St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

There were 121 American Indian students enrolled in Berrien County schools in the 2023-24 school year, 2.4% less 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, American Indian students comprised 0.6% of the student body to be the second lowest represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 74 schools in Berrien County, Buchanan High School recorded the highest enrollment of American Indian students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of seven 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
Buchanan High School	1.3	524
Brandywine Senior High School	1.6	378
Ring Lardner Middle School	0.9	537
Eastside Connections School	1.2	430
Brandywine Elementary School	1.3	376
North Elementary School	1.6	317
Watervliet Middle School	1.7	297
Three Oaks Elementary School	2.5	202
Roosevelt Elementary School	1	413
Mars Elementary School	1.1	369
Ballard Elementary School	0.7	576
Coloma Elementary School	1	391
Lakeshore High School	0.4	851
Niles Senior High School	0.4	827
Lighthouse Education Center	2.5	120
Merritt Elementary School	0.9	320
Watervliet Senior High School	0.8	376
Niles Cedar Lane	2.5	119
Ottawa Elementary School	1.3	228
WAY Watervliet High School	3	99
WAY Niles	2.8	108
Benton Harbor High School	0.6	506
St. Joseph High School	0.2	942
Berrien Springs High School	0.4	551
Upton Middle School	0.3	663
Brown School	0.5	409
Sylvester Elementary School	0.5	368
River Valley Middle-High School	0.7	282
South Elementary School	0.6	347
Brandywine Middle School	1.1	177
Clarke School	0.2	465
Stewart Elementary School	0.2	413
Berrien Springs Middle School	0.2	431
Lincoln School	0.2	425
F. C. Reed Middle School	0.4	255
New Buffalo Elementary School	0.5	216
Countryside Academy Middle-High School	0.3	372
Moccasin Elementary School	0.3	366
Coloma Junior High School	0.4	240
Buchanan Middle School	0.3	345
Brandywine Innovation Academy	1.4	70
Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School	0.4	234
New Buffalo Middle School	0.8	123
Niles Virtual School	7.1	14
Niles Comm Schools Adult Education	7.7	13
Benton Harbor Charter School Academy	0.2	455
Lakeshore Middle School	0	609
Hollywood Elementary School	0	386
Berrien Springs Virtual Academy	0	144
Bridgman High School	0	245
Blossomland Learning Center	0	170
River School	0	60
New Buffalo Senior High School	0	169
Berrien Springs Discovery Academy	0	93
Coloma High School	0	366
Bridgman Elementary School	0	322
Coloma Intermediate School	0	170
Countryside Academy Elementary	0	380
Eau Claire High School	0	191
Lybrook Elementary School	0	252
Fair Plain East Elementary School	0	166
Bridge Academy of Southwest Michigan	0	121
Riverside School	0	73
Fair Plain Middle School	0	249
Buchanan Virtual Academy	0	54
Eau Claire Middle School	0	147
Southside Special Education School	0	64
Discovery Enrichment Center	0	86
Buchanan Step Up	0	26
WAY Eau Claire	0	26
Berrien County Juvenile Center	0	10
Mildred C. Wells Preparatory Academy	0	215
Career and Alternative Pathways to Education Center	0	51
Northside Child Development Center	0	15