SE Grand Rapids News

There were 10 American Indian students enrolled in Ionia County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 28.6% less than the previous year, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Data showed that Ionia County welcomed 8,178 students during the 2022-23 school year. Among them, American Indian students comprised 0.1% of the student body to be the second lowest represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 28 schools in Ionia County, Portland High School and Westwood Elementary School recorded the highest enrollment of American Indian students in the 2022-23 school year, with a total of two students.

Overall student enrollment in Michigan remains below pre-pandemic levels, with white students experiencing the largest decline at 6.5%.

Academic performance has also suffered, with the state's average NAEP score dropping by 6.5 points and ethnic achievement gaps have widened. Black and Hispanic students' average math proficiency dropped by 7% in 2022, to 13.5% and 28.2%, respectively.

School name	% of American Indian students enrolment	Total enrollment
Portland High School	0.3	702
Westwood Elementary School	0.5	405
Belding High School	0.2	557
Saranac Elementary School	0.2	434
Ionia Middle School	0.2	664
Oakwood Elementary School	0.2	497
Twin Rivers Elementary School	0.5	188
Douglas R. Welch High School	1.2	83
Woodview Elementary School	0	373
Lakewood Elementary School	0	493
Saranac Junior-Senior High School	0	405
Ellis Elementary School	0	394
Portland Middle School	0	415
Pewamo-Westphalia Elementary School	0	190
Ionia High School	0	805
Freedom Acres School	0	133
A. A. Rather School	0	321
Emerson School	0	172
Bellamy Creek Correctional Facility	0	4
Ionia Maximum Correctional Facility	0	4
Jefferson School	0	315
R. B. Boyce Elementary School	0	264
Handlon Correctional Facility	0	2
Belding Middle School	0	325
Michigan Reformatory	0	1
Haynor School	0	9
North LeValley Elementary School	0	14
Coon School	0	9