Applications for next year have opened for two Dearborn Public School high school programs and will open soon for a magnet middle school.
Applications are open until Feb. 6, 2026 for all three Henry Ford Early College programs. These programs allow students to attend school for five years and earn both a high school diploma and an associate degree or trade certification at no cost to the family. The school this year moved to a new site on the Henry Ford College campus. The Henry Ford Early College (HFEC) is provided through a partnership with the district and the college. Students from across Wayne County can apply. The original Henry Ford Early College focuses on medical careers and includes a partnership with Henry Ford Health System. The Henry Ford Early College – Advanced Manufacturing focuses on certain careers related to manufacturing such as construction technology, automotive technology, and machine tooling. The Pre-Education program prepares students to work as paraprofessionals or go on for teaching certificates, among other fields. Eighth grade students apply now to start the program as ninth graders in the fall. Learn more on the Early College application website. Find the available career paths on each program’s individual webpage.
Applications are also open through Feb. 27 for the Dearborn Center for Math, Science and Technology. DCMST is a half-day program for high achieving high school students interested in STEM-related fields. Students attend their regular high school – Fordson, Dearborn High or Edsel Ford – for part of the day and are bused to and from the Dearborn Heights Campus to attend DCMST the other half of the day. Current district students are admitted based on their GPA, Algebra 1 common assessment score, and standardized test scores. Eighth-grade students apply to start the program in ninth grade. Learn more about DCMST and find the application on the DCMST website. Students must live in the district to attend DCMST, and applications are accepted from students who reside in the district and plan to transfer to a district high school in the fall.
Interested parents and students can learn more about HFEC and DCMST in a video presentation from December. Families can also learn more about all of the district’s high school options on the district website.
The final Dearborn Schools Program that will be taking applications from students is STEM Middle School, although most district students do not need to apply.
STEM is a magnet middle school for high-achieving students interested in topics related to science, technology, engineering and math. The school follows the same curriculum as other district middle schools, but at an accelerated level. Sixty students will be accepted for next year’s sixth grade class. Current district fifth graders do NOT need to apply. They will be invited to participate based on last year’s M-STEP scores and this month’s iReady test results. Applications are needed for fifth-grade students who live in the district but do not attend a district school and for current district sixth graders who would like to vie for any open seventh grade spots next year. Applications will be open from Jan. 20 to Feb. 9, 2026. Learn more about criteria and the admissions process on the STEM website. STEM was recently ranked as the top middle school in Michigan by U.S. News and World Report and has twice been named a National Blue Ribbon School. The school only accepts students who live in the Dearborn Public School District.
“Dearborn Public Schools is proud to offer our students an array of options for pursuing their interests and developing their talents,” said Superintendent Lamis Srour. “We really encourage parents and students to look into the different options available to find the educational path that best fits their family.”