Summary:
Zip code 48604 in Saginaw, Michigan, is served by a single high school, Carrollton High School, which enrolls 431 students in grades 9-12 and operates within the Carrollton Public Schools district, where 74.48% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.
For parents considering this school, the most striking finding is the "graduation paradox." Carrollton High School posts a strong 89.5% graduation rate—nearly 13 points above its district's 76.6% and above the state's 84.0%—with a remarkably low 2.3% dropout rate. Yet 46.3% of students are chronically absent, far exceeding the state's 27.9%. This suggests that while attending students tend to succeed, a large segment of the student body is disengaged, which could threaten future graduation numbers. Academically, the school shows a dramatic split: ELA proficiency is respectable (39.7% for 9th graders, 50% for 10th graders, and 47.7% for 11th-grade SAT Reading/Writing), but math proficiency is alarmingly low—just 4.96% of 9th graders and 6.7% of 10th graders are proficient on the PSAT, compared to state averages of 33.5% and 31.5%, respectively. This math gap persists into 11th grade, where SAT math proficiency was only 9.5% in 2024-2025.
Despite serving a high-poverty population, Carrollton High School consistently outperforms its district across nearly every metric, including graduation rate, dropout rate, and all tested subjects. The school also shows positive momentum: science proficiency jumped from 20.8% to 31.0% year-over-year, and social studies improved from 29.2% to 36.8%. However, with per-student spending of $18,123—well above typical levels—outcomes remain mixed, particularly in math, where systemic challenges appear to extend beyond the school itself. Parents should weigh the school's strong graduation outcomes and improving content-area scores against the severe math deficiencies and high absenteeism when evaluating this option.
Thank you for your feedback!