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Carleton Middle School

Q: Is Carleton Middle School a good school?

Carleton Middle School ranks 507 th of 896 Michigan middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 6-8

507^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 896 Michigan Middle Schools

Better than 43% of Michigan middle schools

Summary

Carleton Middle School in Sterling Heights, MI, serves 638 students in grades 6 through 8 and is part of the Warren Consolidated Schools district. The school has earned a 2-star rating from SchoolDigger, ranking 507th out of 896 Michigan middle schools, with about 76% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch.

One of the most pressing concerns at Carleton is chronic absenteeism, which stands at 40.5%—well above the state average of 27.9% and higher than nearby schools like Bemis Junior High School (21.4%) and Davis Junior High School (22.0%). This pattern of missed school days likely contributes to academic struggles, particularly in math and science. For example, only 20.3% of 8th graders were proficient in math on the PSAT, compared to 33.2% statewide, and just 23.5% of 8th graders were proficient in science versus 39.2% statewide. The school also faces significant challenges with its Special Education population, ranking in the 5th percentile statewide—a sharp decline from the 39th percentile several years ago. Despite spending $18,795 per student—more than Grissom Middle School ($16,486) or Carter Middle School ($15,874)—these outcomes do not reflect a corresponding advantage.

There are some bright spots worth noting. English Language Arts is a relative strength, with 8th grade PSAT ELA proficiency at 61.5%, close to the state average of 64.8%. Additionally, 6th graders at Carleton outperform the district average in both math and ELA, suggesting a solid foundation that unfortunately fades by 7th and 8th grade. African American students and those from low-income households have shown improvement in recent years, ranking in the 63rd and 52nd percentiles respectively. For parents considering this school, it's helpful to know that while Carleton faces real challenges—especially around attendance and STEM subjects—it also demonstrates pockets of progress and a literacy program that is keeping pace with state norms.

638

Students ?

17.5

Student/teacher ratio ?

$18,795

Per pupil spending ?

76.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

8900 15 Mile Rd
Sterling Heights, MI 48312-3608

(586) 825-2590

District: Warren Consolidated Schools

Feeder schools for Carleton Middle School:

Elementary:	Black Elementary School
	Harwood Elementary School
	Willow Woods Elementary School

Racial breakdown:

White:

58.2%

African American:

21.2%

Asian:

12.7%

See top rated Michigan middle schools

Compare Carleton Middle School to nearby middle schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 46th percentile in 2016 → 43rd in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Michigan average (34% vs 41% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (40% vs 28% Michigan)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school34%

District avg38%

Michigan avg41%

507^th of 896

Michigan public middle schools ?

Bottom 43%▼ down 3 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of Michigan Middle Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

4^th of 4Middle Schools in the Warren Consolidated Schools

369^th of 625Warren Consolidated 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
2026	40.9	507 of 896	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	35.9	552 of 890	38.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	31.7	598 of 897	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.2	584 of 883	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.2	513 of 776	33.9%	★★☆☆☆
2021	18.7	578 of 675	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	39.5	472 of 792	40.4%	★★☆☆☆
2018	42.3	508 of 838	39.4%	★★☆☆☆
2017	33.8	515 of 821	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2016	45.3	480 of 894	46.3%	★★☆☆☆
2015	44.7	520 of 919	43.4%	★★☆☆☆
2014	41.7	588 of 921	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2013	45.0	534 of 919	41.9%	★★☆☆☆
2012	64.9	289 of 900	67.9%	★★★☆☆
2011	62.3	399 of 858	53.5%	★★★☆☆
2010	49.5	576 of 851	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2009	52.9	542 of 847	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2008	52.1	537 of 839	36.0%	★★☆☆☆
2007	62.7	371 of 823	54.9%	★★★☆☆
2006	59.9	395 of 806	51.0%	★★★☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	52.0	124 of 337	63.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	41.4	167 of 338	50.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	39.3	157 of 300	47.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	40.9	165 of 310	46.8%	★★☆☆☆
2022	60.7	53 of 182	70.9%	★★★★☆
2021	62.5	19 of 77	75.3%	★★★★☆
2019	65.2	52 of 196	73.5%	★★★★☆
2018	53.7	143 of 366	60.9%	★★★☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	23.6	67 of 87	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	34.0	60 of 85	29.4%	★★☆☆☆
2024	16.5	74 of 88	15.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.3	74 of 87	14.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.3	48 of 57	15.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.5	35 of 39	10.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	42.2	32 of 48	33.3%	★★☆☆☆
2018	24.1	82 of 104	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	40.7	59 of 108	45.4%	★★☆☆☆
2025	28.1	74 of 106	30.2%	★★☆☆☆
2024	22.2	75 of 88	14.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	12.9	70 of 72	2.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	28.0	116 of 154	24.7%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	37.2	496 of 789	37.1%	★★☆☆☆
2025	29.4	557 of 789	29.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	24.8	583 of 771	24.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.7	558 of 770	27.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	29.4	485 of 657	26.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	14.9	481 of 521	7.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	32.9	449 of 658	31.8%	★★☆☆☆
2018	36.3	518 of 794	34.8%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	48.6	399 of 834	52.2%	★★★☆☆
2025	43.5	452 of 832	45.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	38.8	500 of 836	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	32.8	558 of 825	32.4%	★★☆☆☆
2022	38.3	441 of 691	36.2%	★★☆☆☆
2021	17.6	479 of 523	8.4%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	35.1	456 of 672	32.1%	★★☆☆☆
2018	41.3	519 of 815	36.3%	★★☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	37.0	486 of 813	40.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	34.8	503 of 798	37.0%	★★☆☆☆
2024	31.0	542 of 786	31.0%	★★☆☆☆
2023	28.6	553 of 776	28.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	28.0	478 of 658	27.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	15.1	493 of 540	8.7%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	37.7	395 of 639	38.2%	★★☆☆☆
2018	45.4	424 of 797	46.8%	★★☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	14.1	224 of 236	5.1%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	20.7	211 of 244	13.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	38.1	230 of 377	39.0%	★★☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Michigan percentile	Rating
2026	30.4	489 of 687	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	20.8	571 of 696	18.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	18.7	605 of 701	13.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	19.3	589 of 688	14.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	19.6	535 of 638	16.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	9.9	554 of 577	4.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	23.3	499 of 624	20.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	26.1	535 of 678	21.1%	★☆☆☆☆

