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UCS Alternative Learning Center

Public Grades 9-12

Summary

UCS Alternative Learning Center is a public high school in Sterling Heights, Michigan, serving grades 9-12 with a relatively small student population of 196. While part of the Utica Community Schools district, which is ranked 162 out of 606 districts in Michigan, UCS Alternative Learning Center faces significant challenges compared to nearby high schools.

The school has alarmingly low graduation rates, reaching only 52.5% in the 2022-2023 school year, compared to 97.4% at Utica High School, 94.4% at Adlai Stevenson High School, and 98.5% at Henry Ford II High School. Correspondingly, UCS Alternative Learning Center has much higher dropout rates, reaching 21.9% in the 2022-2023 school year, significantly higher than the 0.7% to 2.1% dropout rates of the nearby high schools. The school also struggles with chronic absenteeism, reaching 60.1% in the 2022-2023 school year, much higher than the 15.4% to 19.7% rates of nearby high schools.

Academically, UCS Alternative Learning Center students perform significantly worse on standardized tests compared to the nearby high schools and the district/state averages. For example, in the 2022-2023 school year, only 12.8% of UCS Alternative Learning Center students were proficient or better in SAT/Evidence-Based Reading and Writing, compared to 64.2% at Utica High School, 58% at Adlai Stevenson High School, and 66.6% at Henry Ford II High School. The school also has a higher percentage of students from low-income backgrounds, with 69.39% receiving free or reduced-price lunch, compared to 19.48% to 54.83% at the nearby high schools.

245

Students ?

18.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$17,194

Per pupil spending ?

71%

Free/discounted lunch ?

7600 18 Mile Rd
Sterling Heights, MI 48314-4239

(586) 797-7000

District: Utica Community Schools

Racial breakdown:

White:

70.2%

African American:

14.3%

Hispanic:

7.3%

See top rated Michigan public schools

Compare UCS Alternative Learning Center to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 18th percentile in 2018 → 3rd in 2023

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (15% vs 55% meeting standards)

!Graduation rate below the Michigan average (60% vs 83%)

!Dropout rate above the Michigan average (14% vs 8%)

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school15%

District avg65%

Michigan avg55%

Not ranked this year

UCS Alternative Learning Center did not have enough recent test-score data to be ranked. Check the trend below for past years.

155^th of 613Utica Community 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
2023	5.1	711 of 735	3.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	12.0	678 of 824	17.7%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	10.9	97 of 102	4.9%	☆☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	4.4	667 of 710	6.1%	☆☆☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	11.6	643 of 755	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2018	11.4	594 of 707	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2023	5.2	629 of 647	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	7.2	630 of 708	11.0%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

Male (2018)16th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2018)15th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2018)6th percentile-12 vs school

English Language Learner (2018)5th percentile-13 vs school

White (2023)3rd percentile~ school

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Friday, February 8, 2019

My son Jason Hobert went there he graduated with honor. Close Quote

Schools Near UCS Alternative Learning Center

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (2025)	SAT Mathematics (2025)	M-Step Science (2025)	M-Step Social Studies (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
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	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing 11th Grade	SAT Mathematics 11th Grade	M-Step Science 11th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 11th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
UCS Alternative Learning Center	Public	9-12	7600 18 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48314	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-7000	245	13	18.3	71.0%	172 (70.2%)	35 (14.3%)	18 (7.3%)	4 (1.6%)	1 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (6.1%)								(n/a)	15.3				$17,194	$1,142	$16,052
Adlai Stevenson High School	Public	9-12	39701 Dodge Park Rd	Sterling Heights	48313	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-1900	1,881	105	17.9	54.4%	1,384 (73.6%)	159 (8.5%)	75 (4.0%)	187 (9.9%)	1 (0.1%)	3 (0.2%)	72 (3.8%)	67.8	197^th of 739 public high schools	73.3%		62.9	236^th of 743 public high schools	68.2%	39	61.3	40.5	32.6	48.5	$15,011	$1,355	$13,657
Henry Ford II High School	Public	9-12	11911 Clinton River Rd	Sterling Heights	48313	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-1600	1,663	83	19.9	40.5%	1,296 (77.9%)	121 (7.3%)	75 (4.5%)	102 (6.1%)	2 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	66 (4.0%)	77.9	130^th of 739 public high schools	82.4%		73.4	154^th of 743 public high schools	79.3%	24	68.7	39.5	46.2	48.5	$14,983	$1,382	$13,600
Joan C Sergent Instructional Resource Center	Public	9-12	14200 Canal Rd	Sterling Heights	48313	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-6800	0	0			0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Warren Consolidated Community High School	Public	9-12	35201 Davison St	Sterling Heights	48310	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 825-2900	103	12	8.3	76.7%	47 (45.6%)	34 (33.0%)	3 (2.9%)	12 (11.7%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (6.8%)								(n/a)				5.9	$26,457	$1,786	$24,671
Utica High School	Public	9-12	47255 Shelby Rd	Utica	48317	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-2200	1,391	77	17.9	36.9%	1,113 (80.0%)	88 (6.3%)	80 (5.8%)	69 (5.0%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	39 (2.8%)	74.4	156^th of 739 public high schools	78.9%		78	130^th of 743 public high schools	82.5%	26	65.8	37.8	37.7	55.5	$14,363	$1,371	$12,991
Sterling Heights Senior High School	Public	9-12	12901 15 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48312	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(586) 698-4249	1,262	67	18.7	74.7%	861 (68.2%)	170 (13.5%)	23 (1.8%)	152 (12.0%)	2 (0.2%)	1 (0.1%)	53 (4.2%)	36	468^th of 739 public high schools	36.7%		40.6	417^th of 743 public high schools	43.9%	51	59.1	17.1	23.5	26.8	$16,994	$1,258	$15,736
Career Preparation Center	Public	10-12	12200 15 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48312	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 698-4172	0	17	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Athens High School	Public	9-12	4333 John R Rd	Troy	48085	Oakland County	Troy School District	No	No	No	No	(248) 823-2900	1,468	81	18.1	16.4%	904 (61.6%)	92 (6.3%)	85 (5.8%)	324 (22.1%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (0.3%)	59 (4.0%)	83.4	87^th of 739 public high schools	88.2%		82.7	94^th of 743 public high schools	87.3%	7	74.1	52.5	44.2	50.0	$16,462	$753	$15,709
Macomb Academy	Public, Charter	12	39092 Garfield Rd	Clinton Township	48038	Macomb County	Macomb Academy	Yes	No	No	No	(586) 228-2201	46	3	15.3	26.1%	22 (47.8%)	18 (39.1%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (6.5%)								(n/a)					$10,705	$1,303	$9,401

Frequently Asked Questions about UCS Alternative Learning Center

How many students attend UCS Alternative Learning Center?

In the 2024-25 school year, 245 students attended UCS Alternative Learning Center.

What district is UCS Alternative Learning Center in?

Utica Community Schools

What is the racial makeup of UCS Alternative Learning Center?

Students at UCS Alternative Learning Center are 70% White, 14% African American, 7% Hispanic, 6% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

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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.