Seminole Academy

Seminole Academy is an elementary school in Mount Clemens, MI, serving 407 students in grades PK-5 within the Mount Clemens Community School District.

This school faces significant challenges that parents should understand. The most pressing issue is a chronic absenteeism crisis—during the 2024-2025 school year, 65.3% of students were chronically absent, meaning they missed 10% or more of the school year. This rate is more than double the state average of 27.9% and is even higher than other high-poverty schools in the area, such as Robbie Hall Parker School (57.5%) and Prevail Academy (47.9%). Academic proficiency rates are very low across all subjects and grades—for example, only 4.84% of 3rd graders were proficient in English Language Arts and 8.1% in Math in the most recent testing year. The school has ranked in the bottom 5% of Michigan elementary schools for the past decade, though there is a small sign of improvement, with the state percentile rank rising from the 1st percentile in 2021-2022 to the 4th percentile in 2025-2026.

One striking comparison is with Mt. Clemens Montessori Academy, a public charter school located just 0.59 miles away. While 92% of Seminole Academy students qualify for free or reduced lunch, the Montessori Academy serves a student body with a 35.6% low-income rate and ranks in the 65th percentile statewide, with proficiency rates often 30-40 percentage points higher. It's also notable that Seminole Academy spends $16,339 per student—more than higher-performing nearby schools like Ottawa Elementary ($13,985) and Walt Disney Elementary ($13,977)—yet achieves far lower results. For parents considering this school, the overwhelming priority must be understanding and addressing the barriers to regular attendance, as academic success is nearly impossible when students are not in the classroom to benefit from instruction.