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)

African American (2026)63rd percentile+20 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)52nd percentile+9 vs school

English Language Learner (2026)45th percentile~ school

Male (2026)40th percentile-3 vs school

Female (2026)37th percentile-6 vs school

White (2026)29th percentile-15 vs school

Asian (2026)23rd percentile-20 vs school

Special Education (2026)5th percentile-38 vs school

By subject vs Michigan (2025-2026) ?

Social Studies40%-11 vs state

English Language Arts37%~ state avg

Math25%-8 vs state

Science24%-16 vs state

Mathematics20%-13 vs state

3.0

2 ratings · 1 written review

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★0

1★1

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What people are saying

by a parent
Thursday, August 7, 2014

Teachers are so understanding and nice and easy to talk to. School is very clean, never dusty or dirty. All the kids there understand and love each other and everyone has friends that they make memorable time with. Advanced classes are PERFECT! If you are considering going to CMS, please do so and you'll be satisfied!! Close Quote

Schools Near Carleton Middle School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				PSAT English Language Arts (2026)		PSAT Mathematics (2026)		M-Step English Language Arts (2026)					M-Step Math (2026)					M-Step Science (2026)		M-Step Social Studies (2026)		Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
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 (2025)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	PSAT English Language Arts 8th Grade	PSAT English Language Arts 9th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 8th Grade	PSAT Mathematics 9th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 6th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 7th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Math 6th Grade	M-Step Math 7th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Science 8th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 8th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Carleton Middle School	Public	6-8	8900 15 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48312	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(586) 825-2590	638	36	17.5	76.2%	371 (58.2%)	135 (21.2%)	18 (2.8%)	81 (12.7%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	31 (4.9%)	40.9	507^th of 896 public middle schools	43.4%		35.9	552^nd of 890 public middle schools	38.0%	45	61.5		20.3					36.2	38.4				24.9	24.2		23.5		39.6	$18,795	$1,403	$17,392
Rockwell Middle School	Public	6-8	12225 Masonic Blvd	Warren	48093	Macomb County	Macomb Independent School District (Isd)	No	No	No	No	(586) 939-2290	66	11	6.0	66.7%	47 (71.2%)	13 (19.7%)	2 (3.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (6.1%)								(n/a)	328.5		253.8					1552.5	1664.8				1538.6	1659.8		1768.1		1776.3
Carter Middle School	Public	6-8	12000 Masonic Blvd	Warren	48093	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(586) 825-2620	679	33	20.3	62.3%	360 (53.0%)	153 (22.5%)	18 (2.7%)	98 (14.4%)	3 (0.4%)	0 (0.0%)	47 (6.9%)	44.3	477^th of 896 public middle schools	46.8%		49.3	419^th of 890 public middle schools	52.9%	58	68.5		21.6					25.7	39.9				18.9	24.3		33.3		50.7	$15,874	$1,301	$14,573
Davis Junior High School	Public	7-9	11300 17 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48313	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-2700	1,061	51	20.7	57.4%	834 (78.6%)	80 (7.5%)	37 (3.5%)	58 (5.5%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	51 (4.8%)	68.4	222^nd of 896 public middle schools	75.2%		64.4	260^th of 890 public middle schools	70.8%	38	71.3	69.5	36.1	34.0					47.6					39.3		40.4		56.9	$14,477	$667	$13,809
