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Jackson, Michigan - 5 schools
An equity score of 29/100 ranks Northwest Community Schools #641 of 707 districts in Michigan (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.
At $11,340 per pupil, Northwest Community Schools ranks #665 of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending (Michigan districts). NCES F-33 finance data.
3,560
Total Enrollment
5
Schools
$11,340
Per-Pupil Spending
Elementary, High
School Types
District-Level NCES Analysis
Northwest Community Schools operates 5 public schools serving 3,560 students, placing it among the smallest districts in Michigan. The school portfolio breaks down into 2 elementary, 1 high, 1 middle, 1 combined schools, a small enough portfolio that most families will interact with nearly every campus in the district at some point. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Jackson County.
Per-pupil expenditure runs $11,340 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the lower half of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending. See how Michigan compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 19.7% local, 65.0% state, and 15.3% federal, a state-revenue-heavy mix that insulates the district somewhat from local property-tax volatility, though it ties funding to state budget cycles. The district's equity score is 29/100, ranked #641 of 707 in Michigan against a state average of 50, notably less even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.
Academic infrastructure includes 1 of 5 schools offering Advanced Placement (4 AP courses district-wide), a 579.6:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 50.1% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 76.0% White, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 4.2% African American across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Northwest Connect, with a diversity index of 44.4/100.
Its largest campus is Northwest High School, enrolling 958 students (27% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Northwest Connect, at 157 students, a 6x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.
Northwest High School accounts for 26.9% of all Northwest Community Schools student enrollment
That concentration means Northwest Community Schools-wide averages can mask substantial variation outside the dominant entity. Grade band: high. A single dominant campus often anchors a district's program offerings and staffing patterns; the share helps explain why district-wide averages may not reflect the typical neighbourhood-school experience. When one entity dominates a region's footprint, its programmatic and budget decisions effectively set policy for a majority of the affected population.
Northwest Community Schools school enrollment varies 6.1× across entities
Northwest Community Schools school enrollment ranges from 157 students (lowest) to 958 students (highest), a spread of 801 students. That relatively narrow ratio reflects an unusually homogeneous campus portfolio, most districts have a wider mix of school sizes. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.
Northwest Community Schools has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 50.8% of the population qualifies for free or reduced-price lunch
free or reduced-price lunch eligibility is the federal threshold for Title I funding allocations, established under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA, 2015). Areas above 75% eligibility receive concentration grants on top of the basic Title I formula. Regions with eligibility this high typically draw a substantially larger federal funding share relative to their local tax base, which can either offset or reinforce existing gaps depending on allocation policy.
Northwest Community Schools student-counselor ratio is 580:1 — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
student-counselor ratio is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: the ratio counts FTE counselors against total enrollment, districts that contract intervention or social-emotional staff outside the counselor classification may be under-counted Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
Northwest Community Schools chronic absenteeism rate is 50.1% — well above typical (typically associated with unusually large scale or acute resource constraints)
chronic absenteeism rate is the simplest comparative metric but it does not capture the full picture: a student is chronically absent if they miss ≥10% of enrolled days for any reason, illness, family obligations, or disengagement Values this far above typical often signal acute resource constraints or a structurally different scale than most peers — worth reading alongside the underlying counts, not the ratio alone.
How many schools are in Northwest Community Schools?
Northwest Community Schools has 5 schools, including 1 high, 2 elementary, 1 middle, 1 combined. Total enrollment is 3,560 students.
How much does Northwest Community Schools spend per student?
Northwest Community Schools spends $11,340 per student. The district has an equity score of 29/100, ranking #641 in Michigan.
What is the demographic composition of Northwest Community Schools?
Northwest Community Schools students are 76.0% White, 7.2% Hispanic or Latino, 4.2% African American, 1.0% Asian, averaged across 5 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.
What is the equity score for Northwest Community Schools?
Northwest Community Schools has an equity score of 29/100, ranking #641 out of 707 districts in Michigan.