Marjorie Carlson Elementary School

Marjorie Carlson Elementary School in Warren, MI, serves 360 students from Pre-K through 5th grade and is part of the Van Dyke Public Schools district, a community where over 93% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

If you're looking at schools in this area, Marjorie Carlson stands out as a relative bright spot within its district. While the district itself struggles with a 0-star rating, Marjorie Carlson holds a 1-star rating and consistently outperforms its direct district peers. For example, in 3rd-grade ELA, 29.4% of Marjorie Carlson students were proficient compared to just 14.8% at McKinley Elementary and 14% at Lincoln Elementary. The school also invests heavily in its students, spending $23,962 per pupil—significantly more than nearby schools like Westwood Elementary ($15,519)—and maintains a favorable student-to-teacher ratio of 11.2. This suggests a real commitment of resources, even if test scores haven't fully caught up yet.

However, there are important challenges to be aware of. Academic performance still lags behind state averages, particularly in upper-grade math and science—for instance, 5th-grade math proficiency is just 13.7% versus the state's 32.2%. The school also shows notable strengths in early literacy, with 3rd-grade ELA scores coming closest to the state average. One of the biggest hurdles is chronic absenteeism: nearly half of students (47.1%) miss substantial school time, which is almost double the state average. It's also worth noting that other nearby schools serving similar demographics achieve much higher results—Frontier International Academy, with a 99% free/reduced lunch rate, ranks in the 73rd percentile statewide. This suggests that while Marjorie Carlson is making progress—moving from the 18th to 27th percentile in recent years—there's still significant room for growth, and parents should consider the absenteeism challenge when evaluating the school.