Beta You're viewing our redesigned school list. Prefer the classic layout?

Best Elementary Schools in Zip Code 48638

At a glance

Schools

1,089

Students

5-star school

Top rankedHemmeter Elementary School6^th of 1,492 Michigan elementary schools

See the top-ranked Michigan schools →

Summary:

Zip code 48638 in Saginaw, Michigan, is home to three elementary schools—Arrowwood Elementary School, Hemmeter Elementary School, and Westdale Elementary School—all part of the Saginaw Township Community Schools district, serving roughly 1,089 students in grades PK-5.

These three schools, despite sharing a district and postal code, offer vastly different educational experiences. Hemmeter Elementary School is an exceptional outlier, consistently ranking in the top 10 of all Michigan elementary schools for three straight years. Its students achieve remarkable proficiency rates—averaging over 91% in English Language Arts and 85% in math across grades 3-5, which is more than double the state average. In stark contrast, Arrowwood Elementary School ranks in the bottom quarter of the state, with average proficiency rates around 28% in ELA and just 23% in math. The achievement gap between these two schools is enormous; for example, 5th-grade math proficiency at Hemmeter (72.4%) is nearly five times higher than at Arrowwood (15.6%). Westdale Elementary School presents a data gap, with no recent test scores available, though its high poverty rate and chronic absenteeism suggest it likely faces challenges similar to Arrowwood.

The most telling differences lie in socioeconomic and attendance data. Hemmeter has a free/reduced lunch rate of just 12.4% and a remarkably low chronic absenteeism rate of 6.2%, while Arrowwood (58.7% free/reduced lunch, 33.6% chronic absenteeism) and Westdale (69.0% free/reduced lunch, 39.9% chronic absenteeism) serve much higher-need populations. Interestingly, Arrowwood and Westdale each spend over $2,300 more per student than Hemmeter, yet achieve far worse outcomes, highlighting that additional resources alone cannot overcome the barriers of poverty and absenteeism. For parents, this data paints a clear picture: Hemmeter offers a top-tier, high-achieving environment, while Arrowwood and Westdale require more targeted support to address the significant challenges their students face.

Load more schools when map is moved

Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

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

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				M-Step English Language Arts (2026)			M-Step Math (2026)			M-Step Science (2026)	M-Step Social Studies (2026)	Vaccination (2025-26)		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/reduced lunch (2024-25)	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	M-Step English Language Arts 3rd Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 4th Grade	M-Step English Language Arts 5th Grade	M-Step Math 3rd Grade	M-Step Math 4th Grade	M-Step Math 5th Grade	M-Step Science 5th Grade	M-Step Social Studies 5th Grade	Vaccination: Kindergartners complete for all required vaccines	Vaccination: Exemption rate	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Hemmeter Elementary School	Public, Magnet	PK, KG-5	1890 Hemmeter Rd	Saginaw	48638	Saginaw County	Saginaw Township Community Schools	No	Yes	No	No	(989) 797-1832	331	16	20.0	12.4%	256 (77.3%)	9 (2.7%)	31 (9.4%)	22 (6.6%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (3.9%)	98.9	6^th of 1492 public elementary schools	99.6%		98.9	4^th of 1488 public elementary schools	99.7%	2	89.7	89.7	94.8	94.8	89.7	72.4	87.9	55.2	87.5%	10.4%	$11,909	$745	$11,164
Westdale Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	705 S Center Rd	Saginaw	48638	Saginaw County	Saginaw Township Community Schools	No	No	No	Yes	(989) 797-1827	313	19	16.6	69.0%	113 (36.1%)	90 (28.8%)	75 (24.0%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.3%)	33 (10.5%)								(n/a)									90.1%	7.9%	$14,211	$1,669	$12,542
Arrowwood Elementary School	Public	3-5	5410 Seidel Rd	Saginaw	48638	Saginaw County	Saginaw Township Community Schools	No	No	No	No	(989) 797-1835	445	26	16.9	58.7%	194 (43.6%)	98 (22.0%)	107 (24.0%)	13 (2.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	33 (7.4%)	22.3	1136^th of 1492 public elementary schools	23.9%		23.7	1099^th of 1488 public elementary schools	26.1%	37	27.9	28.7	26.7	27.7	25.2	15.6	24.4	12.6			$14,245	$917	$13,328

Cities Near Zip Code 48638

City	Distance	# of Schools	Statewide Rank
Saginaw	0.31 mi	51	421^st
Freeland	7.43 mi	4	50^th
Bridgeport	8.63 mi	1	493^rd
University Center	9.58 mi	1	13^th
Hemlock	10.89 mi	5	175^th

See the top MI Michigan cities

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.