UP Gazette

Woodland Elementary School had the largest enrollment among Dickinson County schools, welcoming 771 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, 51.9% of them were boys, and 48.1% were girls.

Data also showed that most of the students were white, representing 91.3% of the Woodland Elementary School total enrollment.

Among the 13 schools in Dickinson County, Kingsford Middle School ranked second in enrollment numbers with 608 students, while Kingsford High School welcomed 566 students and ranked third in the 2024-25 school year.

Woodland Elementary School is part of Breitung Township School District, which roughly covers schools within Dickinson County, with its main office in Kingsford.

In the previous school year, Woodland Elementary School also had the largest number of students among Dickinson 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
Woodland Elementary School	Kingsford	771
Kingsford Middle School	Kingsford	608
Kingsford High School	Kingsford	566
North Elementary School	Iron Mountain	263
North Dickinson School	Felch	250
Iron Mountain High School	Iron Mountain	243
Norway Elementary School	Norway	242
Norway High School	Norway	183
Vulcan Middle School	Norway	141
Central Middle School	Iron Mountain	109
East Elementary School	Iron Mountain	99
Iron Mountain-Kingsford Community Education	Iron Mountain	99
Dickinson-Iron Special Education	Kingsford	60