Bridge Magazine is naming its Academic State Champs for 2018 based on how many grade levels students grew, based on test results, from third to eighth grade. The findings are based on research from Stanford University.

Here’s a look at the top 10 small districts (less than 1,300 students) for growth. Some gained nearly six grade levels, even those whose students started out well above average.

Read more about the research and data that determined these rankings. If you don’t see your school in the Top 10, check out this database to see where your district fits.

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Academic State Champs: Top 10 small Michigan school districts for growth

by Mike Wilkinson, Bridge Michigan
February 13, 2018

<h1>Academic State Champs: Top 10 small Michigan school districts for growth</h1> <p class="byline">by Mike Wilkinson, Bridge Michigan <br />February 13, 2018</p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow aligncenter" data-effect="slide"> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_container swiper-container"> <ul class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_swiper-wrapper swiper-wrapper"> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-1" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38640" data-id="38640" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-1.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-1</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-2" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38641" data-id="38641" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-2.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-2</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-3" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38642" data-id="38642" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-3.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-3</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-4" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38643" data-id="38643" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-4.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-4</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-5" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38644" data-id="38644" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-5.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-5</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-6" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38645" data-id="38645" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-6.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-6</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-7" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38646" data-id="38646" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-7.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-7</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-8" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38647" data-id="38647" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-8.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-8</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-9" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38648" data-id="38648" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-9.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-9</figcaption></figure> </li> <li class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_slide swiper-slide"> <figure> <img alt="sm-10" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_image wp-image-38649" data-id="38649" src="https://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/sm-10.png" /><figcaption class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_caption gallery-caption">sm-10</figcaption></figure> </li> </ul> <p> <a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-prev swiper-button-prev swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><br /> <a class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-next swiper-button-next swiper-button-white" role="button"></a><br /> <a aria-label="Pause Slideshow" class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_button-pause" role="button"></a></p> <div class="wp-block-jetpack-slideshow_pagination swiper-pagination swiper-pagination-white"></div> </p></div> </p></div> <p>Bridge Magazine is naming its Academic State Champs for 2018 based on how many grade levels students grew, based on test results, from third to eighth grade. The findings are based on research from Stanford University.</p> <p>Here’s a look at the top 10 small districts (less than 1,300 students) for growth. Some gained nearly six grade levels, even those whose students started out well above average.</p> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-poverty-doesnt-always-predict-school-success-michigan">Read more about the research and data</a> that determined these rankings. If you don’t see your school in the Top 10, <a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/see-how-your-michigan-school-district-compares-academic-growth">check out this database to see where your district fits</a>.</p> <div class="region"> <div class="region__content"> <h2>Academic State Champs</h2> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-poverty-doesnt-predict-school-success-michigan">Poverty doesn’t always predict school success in Michigan</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/see-how-your-michigan-school-district-compares-academic-growth">See how your Michigan school district compares on academic growth</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/interactive-chart-see-how-wealth-affects-achievement-michigan-schools">Interactive chart: See how wealth affects achievement in Michigan schools</a></p> <h3>Slideshows</h3> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-top-10-large-michigan-school-districts-growth">Top 10 large Michigan school districts for growth</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-top-10-mid-sized-michigan-school-districts-growth">Top 10 mid-sized Michigan school districts for growth</a></p> <p><a href="http://www.bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-top-10-small-michigan-school-districts-growth">Top 10 small Michigan school districts for growth</a></p> </p> </div> </div> <p>Loading&#8230;</p> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-top-10-small-michigan-school-districts-growth/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://bridgemi.com&quot;&gt;Bridge Michigan&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/cropped-android-chrome-192x192-1.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;&lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://bridgemi.com/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=9219&amp;amp;ga4=G-1E2G9MSHX5&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://bridgemi.com/talent-education/academic-state-champs-top-10-small-michigan-school-districts-growth/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/bridgemi.com/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;</p> Copy to Clipboard

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