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Bernice McDowell Elementary School

Public Grades PK, KG-5
1348th
SchoolDigger Rank ?
of 1,488 Michigan Elementary Schools
Better than 9% of Michigan elementary schools
Summary

Bernice McDowell Elementary School is a public elementary school in Taylor, Michigan, serving 263 students in grades PK-5. The school is part of the Taylor School District, which is ranked 539 out of 613 districts in the state and has a 1-star rating from SchoolDigger.

Bernice McDowell Elementary consistently ranks in the bottom 25% of Michigan elementary schools, with low performance on state assessments. In 2024-2025, only 9.62% of 3rd graders were proficient in English Language Arts, compared to 13% for the district and 38.9% for the state. The school also has high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 29.5% to 55.2% in recent years, and a very high percentage of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating a concentration of students from low-income families.

Interestingly, the nearby schools within the Taylor School District also perform poorly, while the schools in the Allen Park Public Schools district, such as Lindemann Elementary and Bennie Elementary, perform significantly better. Despite the relatively low student-teacher ratio at Bernice McDowell Elementary, the academic performance has not improved, suggesting that factors beyond class size may be contributing to the school's challenges.

341
Students ?
16.7
Student/teacher ratio ?
$20,384
Per pupil spending ?
83.3%
Free/discounted lunch ?
 22929 Brest
       Taylor, MI  48180-4176

(734) 374-1240

District: Taylor School District


Students who attend Bernice McDowell Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:    Robert J West Middle School
High:    Taylor High School
Racial breakdown:

White:
41.3%
African American:
38.7%
Hispanic:
8.8%
more
 See top rated Michigan elementary schools

 Compare Bernice McDowell Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!
At a glance
Ranking trend: Declining — 26th percentile in 2014 → 9th in 2025
Worth a look
!Test scores below the Michigan average (14% vs 39% meeting standards)
!In the lower quartile statewide (9th percentile)
!High chronic absenteeism (47% vs 28% Michigan)
Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?
This school14%
District avg19%
Michigan avg39%
1,348th of 1,488
Michigan public elementary schools ?
Bottom 9%▼ down 10 pts since 2015
From bottom 19% (2015) to bottom 9% (2025)
See the entire ranking list of Michigan Elementary Schools →
SchoolDigger rating ?
6th of 7Elementary Schools in the Taylor School District
539th of 613Taylor School District 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

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
202510.41348 of 14889.4%☆☆☆☆☆
20249.21358 of 14868.6%☆☆☆☆☆
202316.51215 of 147017.3%★☆☆☆☆
202215.71143 of 134415.0%★☆☆☆☆
20198.71303 of 14087.5%☆☆☆☆☆
201811.41338 of 14487.6%☆☆☆☆☆
201711.51306 of 146610.9%★☆☆☆☆
201613.11346 of 154813.0%★☆☆☆☆
201521.31273 of 158019.4%★☆☆☆☆
201431.41139 of 153325.7%★☆☆☆☆
201335.41100 of 156329.6%★☆☆☆☆
201247.2903 of 156642.3%★★☆☆☆
201131.21281 of 155217.5%★☆☆☆☆
201035.51263 of 155218.6%★☆☆☆☆
200927.91352 of 158914.9%★☆☆☆☆
200823.91383 of 157712.3%★☆☆☆☆
200744.41107 of 156529.3%★☆☆☆☆
200634.71253 of 154518.9%★☆☆☆☆

African American

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
201820.6437 of 4758.0%☆☆☆☆☆

Female

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
202512.21217 of 13389.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20249.51249 of 13426.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202323.81007 of 132123.8%★☆☆☆☆
202217.1960 of 110613.2%★☆☆☆☆
20199.51108 of 11715.4%☆☆☆☆☆
201812.71293 of 144310.4%★☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
202513.91220 of 13469.4%☆☆☆☆☆
202414.11244 of 13819.9%☆☆☆☆☆
202325.81028 of 135023.9%★☆☆☆☆
202229.2806 of 109926.7%★☆☆☆☆
201914.81024 of 11349.7%☆☆☆☆☆
201813.01287 of 13977.9%☆☆☆☆☆

Male

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
20257.21309 of 13664.2%☆☆☆☆☆
20246.91293 of 13474.0%☆☆☆☆☆
20237.91263 of 13345.3%☆☆☆☆☆
201811.21310 of 14469.4%☆☆☆☆☆

Special Education

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
201820.2373 of 4037.4%☆☆☆☆☆

White

YearAvg scoreStatewide rankMichigan percentileRating
20255.11192 of 12061.2%☆☆☆☆☆
202311.61110 of 11987.3%☆☆☆☆☆
20187.41215 of 12533.0%☆☆☆☆☆
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 (2025)9th percentile~ school
Female (2025)9th percentile~ school
African American (2018)8th percentile~ school
Special Education (2018)7th percentile~ school
Male (2025)4th percentile-5 vs school
White (2025)1st percentile-8 vs school
By subject vs Michigan (2024-2025) ?
English Language Arts19%-23 vs state
Science14%-26 vs state
Social Studies10%-19 vs state
Math10%-29 vs state

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Frequently Asked Questions about Bernice McDowell Elementary School

In the 2024-25 school year, 341 students attended Bernice McDowell Elementary School.

Bernice McDowell Elementary School ranks in the bottom 9.4% of Michigan elementary schools.

Students at Bernice McDowell Elementary School are 41% White, 39% African American, 9% Hispanic, 6% Asian, 5% Two or more races.

Students who attend Bernice McDowell Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Robert J West Middle School
High : Taylor High School


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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.





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