School shootings are always top of mind for parents, students and teachers these days. While shootings were down in the last year due to students learning at home during the pandemic, the fear of gun violence at school will never be far away from parents’ worries — on top of fears of their kids getting sick or bringing home the — when in-person learning resumes.
Kids and staff no longer just need to be prepared for inclement weather (remember those tornado drills?). Today’s kids and educators must to be ready to go into lockdown in the event of an active school shooting.
While no one can predict a school shooting, there is some data that can provide insight into a school district’s overall safety. Niche, a popular schools-and-neighborhoods data website, attempted to provide such a gauge.
The site took a closer look at stats from the U.S. Department of Education, along with information regarding student absenteeism, in-school suspensions, out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, law enforcement referrals and school-related arrests.
Each school’s data was weighed. A disclaimer worth nothing: Even when all this data is considered, that doesn’t mean a school with higher rates of these issues will inevitably — or is even more likely to — experience a gun violence situation. It can, however, be a partial indicator of overall school safety, which was Niche’s goal in assembling its list.
The verdict? In Michigan, 393 public school districts were rated on their school safety. A swath of these safe schools are in Macomb, Oakland, Washtenaw and Wayne counties, including the metro Detroit and greater Ann Arbor regions.
It’s also worth noting that other districts — including local ones that don’t appear on our consolidated list here — might also have strong safety suits. They simply did not appear on the Niche list.
To see how your specific district fared, visit Niche’s Safest School Districts in Michigan database and search for your city, town or village.
Scroll down to see which districts and charters made the cut in 2021. Schools are listed in alphabetical order by county. Click on the school name to learn more about the district’s specific data from Niche.
Macomb County
- Armada Area SchoolsRanking: No. 149
- Chippewa Valley Schools Ranking: No. 216
- Fraser Public Schools Ranking: No. 287
- Lake Shore Public SchoolsRanking: No. 322
- Lakeview Public Schools Ranking: No. 316
- Richmond Community Schools Ranking: No. 127
- Utica Community Schools Ranking: No. 217
- Warren Consolidated Schools
- Ranking: 329
- Warren Woods Public Schools Ranking: No. 82
Oakland County
- Berkley School District Ranking: No. 304
- Birmingham Public Schools Ranking: No. 2
- Bloomfield Hills Schools Ranking: No. 51
- Clarkston Community School District Ranking: No. 209
- Farmington Public School District Ranking: No. 282
- Holly Area School District Ranking: No. 387
- Huron Valley SchoolsRanking: No. 164
- Lake Orion Community Schools Ranking: No. 113
- Lamphere Public Schools Ranking: No. 298
- Novi Community School District Ranking: No. 16
- Oakland Schools Ranking: No. 3
- Rochester Community School District Ranking: No. 17
- Southfield Public School District
- Ranking: No. 365
- South Lyon Community Schools Ranking: No. 190
- Troy School District Ranking: No. 6
- Walled Lake Consolidated Schools Ranking: No. 248
- West Bloomfield School District Ranking: No. 253
Washtenaw County
- Ann Arbor Public Schools Ranking: No. 180
- Chelsea School District Ranking: No. 71
- Dexter Community School District Ranking: No. 80
- Milan Area Schools Ranking: No. 214
- Saline Area Schools Ranking: No. 10
Wayne County
- Allen Park Public SchoolsRanking: No. 207
- Bridge Academy Ranking: No. 301
- Crestwood School District Ranking: No. 376
- Covenant House Academy Detroit
- Ranking: No. 377
- Dearborn City School District Ranking: No. 269
- Detroit Achievement Academy
- Ranking: No. 232
- Detroit Service Learning Academy
- Ranking: No. 348
- Edison Public School Academy Ranking: No. 130
- Flat Rock Community Schools Ranking: No. 227
- Grosse Ile Township Schools Ranking: No. 1
- Grosse Pointe Public Schools Ranking: No. 63
- Huron School District Ranking: No. 128
- Livonia Public Schools School District Ranking: No. 197
- Northville Public Schools Ranking: No. 50
- Plymouth-Canton Community Schools Ranking: No. 204
- Riverview Community School District Ranking: No. 278
- Trenton Public Schools Ranking: No. 160
- W-A-Y Academy Ranking: No. 154
- Woodhaven-Brownstown School District Ranking: No. 61
- Wyandotte Public Schools Ranking: No. 193
Looking for even more information about Michigan’s Schools? Check out our roundup of the best school districts in Michigan, according to Niche.
This post was originally published in 2018 and is updated regularly.
Follow Metro Parent on Instagram.
