Central High School

Central High School runs as a high-enrollment high school in GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan. The latest federal count shows 999 students in grades 9 through 12. The average for high schools in Michigan is about 460 students, so this school is 117% larger than average.

The 18 schools of Forest Hills Public Schools, including Central High School, enroll 8,797 students.

The large majority of students at Central High School, 81%, are White. Next come 7% Asian, 5% Hispanic, 5% multiracial, and 3% Black. The county population is about 73% White. The chance that two students picked at random at Central High School belong to different racial or ethnic groups, known as the diversity index, is 33%.

Central High School operates with 55 full-time-equivalent teachers, a ratio of about 18.2:1. That ratio is under the 21.6:1 average for high schools in Michigan. Central High School reports 14% of students eligible for free or reduced-price meals. Compared with the 47% average for public schools in Kent County, the school's rate is lower.

According to the American Community Survey, in Kent County, median household income is about $82,631, the share of adults with a bachelor's degree or higher is 41%, and about 6% of people live in poverty. A total of 239 public schools operate in Kent County, serving about 97,253 students.

Central Middle School is the public school closest to Central High School, about 0.3 miles away. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools.

Central High School falls in the Suburb: Large locale category, used for schools in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.

Federal counts put enrollment at 1,177 in 2020-21 and 999 in 2024-25, a 15% decrease. Staffing shifted too: the ratio moved from 21.8:1 to 18.2:1.

Parents and students can post about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news at Central High School. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.