Dr. Michael F. Rice Michigan superintendent of public instruction | https://radio.wcmu.org/
Dr. Michael F. Rice Michigan superintendent of public instruction | https://radio.wcmu.org/
Boys made up 51.4% of the county student body, while the other 48.6% were girls.
Data also showed that white students made up 73.3% of the student body, the highest percentage in Jackson County schools, followed by 9.7% multiracial, 9.6% African American, 6.1% Hispanic, 1% Asian, 0.2% American Indian and less than 0.1% Hawaiian students.
Jackson High School had the highest enrollment among Jackson County's 68 schools in the 2024-25 school year, welcoming 989 students.
In the 2024-25 school year, 1,427,386 students enrolled in Michigan schools, a figure 4.8% below the pre-pandemic total of 1,499,552 in 2019-20, with white students seeing the largest decline of approximately 3%.
Academic performance in Michigan remains below pre-pandemic levels. According to the 2024 NAEP results, the share of students reaching the basic benchmark in core subjects is about 10 percentage points lower than in 2019—except for fourth-grade math, which saw a decline of just 2 points.
Achievement gaps between ethnic groups also persist. On average, Hispanic students scored 15 points below white students. The gap was even wider for Black students, who scored about 30 points lower than their white peers.
The 2025 education budget, approved by Gov. Whitmer last July, totals $23.4 billion—$900 million less than the previous year’s budget. K-12 schools are working with $20.6 billion, a reduction from the $21.5 billion allocated in 2024.
Some school superintendents and educators were concerned about the new budget. "Schools cannot function properly without adequate funding for safety and mental health," stated Rep. David Martin, R-Davison, referring to a significant cut of around $301 million from school safety and mental health programs. Based on the current bill, the program will receive just $26.5 million.
| School name | Total enrollment in 2023-24 | Total enrollment in 2024-25 | % change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jackson High School | 1,027 | 989 | -3.7% |
| Northwest High School | 954 | 958 | 0.4% |
| Northwest Early Elementary School | 849 | 848 | -0.1% |
| Western High School | 799 | 809 | 1.3% |
| Northwest Kidder Middle School | 779 | 786 | 0.9% |
| Northwest Elementary School | 757 | 758 | 0.1% |
| Middle School at Parkside | 759 | 750 | -1.2% |
| Michigan Center Junior/Senior High School | 642 | 700 | 9% |
| George Long Elementary School | 634 | 650 | 2.5% |
| Columbia Central High School | 624 | 637 | 2.1% |
| Paragon Charter Academy | 604 | 627 | 3.8% |
| Western Middle School | 595 | 594 | -0.2% |
| Ezra Eby Elementary School | 543 | 564 | 3.9% |
| Hanover-Horton Elementary School | 471 | 462 | -1.9% |
| Springport Elementary School | 457 | 437 | -4.4% |
| Bean Elementary School | 398 | 409 | 2.8% |
| Parma Elementary School | 390 | 408 | 4.6% |
| Columbia Upper Elementary School | 431 | 406 | -5.8% |
| Keicher Elementary School | 392 | 402 | 2.6% |
| South Central Michigan Virtual | 426 | 402 | -5.6% |
| Cascades Elementary School | 398 | 398 | 0% |
| Northeast Elementary School | 502 | 396 | -21.1% |
| Grass Lake High School | 392 | 394 | 0.5% |
| Napoleon High School | 355 | 381 | 7.3% |
| Warner Elementary School | 381 | 371 | -2.6% |
| Hunt Elementary School | 358 | 366 | 2.2% |
| East Jackson Secondary School | 373 | 359 | -3.8% |
| East Jackson Elementary School | 325 | 348 | 7.1% |
| Sharp Park Academy | 318 | 337 | 6% |
| Da Vinci Institute (6-12) | 355 | 322 | -9.3% |
| Arnold Elementary School | 325 | 321 | -1.2% |
| Townsend Elementary School | 360 | 316 | -12.2% |
| Columbia Elementary School | 291 | 307 | 5.5% |
| Concord Elementary School | 304 | 292 | -3.9% |
| Grass Lake Middle School | 307 | 290 | -5.5% |
| Hanover-Horton High School | 300 | 289 | -3.7% |
| Dibble Elementary School | 276 | 282 | 2.2% |
| Springport High School | 271 | 273 | 0.7% |
| Napoleon Middle School | 296 | 261 | -11.8% |
| Jackson Preparatory & Early College | 277 | 260 | -6.1% |
| Vandercook Lake High School | 294 | 258 | -12.2% |
| Hanover-Horton Middle School | 234 | 250 | 6.8% |
| Jackson Intermediate School District Local Based Special Education Programs | 264 | 240 | -9.1% |
| Lyle A. Torrant Center | 238 | 234 | -1.7% |
| Springport Middle School | 221 | 222 | 0.5% |
| Concord High School | 196 | 182 | -7.1% |
| Northwest Alternative High School | 128 | 157 | 22.7% |
| JPS Montessori Center | 147 | 146 | -0.7% |
| Concord Middle School | 139 | 143 | 2.9% |
| John R. Lewis Elementary School | 136 | 140 | 2.9% |
| Da Vinci Institute (K-5) | 113 | 117 | 3.5% |
| Woodville Community Center | 124 | 97 | -21.8% |
| Ackerson Lake Community Education | 84 | 84 | 0% |
| Columbia Alternative Education | 86 | 78 | -9.3% |
| Jackson Pathways | 82 | 77 | -6.1% |
| Vandercook Lake Virtual Academy | 44 | 55 | 25% |
| Fourth Street Learning Center | 36 | 27 | -25% |
| Youth Home Jackson ISD | 20 | 22 | 10% |
| WAY East Jackson | 24 | 16 | -33.3% |
| Cotton Correctional Facility | 6 | 12 | 100% |
| Parnall Correctional Facility | 6 | 7 | 16.7% |
| Special Alternative Incarceration Camp Cassidy Lake | -- | 1 | -- |
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