For years, Detroit families have searched for schools that deliver results. Increasingly, they are finding their answer in a small Catholic school on the city’s west side.
Christ the King School is growing - and the numbers back it up. Students who entered the school at the 26th percentile in math and reading are leaving at the 92nd, a gain that school leaders say is no accident.
“We have students entering at the 26th percentile in math and reading and exiting at the 92nd,” said Principal Aaron Avery. “It has been an outstanding year.”
Avery credits the school’s model - small, multi-age classrooms where teachers are trained to meet each child at their individual level - for the turnaround.
“We believe that students thrive when they’re in a joyful and structured environment,” he said.
The results are drawing families from across the city. Heather Johnson-Ross, whose son Noah transferred to Christ the King after struggling at a previous school, says the difference has been profound.
“He just was not happy and he was not progressing. Since he’s been at Christ the King, not only has his grades improved, but his confidence has improved,” she said.
Johnson-Ross, herself a Catholic school graduate, said she chose Christ the King for more than academics. “I chose Christ the King because it’s the place that reinforces faith. Faith, leadership, discipline, as well as community,” she said.
Now, she says, her son can’t wait to get there in the morning. She describes the moment she dropped him off that day: two classmates ran up and hugged him the second he stepped out of the car. “This is why we’re at Christ the King,” she said. “It’s all about community.”
Avery said the school’s culture is something families have to see to believe.
“If people take a minute to see Christ the King, they will love it as much as we do,” he said.
Families interested in enrolling can visit ChristtheKingSchoolDetroit.org, call 313-532-1213, or attend the school’s upcoming Spring enrollment night Wednesday May 20th from 4 to 6:30 p.m., featuring bouncy houses, a sidewalk chalk competition, and pizza.