Best at Both: Few Schools Combine Athletic and Academic Excellence Like DEPSA

There are high schools that are the best at athletics and schools that are the best at academics. But high schools that are best at BOTH? Are there any?

There sure are, and the list begins with Detroit Edison Public School Academy (DEPSA), a charter school in Detroit that consistently ranks as both the best academic and athletic school in the city – and one of the best in the state.

DEPSA has shown that it’s possible to reach the top of the mountain in both areas. Consider the evidence:

ACADEMICS

• Among open-enrollment public schools in Detroit, DEPSA has the highest average SAT scores (884.3). Charter schools, in fact, hold the top eight spots on that list.
• DEPSA’s high school graduation rate of 98.2% is the highest in the city, the highest in Wayne County and the fourth-highest in the entire state.
• DEPSA reports a 100% college acceptance rate among its graduates.
• The academic excellence starts early at DEPSA. The most recent M-STEP literacy data from the state shows that 50% of DEPSA’s third-graders are proficient in English Language Arts, which is almost 40 points above the Detroit average and 11 points better than the state average of 38.9%.

ATHLETICS

• Particularly in basketball, no school in the state can match DEPSA’s accomplishments.
• In girls’ basketball, the Pioneers have won five state championships under Coach Monique Brown, including three in a row from 2017-2019. The most recent state title came in 2024.
• In boys’ basketball, DEPSA won the state championship in 2018, giving the Pioneers the rare distinction that year of being the state champ in both boys’ and girls’ basketball.
• DEPSA players won the title of Miss Basketball an unprecedented four years in a row from 2019-2022.
• One of those players, Rickea Jackson, became a first-round draft pick in the WNBA and recently had her jersey number retired by DEPSA.
• The school has also shown excellence in other sports, including baseball, where 2020 DEPSA graduate Werner Blakely was drafted in the fourth round of the Major League Baseball draft by the Los Angeles Angels. He’s considered one of the best baseball players to come out of Detroit in recent decades.
  

“DEPSA’s excellence across the board dispels a lot of myths,” said Dan Quisenberry, President of the Michigan Association of Public School Academies (MAPSA), the state charter school association. “They’ve shown that yes, charter schools offer sports, and yes, they’re excellent at them. They’ve also shown that you don’t need to sacrifice academic excellence for athletic excellence. You can be the best at both. And they are.”