K-4	3480 East St	Hartland	48353	Livingston County	Hartland Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	No	(810) 626-2600	408	29	14.0	15.4%	380 (93.1%)	2 (0.5%)	17 (4.2%)	3 (0.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	6 (1.5%)	94.4	61^st of 1492 public elementary schools	95.9%		93.9	67^th of 1488 public elementary schools	95.5%	6			63.5	69.3				75.7	78.4								$14,947	$581	$14,367
Hartland Village Elementary School	Public	K-4	10632 Hibner Rd	Hartland	48353	Livingston County	Hartland Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	No	(810) 626-2850	461	31	15.1	24.3%	426 (92.4%)	5 (1.1%)	19 (4.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	11 (2.4%)	90.5	122^nd of 1492 public elementary schools	91.8%		88.8	140^th of 1488 public elementary schools	90.6%	18			65.9	71.4				70.5	58.2								$13,743	$569	$13,174

Frequently Asked Questions about Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary

How many students attend Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary?

In the 2024-25 school year, 416 students attended Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary.

What is the racial makeup of Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary?

Students at Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary are 91% White, 3% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

Is Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary a good school?

Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary ranks 511^th of 1492 Michigan elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

What district is Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary in?

Howell Public Schools

What schools do graduates of Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary attend?

Students who attend Ruahmah J Hutchings Elementary usually go on to attend:

Middle : Highlander Way Middle School
High : Howell High School

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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.