Grissom Middle School	Public	6-8	35701 Ryan Rd	Sterling Heights	48310	Macomb County	Warren Consolidated Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(586) 698-4310	703	37	18.9	79.1%	439 (62.4%)	76 (10.8%)	15 (2.1%)	149 (21.2%)	1 (0.1%)	2 (0.3%)	21 (3.0%)	47.1	442^nd of 896 public middle schools	50.7%		44.5	484^th of 890 public middle schools	45.6%	42	69.3		24.5					32.7	35.8				31.7	24.3		28.4		47.2	$16,486	$1,467	$15,019
Huron Academy Grades 38	Public, Charter	3-8	36301 Utica Rd	Clinton Township	48035	Macomb County	Huron Academy	Yes	No	No	Yes	(586) 690-8180	408	25	16.2	63.0%	244 (59.8%)	119 (29.2%)	10 (2.5%)	19 (4.7%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (3.7%)	49.8	414^th of 896 public middle schools	53.8%		56	339^th of 890 public middle schools	61.9%	75	77.0		32.8		18.2	33.8	47.3	35.1	40.3	28.6	32.4	20.3	12.2	19.4	37.8	36.7	24.3	53.3	$11,761	$1,793	$9,968
Warren Woods Middle School	Public	6-8	13400 E 12 Mile Rd	Warren	48088	Macomb County	Warren Woods Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 439-4403	741	39	18.9	59.4%	329 (44.4%)	216 (29.1%)	28 (3.8%)	104 (14.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.3%)	62 (8.4%)	44.9	463^rd of 896 public middle schools	48.3%		45.9	462^nd of 890 public middle schools	48.1%	1	64.5		31.1					39.1	32.4				30.1	29.4		21.0		36.0	$16,352	$1,263	$15,089
Richards Middle School	Public	7-8	33500 Garfield Rd	Fraser	48026	Macomb County	Fraser Public Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 439-7400	661	37	17.9	37.7%	460 (69.6%)	109 (16.5%)	24 (3.6%)	9 (1.4%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	58 (8.8%)	65	258^th of 896 public middle schools	71.2%		60.1	301^st of 890 public middle schools	66.2%	43	64.7		35.6						48.3					39.1		39.4		51.7	$14,371	$1,202	$13,169
Frank Jeannette Junior High School	Public	7-9	40400 Gulliver Dr	Sterling Heights	48310	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-3300	716	40	17.9	77.4%	492 (68.7%)	82 (11.5%)	35 (4.9%)	81 (11.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	26 (3.6%)	43.1	488^th of 896 public middle schools	45.5%		41.5	512^th of 890 public middle schools	42.5%	24	58.6	48.5	28.7	25.1					32.6					25.8		29.6		44.0	$17,188	$900	$16,288
Bemis Junior High School	Public	7-8	12500 19 Mile Rd	Sterling Heights	48313	Macomb County	Utica Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(586) 797-2500	742	35	21.0	43.0%	553 (74.5%)	64 (8.6%)	41 (5.5%)	46 (6.2%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.1%)	37 (5.0%)	78.2	152^nd of 896 public middle schools	83.0%		74.3	177^th of 890 public middle schools	80.1%	25	71.2		45.0						53.4					45.4		46.7		61.3	$13,850	$564	$13,285

Frequently Asked Questions about Carleton Middle School

What district is Carleton Middle School in?

Warren Consolidated Schools

Is Carleton Middle School a good school?

Carleton Middle School ranks 507^th of 896 Michigan middle schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What is the racial makeup of Carleton Middle School?

Students at Carleton Middle School are 58% White, 21% African American, 13% Asian, 5% Two or more races, 3% Hispanic.

How many students attend Carleton Middle School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 638 students attended Carleton Middle School.

Rate Carleton Middle School!

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Latest Michigan data All new data »

2025–26 M-Step, PSAT & SAT test scoresSep 4, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataJun 13, 2026

2024–25 dropout rates & graduation ratesJun 13, 2026

2024–25 attendance dataJan 6, 2026

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.