Schools · Lakeland

Lakeland, FL schools

Lakeland’s public schools score well below Florida’s averages: 43% of students are proficient in reading against 52% statewide, and 87% of high schoolers graduate on time against 90.3%. Kids attend one of 10 schools through grade 8, then one of 6 middle schools and LAKELAND SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL.

Grades, test scores, graduation, spending and every school, from U.S. Department of Education data.

DSchool Grade #210Best schools in FL (of 488)#565Highest graduation rate in FL (of 631)

TownTapestry School GradeNew

D

Lakeland’s School Grade: D

The public schools Lakeland’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 86% of Florida’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the bottom.

C-Test scoresDGraduation

Florida school districts we grade (73)Better than 14%

Lower resultsHigher results

Florida towns with similar household incomes (452)Better than 2%

High confidence. Built on 58,004 tested students and a graduating class of 7,767; ordinary year-to-year swings are unlikely to change the grade.

How the School Grade works

Results, not inputs. Math and reading proficiency on Florida’s state tests, each against the state average, plus the four-year graduation rate. Spending and class size are shown below but don’t count toward the grade. Tests: 2020–21; graduation: class of 2020.
The whole path. A town’s grade follows its kids: every district that serves it, weighted by the number of students tested in each. Tests count 60% and graduation 40%.
Graded within the state. Each state writes its own tests, so districts are lined up against the rest of Florida only. A+ top 5%A next 10%A- next 10%B B+ to B−, next 30%C C+ to C−, next 30%D D and D−, bottom 15%
Individual schools are graded the same way on their own test results, against every public school in Florida with 25+ students. Private schools aren’t graded: they don’t take the state tests.
What a grade can’t tell you. Test results track family income closely, so a high grade partly reflects who lives in a town. That’s why we also compare towns with similar incomes. Visit, ask other parents, and read neighbor reviews. It’s our own summary of U.S. Department of Education data, not an official rating.

School path

Where Lakeland kids go to school

Grades PK–8

10 schoolsDepends on your address · see the list Polk County School District

Grades 8

6 middle schoolsDepends on your address · see the list Polk County School District

Grades 9–12

C+LAKELAND SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL 1,985 students · Lakeland Polk County School District

Based on district boundaries from the U.S. Department of Education. Check with the district before you enroll.

Test scores · 2020–21

Well below the state in reading

Reading (grades PK–12, Polk County)43%

State average 52%

Math (grades PK–12, Polk County)39%

State average 47.9%

Graduation · class of 2020

87% graduate on time

Graduation rate

87%

FL: 90.3%

Graduating class

7,767

students

The share of students who started ninth grade together and earned a regular diploma within four years. #565 of 631 FL towns →

Districts

The district serving Lakeland

Polk County School DistrictGrades PK–12 · 166 schools · 116,440 students

$12,447 per studentFL $13,006D

Each district’s own page has its spending, test scores, enrollment and every school.

Every school

All 40 schools in Lakeland

Level

All 40 Preschool 1 Elementary 15 Middle 4 High 3 Other 17

Type

All 40 Public 19 Charter 6 Private 15

Showing 1–30 of 40 schools

SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMYElementary · Grades PK–6 · 1,200 students

ROCHELLE SCHOOL OF THE ARTSElementary · Grades PK–8 · 762 students

SLEEPY HILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades PK–5 · 711 students

NORTH LAKELAND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OF CHOICEElementary · Grades PK–5 · 658 students

PHILIP O'BRIEN ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades PK–5 · 625 students

MCKEEL ACADEMY CENTRALElementary · Grades PK–6 · 610 students

ROSABELLE W. BLAKE ACADEMYElementary · Grades PK–8 · 562 students

LINCOLN AVENUE ACADEMYElementary · Grades K–5 · 512 students

IDEA LAKELANDElementary · Grades K–6 · 452 students

CARLTON PALMORE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades PK–5 · 402 students

SOUTHWEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades PK–5 · 376 students

CLEVELAND COURT ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades K–5 · 374 students

DIXIELAND ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · Grades PK–5 · 344 students

MAGNOLIA MONTESSORI ACADEMYElementary · Grades K–8 · 182 students

LAKELAND MONTESSORI SCHOOL HOUSEElementary · Grades K–8 · 129 students

LAKELAND HIGHLANDS MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · Grades 6–8 · 1,118 students

SLEEPY HILL MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · Grades 6–8 · 886 students

SOUTHWEST MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · Grades 6–8 · 746 students

LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMYMiddle · Grades 6–8 · 704 students

LAKELAND SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLHigh · Grades 9–12 · 1,985 students

PACE CENTER FOR GIRLSHigh · Grades 6–12 · 59 students

POLK VIRTUAL FRANCHISEHigh · Grades 6–12

POLK FULL TIME ESCHOOLOther · Grades K–12 · 429 students

ACHIEVEMENT ACADEMYPrekindergarten · Grades PK · 157 students

POLK VIRTUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAMOther · Grades K–12 · 17 students

ACADEMY PREP CENTER OF LAKELAND

FAMILIES OF FAITH CHRISTIAN ACADEMY INTERNATIONAL

GENEVA CLASSICAL ACADEMY

GREATER ST. PAUL ACADEMY

HEAD OF THE CLASS LEARNING CENTER

School data from the U.S. Department of Education (NCES). Ratings are from neighbors on TownTapestry.