Cass County Education: 6,456 students were enrolled in 2023-24 school year

MI Superintendent of Public Instruction Michael F. Rice 2023 | Michigan Department of Education

By St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

Aug 8, 2024

There were 6,456 students enrolled in Cass County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 1.5% less than the previous year, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Boys made up 52.9% of the county student body, while the other 47.1% were girls.

Data also showed that white students made up 75.8% of the student body, the biggest percentage in Cass County schools, followed by 9.2% of multiracial students, 8.6% of Hispanic students, 5.2% of African American students, 0.7% of American Indian students, 0.3% of Asian students and less than 0.1% of Hawaiian students.

Edwardsburg High School had the highest enrollment among Cass County's 24 schools in the 2023-24 school year, welcoming 782 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.

Enrollment in Cass County Over 9 Years

Enrollment in Cass County Schools

School name	Total enrollment in 2022-23	Total enrollment in 2023-24	% change
Edwardsburg High School	815	782	-4
Edwardsburg Middle School	643	636	-1.1
Howard-Ellis Elementary School	591	598	1.2
Union High School	532	530	-0.4
Eagle Lake Elementary School	349	400	14.6
Dowagiac Middle School	408	379	-7.1
Sam Adams Elementary School	370	370	0
Edwardsburg Intermediate School	404	360	-10.9
Edwardsburg Primary School	363	331	-8.8
Justus Gage Elementary School	274	283	3.3
Marcellus Elementary School	300	264	-12
Cassopolis High School	271	259	-4.4
Kincheloe Elementary School	221	224	1.4
Patrick Hamilton Elementary School	236	220	-6.8
Cassopolis Middle School	210	207	-1.4
Marcellus High School	162	164	1.2
Marcellus Middle School	134	139	3.7
Brookside Learning Center	60	72	20
Edwardsburg Alternative Learning Center	68	65	-4.4
North Pointe Center	58	53	-8.6
Pathfinders Alternative Education	38	50	31.6
Volinia Outcome Base School	32	48	50
Cassopolis Alternative Education	13	22	69.2
Marcellus Community Education Center	--	1	--