Lincoln Middle School

Lincoln Middle School in Ypsilanti, MI, serves 712 students in grades 6-8 as part of the Lincoln Consolidated School District, sitting in a region where nearby middle schools range from the state's top performers to those facing significant challenges.

One of Lincoln's standout qualities is student attendance. With a chronic absenteeism rate of 22.1%, the school outperforms its district (28.8%) and the state average (27.9%), and it does notably better than several Ann Arbor schools with lower poverty rates—including Slauson Middle School (29.8%), Clague Middle School (30.9%), and Tappan Middle School (32.1%). This suggests a positive, engaging school climate that keeps kids coming to class. Academically, Lincoln has shown remarkable growth in 8th-grade social studies, jumping from 15.6% proficiency in 2022-2023 to 41% in 2025-2026, closing much of the gap with the state average. Science scores have also trended upward, narrowing the gap with the state from 15.7 points to 8.3 points over three years.

However, math remains the school's biggest challenge, with proficiency rates stuck around 15-18% compared to the state's 30-33%. The school also struggles to serve certain student groups well, particularly special education students and multi-racial students, whose performance has ranked in the low single digits statewide in recent years. When compared to Scarlett Middle School in Ann Arbor—which has a similar percentage of students from low-income families—Lincoln trails in most subjects by 5-15 percentage points, though it has far better attendance. Lincoln sits in a unique middle ground: it substantially outperforms Ypsilanti Community Middle School (31st vs. 2nd percentile statewide) but cannot match the academic results of Saline Middle School or the top Ann Arbor schools. For families weighing options, Lincoln offers a stable, well-attended environment where roughly half of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, and per-student spending is substantial at $17,072 annually.