St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

There were 2,383 Hispanic students enrolled in Berrien County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 1.5% more than the previous year, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Data showed that Berrien County welcomed 21,400 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, Hispanic students comprised 11.1% of the student body to be the third highest represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 74 schools in Berrien County, Countryside Academy Elementary recorded the highest enrollment of Hispanic students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 135 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 Hispanic students enrolment	Total enrollment
Countryside Academy Elementary	35.5	380
Countryside Academy Middle-High School	33.9	372
Niles Senior High School	11.9	827
Berrien Springs High School	16.7	551
Lybrook Elementary School	35.7	252
Ballard Elementary School	15.3	576
Coloma Elementary School	21.5	391
Eau Claire High School	43.5	191
Berrien Springs Middle School	17.4	431
Eau Claire Middle School	46.9	147
St. Joseph High School	6.9	942
Ring Lardner Middle School	12.1	537
Lakeshore High School	7.5	851
Coloma High School	16.7	366
Watervliet Senior High School	16.2	376
Mars Elementary School	16.3	369
North Elementary School	18.6	317
Watervliet Middle School	19.5	297
South Elementary School	16.1	347
Coloma Junior High School	20.4	240
Sylvester Elementary School	13	368
Eastside Connections School	10	430
Upton Middle School	6.3	663
Lakeshore Middle School	6.1	609
Coloma Intermediate School	21.8	170
Clarke School	7.5	465
Lincoln School	7.5	425
River Valley Middle-High School	10.6	282
Bridge Academy of Southwest Michigan	22.3	121
Hollywood Elementary School	6.7	386
Merritt Elementary School	8.1	320
Roosevelt Elementary School	6.3	413
Brandywine Senior High School	6.6	378
Three Oaks Elementary School	11.9	202
New Buffalo Elementary School	10.2	216
Brown School	4.9	409
Buchanan Middle School	5.5	345
F. C. Reed Middle School	7.5	255
New Buffalo Middle School	15.4	123
Brandywine Elementary School	4.8	376
New Buffalo Senior High School	10.7	169
Bridgman Elementary School	5.3	322
Berrien Springs Discovery Academy	16.1	93
Niles Cedar Lane	12.6	119
Benton Harbor Charter School Academy	2.9	455
WAY Watervliet High School	13.1	99
Stewart Elementary School	2.9	413
Moccasin Elementary School	3.3	366
River School	18.3	60
Bridgman High School	4.5	245
Benton Harbor High School	2	506
Lighthouse Education Center	8.3	120
Buchanan High School	1.9	524
Riverside School	13.7	73
Berrien Springs Virtual Academy	6.9	144
Brandywine Middle School	5.6	177
Fair Plain East Elementary School	5.4	166
Ottawa Elementary School	3.9	228
Fair Plain Middle School	2.8	249
Blossomland Learning Center	4.1	170
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School	2.6	234
Southside Special Education School	9.4	64
WAY Niles	4.6	108
WAY Eau Claire	19.2	26
Brandywine Innovation Academy	5.7	70
Mildred C. Wells Preparatory Academy	1.4	215
Discovery Enrichment Center	3.5	86
Career and Alternative Pathways to Education Center	5.9	51
Buchanan Step Up	7.7	26
Buchanan Virtual Academy	1.9	54
Niles Virtual School	7.1	14
Northside Child Development Center	6.7	15
Niles Comm Schools Adult Education	7.7	13
Berrien County Juvenile Center	0	10