Michigan schools would need an additional $1.74 billion just to meet the research-based funding needs of students with disabilities, according to a new statewide report released Tuesday. The same report found that just 38.2% of Michigan third graders tested proficient in English Language Arts on the 2026 M-STEP, a dip from 38.9% the year before and the lowest mark in the exam's 12-year history. Together, the figures paint a portrait of a state making incremental gains while deep structural gaps persist.
The findings come from EdTrust-Midwest's 2026 State of Michigan Report, titled Going for Gold: Setting the Standard for Michigan Achievement, released Nov. 10. As reported by The Detroit News, the report concludes Michigan has made progress in creating K-12 educational opportunities, but that persistent disparities mean the benefits are not reaching students equally. State leaders, the report notes, have increased public education investments, strengthened literacy policy, expanded college affordability, and invested in student supports in recent years — yet student outcomes remain uneven, with slow post-pandemic academic recovery layered atop gaps that long predate the pandemic.
Preschool Seats Sit Empty While Enrollment Lags
More than half of Michigan's 3- and 4-year-olds are not enrolled in school, and that non-enrollment rate is far higher among children of color, per the report. Publicly funded early-learning options in the state include the Great Start Readiness Program, Head Start and Young 5s, all of which offer academic and social preparation for kindergarten along with access to early screenings. Children in these programs also receive free breakfast and lunch, and some receive free transportation.
Despite that access, Michigan's PreK For All program has expanded every year yet has still struggled to fill all of its open seats, the newspaper's report notes. The gap matters down the line: just over half of Michigan's public high school graduates in 2025 enrolled in college within six months of earning their diploma, well short of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's goal of getting 60% of Michigan adults to a postsecondary credential by 2030.
Counselor Shortages Hit Poorest Schools Hardest
Michigan students have roughly 565 peers competing for the time of a single school counselor, compared with a national average of 372 to 1 — a ratio the American School Counselor Association recommends be cut less than half of Michigan's current figure. Schools serving the highest concentrations of poverty fare even worse, with 339 more students per counselor than schools in more economically stable communities, according to the report.
Chronic absenteeism tells a similar story even as the statewide trend improves. The report put Michigan's chronic absenteeism rate at 27.9%, which is 5.3 percentage points above the national average. Separately, according to Chalkbeat, the statewide rate has declined for a fourth consecutive year, reaching 27.2% in 2025-26 after peaking at 38.5% in 2021-22 — though gaps between groups remain stark, with students of color experiencing chronic absenteeism rates about 18 percentage points higher than white students and low-income students running nearly 23 points higher than their higher-income peers, per the report. Chalkbeat's reporting adds that about 38% of students from low-income homes were chronically absent in 2025-26, compared with 15% of students who were not economically disadvantaged.
Funding Gap Widens Between Rich and Poor Districts
Money remains at the center of the disparity. Districts serving the highest concentrations of low-income students received roughly $1,728 less per pupil in state and local funding in 2024 than districts serving the fewest low-income students, the report found. Fully funding the state's opportunity index at the amount already enacted into law would require Michigan to spend an additional $1.31 billion, on top of the $1.74 billion needed for students with disabilities.
A separate EdTrust-Midwest analysis put the state's current effort in context: Michigan's FY26 investment of $1.3 billion for students from low-income backgrounds is only scratching the surface of what is needed, the organization said, noting that research suggests such support should be funded at 100% to 200% above current levels. That same analysis found that students in Michigan's districts with the highest concentrations of poverty are much less likely to be in classrooms with highly experienced teachers.
Reading Scores Slip Even as Literacy Laws Take Hold
On reading, the news was mixed. Michigan third graders' 38.2% proficiency rate on the 2026 M-STEP marked a decline from the previous year and the lowest score in the exam's history, as Chalkbeat reported. In third-grade math, the gap by income was stark: 28.8% of economically disadvantaged students were proficient, compared with 60.5% of students who were not economically disadvantaged, per the same outlet's account. Detroit Public Schools Community District bucked the statewide reading slide, with proficiency rising to 14.1% from 12.9% the year before.
Recently enacted Michigan laws mandate science-of-reading training for all teachers along with aligned curriculum materials, and EdTrust-Midwest acknowledged that improved literacy results will require time, consistency and strong implementation. The organization recommended expanding evidence-based literacy reforms and ensuring that training, instructional materials, coaches, interventions and supports actually reach the students who need them most.
Advanced Coursework Access Remains Unequal
The disparities extend into high school academics as well. Black and Latino students, students with disabilities, and English learners in Michigan were all less likely to be enrolled in AP courses than their white peers, according to a report from EdTrust. Students in the state's wealthiest communities have, on average, more than seven times as many AP course options as students in the highest-poverty communities, and during the 2024-25 academic year only 42% of Michigan public high schools offered at least one AP STEM course, compared with 55% of U.S. high schools overall.
Dual enrollment showed a similar imbalance in the 2021-22 school year, when students of color made up just 22% of Michigan's dual-enrolled students despite comprising 34% of the state's high school population. Still, the broader state report credits Michigan with improved graduation rates and expanded access to advanced coursework including dual enrollment, even as EdTrust-Midwest urged state leaders to transparently track how reforms are implemented and respond when those efforts fail to reach students equitably.
