St Mary School

For Van Buren County, this is one of the better schools. Having said that, they have some of the issues that the other county schools do: generational families who use the district as custodial, and apathy to any work or achievement beyond the state-required grade level. If your child is above grade level, they will most likely not be challenged, and will be mostly ignored academically as the majority of students struggle to make their state mandated achievement levels. The administration changed this past year, and has worked towards better procedures, but they are not even close to addressing the gap between the majority of students at or below level and the small minority above. They did not address these issues on a school wide level, and continue to teach to the middle. I am driving my children to Kalamazoo County next year.

Trinity Lutheran school is very reflective. They are always asking parents for input to make their school better! They have upgraded their facilities and have one to one technology in their upper grades! They have small class sizes and offer evidence based curriculum! My child has grown so much at Trinity! Their religion class is engaging and relevant. Students are able to develop their faith in new and exciting ways! We are so blessed to be apart of the Trinity Family! I wish more people knew about this amazing school.