State data show more than 200 of Michigan’s private schools have closed over the past decade, and many school leaders are blaming a shrinking student population, fewer resources, and rising costs.
About 112,000 Michigan students attended private schools in 2018, a 14 percent decrease from roughly a decade ago, according to the state’s Center for Educational Performance and Information.
Of the private school closures in the past decade, 60 were unaffiliated religious schools, 46 were Roman Catholic schools, and 19 were Baptist, among others. Thirty-seven were nonreligious schools.
