St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

Michigan Online School had the largest enrollment among Van Buren County schools, welcoming 1,269 students during the 2024-25 school year, according to the Michigan Department of Education.

Of all the students welcomed in the 2024-25 school year, 52.6% of them were girls, and 47.4% were boys.

Data also showed that most of the students were white, representing 53% of the Michigan Online School total enrollment.

Among the 44 schools in Van Buren County, Mattawan High School ranked second in enrollment numbers with 1,126 students, while Mattawan Middle School welcomed 823 students and ranked third in the 2024-25 school year.

Michigan Online School is part of Michigan Online School, which roughly covers schools within Van Buren County, with its main office in Gobles.

In the previous school year, Michigan Online School also had the largest number of students among Van Buren County schools.

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,427,386 students enrolled in Michigan schools, a figure 4.8% below the pre-pandemic total of 1,499,552 in 2019-20, with white students seeing the largest decline of approximately 3%.

Academic performance in Michigan remains below pre-pandemic levels. According to the 2024 NAEP results, the share of students reaching the basic benchmark in core subjects is about 10 percentage points lower than in 2019—except for fourth-grade math, which saw a decline of just 2 points.

Achievement gaps between ethnic groups also persist. On average, Hispanic students scored 15 points below white students. The gap was even wider for Black students, who scored about 30 points lower than their white peers.

The 2025 education budget, approved by Gov. Whitmer last July, totals $23.4 billion—$900 million less than the previous year’s budget. K-12 schools are working with $20.6 billion, a reduction from the $21.5 billion allocated in 2024.

However, some school superintendents and educators were concerned about the new budget. "Schools cannot function properly without adequate funding for safety and mental health," stated Rep. David Martin, R-Davison, referring to a significant cut of around $301 million from school safety and mental health programs. Based on the current bill, the program will receive just $26.5 million.

School name	City	Total School Enrollment
Michigan Online School	Gobles	1,269
Mattawan High School	Mattawan	1,126
Mattawan Middle School	Mattawan	823
Mattawan Later Elementary School	Mattawan	808
Mattawan Early Elementary School	Mattawan	703
Paw Paw High School	Paw Paw	638
South Haven High School	South Haven	588
Bloomingdale Middle and High School	Bloomingdale	516
Redwood Elementary School	Hartford	516
Paw Paw Middle School	Paw Paw	498
Paw Paw Early Elementary School	Paw Paw	481
Paw Paw Later Elementary School	Paw Paw	453
Decatur Junior Senior High School	Decatur	399
Lawton Elementary School	Lawton	397
Gobles High School	Gobles	396
Hartford High School	Hartford	379
Davis Elementary School	Decatur	356
Gobles Elementary School	Gobles	355
South Walnut Elementary School	Bangor	341
Lawton Middle School	Lawton	325
Hartford Middle School	Hartford	321
Maple Grove Elementary School	South Haven	300
Lawton High School	Lawton	279
Bangor Middle School	Bangor	272
Bloomingdale Elementary School	Bloomingdale	272
Bangor High School	Bangor	264
Lincoln School	South Haven	251
Lawrence Elementary School	Lawrence	214
Lawrence Junior-Senior High School	Lawrence	179
Sister Lakes Elementary School	Dowagiac	166
Covert Elementary School	Covert	144
Hartford Alternative Education	Hartford	122
Covert High School	Covert	101
Mattawan Early Childhood Education Center	Mattawan	85
Covert Middle School	Covert	79
Bert Goens Learning Center	Lawrence	79
Cedar Street Community and Family Center	Paw Paw	76
Bangor Career Academy	Bangor	74
Community-Based Transition Center	Lawrence	70
WAY South Haven	South Haven	44
Gobles Virtual Academy	Gobles	35
Behavioral Education Center	Bangor	33
Lawton Accelerated Academic Center	Lawton	26
Wood School Bangor Township 8	Bangor	24