Saginaw School District of the City of

Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. District totals are aggregated directly from the schools reporting under this district in the source records. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.

Saginaw, Michigan - 16 schools

An equity score of 72/100 ranks Saginaw School District of the City of #64 of 707 districts in Michigan (state average 50). Derived live from how evenly resources are distributed across the district's schools.

At $15,574 per pupil, Saginaw School District of the City of ranks #114 of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending (Michigan districts). NCES F-33 finance data.

5,286
Total Enrollment
16
Schools
$15,574
Per-Pupil Spending
Combined, High
School Types

District-Level NCES Analysis

Saginaw School District of the City of operates 16 public schools serving 5,286 students, placing it among the smaller districts in Michigan. The school portfolio breaks down into 12 combined, 3 high, 1 middle schools, a compact enough portfolio that families can compare every campus directly before they move, rent, or enrol. These enrollment and school figures come from the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 release, and the district is based in Saginaw County.

Per-pupil expenditure runs $15,574 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, in the upper half of 821 Michigan districts by per-pupil spending. See how Michigan compares in our national per-pupil spending analysis. The funding mix is 23.2% local, 42.7% state, and 34.1% federal, a balanced mix across local, state, and federal sources, spreading budget risk across funding cycles rather than concentrating it in one. The district's equity score is 72/100, ranked #64 of 707 in Michigan against a state average of 50, notably more even than the typical district in the state for how evenly funding reaches its schools.

Academic infrastructure includes 3 of 16 schools offering Advanced Placement (9 AP courses district-wide), a 413:1 student-counselor ratio, above both the ASCA benchmark and the roughly 408:1 national average, and 68.9% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 54.6% African American, 24.6% White, 13.0% Hispanic or Latino across the district's schools. Its most demographically mixed campus is Handley School, with a diversity index of 72.6/100.

Its largest campus is Arthur Hill High School, enrolling 981 students (19% of the district's total enrollment). Its smallest is Career Opportunities Center, at 31 students, a 32x enrollment spread across the district's campuses.

Arthur Hill High School accounts for 18.6% of all Saginaw School District of the City of student enrollment

That concentration means Saginaw School District of the City of-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.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Saginaw School District of the City of school enrollment varies 32× across entities

Saginaw School District of the City of school enrollment ranges from 31 students (lowest) to 981 students (highest), a spread of 950 students. That ratio is among the widest observed and reflects extreme enrollment heterogeneity, the district operates both small specialty programs and large comprehensive campuses inside a single budgeting unit. Per-school staffing ratios, programme availability, and capital-renovation cycles often diverge inside the same district based on enrollment shape.

Source: NCES Common Core of Data NCES Common Core of Data

Saginaw School District of the City of has higher-than-average Title I eligibility — 79.8% 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 — including this one — 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.

Source: ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system ESSA Title I Part A; ED EDFacts file system

Saginaw School District of the City of student-counselor ratio is 413:1 — high (typically associated with staffing constraints that limit per-student counselor time; CRDC data shows higher ratios cluster in larger urban systems)

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 Higher values may reflect larger urban scale or recent resource constraints that have widened the gap.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection NCES Civil Rights Data Collection

Saginaw School District of the City of chronic absenteeism rate is 68.9% — 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.

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22 NCES Civil Rights Data Collection 2021-22

Where does the funding come from?

34.1%
Federal
42.7%
State
23.2%
Local

Funding Equity

72
Equity Score
64 / 707
State Rank
50
State Average

This district scores well on funding equity, with balanced funding sources and good resource allocation.

Student Demographics

Average demographic composition across 16 schools in Saginaw School District of the City of.

White 24.6%
Hispanic or Latino 13.0%
African American 54.6%
Asian 2.2%
Multiracial 4.6%
Other 0.9%

Source: NCES CCD School Membership 2024-25.

Student-body diversity

Average diversity index 53.4/100

Average Simpson diversity index across Saginaw School District of the City of's schools, above the Michigan average of 36.2.

Most mixed schools

  1. 1 Handley School 72.6
  2. 2 Chester F Miller School 70.7
  3. 3 Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy 68.0
  4. 4 Merrill Park Elementary School 67.8
  5. 5 Zilwaukee K8 School 66.6

Programs & Resources

3 / 16
Schools with AP
9 AP courses total
413:1
Student-Counselor Ratio
68.9%
Chronically Absent

Source: NCES Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) 2021-22.

Schools in Saginaw School District of the City of

School Enrollment
Arthur Hill High School
981
Thompson Middle School
585
Saginaw High School
405
Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy
374
Handley School
370
Jessie Loomis School
308
Herig School
282
Kempton Elementary School
279
Stone School
273
Merrill Park Elementary School
267
Chester F Miller School
247
Arthur Eddy Academy
232
Jessie Rouse School
230
Zilwaukee K8 School
194
The Success Academy
168
Career Opportunities Center
31

How Saginaw School District of the City of Compares to Similar-Size Districts

The Michigan districts closest to this one in total enrollment.

District Enrollment Spending Funding Mix
Jenison Public Schools Similar size Similar spending Similar funding mix
Romeo Community Schools Similar size Lower spending More locally funded
Hartland Consolidated Schools Similar size Lower spending More locally funded
Grand Haven Area Public Schools Similar size Similar spending More locally funded
Taylor School District Similar size Similar spending Similar funding mix

Comparisons are relative to Saginaw School District of the City of's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data and the F-33 Finance Survey.

Nearby Districts in Michigan

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Compare Saginaw School District of the City of

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Frequently Asked Questions

How many schools are in Saginaw School District of the City of?

Saginaw School District of the City of has 16 schools, including 3 high, 1 middle, 12 combined. Total enrollment is 5,286 students.

How much does Saginaw School District of the City of spend per student?

Saginaw School District of the City of spends $15,574 per student. The district has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #64 in Michigan.

What is the demographic composition of Saginaw School District of the City of?

Saginaw School District of the City of students are 54.6% African American, 24.6% White, 13.0% Hispanic or Latino, 2.2% Asian, averaged across 16 schools. Source: NCES CCD Membership 2024-25.

What is the equity score for Saginaw School District of the City of?

Saginaw School District of the City of has an equity score of 72/100, ranking #64 out of 707 districts in Michigan.