Kalamazoo Public Schools is a school district headquartered in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Graduates of the district are eligible to receive scholarships through the Kalamazoo Promise, a program launched in 2005 and funded by anonymous donors. The district operates 31 schools.
The district includes the majority of Kalamazoo, all of Westwood, and most of Eastwood. It also includes sections of the following townships: Kalamazoo, Oshtemo, and Texas.
Scholarship program Every resident graduate of the Kalamazoo Public Schools is provided with a scholarship for up to 100% of tuition and mandatory fee costs for four years at any public university or community college in Michigan, starting with the class of 2006. This program is known as the Kalamazoo Promise. Books and room and board are not included. To receive any assistance, a student must live within the Kalamazoo Public School District boundaries and would have had to attend since at least ninth grade. Sixty-five percent of that student's tuition would be paid. The scale goes up from there, with eighth graders receiving 70 percent of their tuition paid, 75 percent for seventh graders, 80 percent for sixth, 85 percent for fifth, 90 percent for fourth, and 95 for first through third graders. Resident students attending schools in the district from kindergarten through high school graduation will have 100 percent of their tuition and fees paid. In 2014, it was announced that 15 private colleges would also be included as Promise-eligible schools. In 2015, Communities in Schools of Kalamazoo received Communities in Schools' national Unsung Heroes award in recognition of elementary school programs aimed at overcoming cultural and language barriers faced by students.
History The first legal public high-school in Kalamazoo and in the state of Michigan began operating in 1858. The first class, consisting of five men and three women graduated in 1859. Former United States Senator Charles E. Stuart sued the Kalamazoo School Board in 1874 alleging that the school-board's use of taxpayer money to fund secondary education was unconstitutional (up until that point taxpayers money was only for elementary schools). The School Board prevailed, setting a precedent allowing publicly funded secondary education throughout the country.Michigan's Legal Milestones
In 1925 the school moved to the building currently known as Old Central High School at 714 South Westnedge. Old Central High School currently houses the Kalamazoo Area Mathematics and Science Center, or KAMSC. Following the largest graduating class of 799 students in 1960, some Central High School students transferred to the newly opened Loy Norrix High School in 1961. Central High School moved to its current location in 1972.
Schools + Schools in Kalamazoo Public Schools district School Address Notes Elementary Schools (Grades PreK-5) Arcadia Elementary 932 Boswell Lane, Kalamazoo Edison Academy 831 Lake Street, Kalamazoo El Sol Elementary 604 W. Vine Street, Kalamazoo Spanish/English language immersion program. Greenwood Elementary 3501 Moreland Street, Kalamazoo Indian Prairie Elementary 3546 Grand Prairie Road, Kalamazoo King-Westwood Elementary 1100 Nichols Road, Kalamazoo Lincoln International Studies School 912 N. Burdick Street, Kalamazoo Milwood Elementary 3400 Lovers Lane, Kalamazoo Northeastern Elementary 2433 Gertrude Street, Kalamazoo Northglade Montessori Magnet School 1914 Cobb Street, Kalamazoo Prairie Ridge Elementary 2294 S. 9th Street, Kalamazoo Parkwood-Upjohn Elementary 2321 S. Park Street, Kalamazoo Spring Valley Center for Exploration 3530 Mt. Olivet Road, Kalamazoo Washington Writers' Academy 1919 Portage Road, Kalamazoo Winchell Elementary 2316 Winchell Avenue, Kalamazoo Woods Lake Elementary3215 Oakland Drive, Kalamazoo Woodward School606 Stuart Avenue, Kalamazoo Middle Schools (Grades 6-8) Alternative Learning Program (ALP) Hillside Middle School 1941 Alamo Avenue, Kalamazoo Maple Street Magnet School for the Arts 922 W. Maple Street, Kalamazoo Milwood Magnet School 2916 Konkle Street, Kalamazoo Linden Grove Middle School 4241 Arboretum Pkwy, Kalamazoo High Schools (Grades 9-12) Loy Norrix High School 606 E. Kilgore Road, Kalamazoo Kalamazoo Innovative Learning Program 600 W. Vine Street, Kalamazoo A virutal/in-person hybrid credit recovery high school. Housed at former Kalamazoo Central High School. Kalamazoo Central High School 2432 N. Drake Road, Kalamazoo Phoenix High School 1411 Oakland Drive, Kalamazoo Alternative high school.
See also List of school districts in Michigan The Kalamazoo School Case at Kalamazoo Public Library
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