Lee County schools earn a ‘B’ grade from Florida Department of Education
School grades recently released from the Florida Department of Education show improvement among local schools but still left the School District of Lee County still ranking ninth among the largest 10 school districts in the state.
A B grade was maintained for the School District of Lee County for the 2024-2025 school year, which reflected continued progress and academic achievement across all schools. The grade was based on the third year of Florida’s new Florida Assessment of Student Thinking (FAST) assessments aligned with Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking (B.E.S.T.) standards. Student performance and growth in English Language Arts and mathematics, as well as standalone achievement measure for third-grade ELA were key accountability components for the rating, officials said.
“We are just getting started,” Superintendent Dr. Denise Carlin said. “Our goal is to be the No. 1 district in the State of Florida. The team we have put in place and the changes ready to greet students and staff when they return to school on Aug. 11 will take us there. We will not rest until we are No. 1.”
With the district anticipating these results it has implemented several changes for the upcoming school year to prioritize the improvement of academic achievement. Those include:
• A 5% budget cut in the central office to increase school support.
• An administrative reorganization to reduce bureaucracy.
• Incentives for teachers to teach the most critical subjects in the schools most at risk for lower achievement.
• Increased the School Development Team to focus on schools in need.
• Project Believe to hire a high-quality, dedicated teacher for every classroom.
• The Safe Start Initiative – change school start times to reduce students missing school due to late buses. In addition, a 30-minute addition of instruction time at the high school level.
• Requiring cell phones to be turned off and put in backpacks during the upcoming school year.
Fourteen schools received an A grade and 27 earned a B, which represents more than half of the district’s traditional public schools.
Some schools saw good gains, including Pine Island Elementary School that went from a C to an A. Four schools went from a B to an A, including Gulf Elementary School, North Fort Myers High School, Tanglewood Elementary School and Three Oaks Middle School.
“It’s a fantastic feeling to have all the hard work pay off,” Gulf Elementary Principal Jessica Duncan said. “Under the leadership of Principal Kim Verblaauw and her team, our students were willing to put in consistent effort and continually challenge themselves to reach higher academic achievements. Our Gulf Elementary staff worked together to foster a culture where students were inspired to become active learners who believe in their potential to succeed. We also have incredibly supportive families, which is a crucial factor in student success and the resulting school grade.”
She said they had significant learning gains in reading, which is partially attributed to how they implemented their Walk to Read intervention and enrichment time during the school day.
“We also ensured that students possessed the necessary foundational skills and provided additional learning opportunities through our extended day tutoring program,” Duncan said.
As the newly appointed principal, she said she will support staff in meeting the academic needs of all students by maintaining strong interventions using their established program.
“We will monitor and review our school data throughout the year to make instructional decisions and make any necessary adjustments. We will also identify which grade levels and subject areas would benefit most from our extended day tutoring program, which is set to begin in September,” Duncan said.
North Fort Myers High School Principal Debbie Diggs said her staff is beyond thrilled to have received an A grade.
“It’s always great to receive positive recognition and is even more meaningful when a goal is realized that our staff had consistently worked toward all year,” she said. “The bigger picture, though, is what the numbers and the grade represent for our students. These numbers represent proficiency and growth in English and math, proficiency in biology and U.S. history, college and career acceleration and graduation rates. As our students gain and excel in these areas, their opportunities for future advancement grows exponentially.”
In addition, Diggs said as the only high school within the School District of Lee County to earn an A, she is especially proud of the work her students and staff did to land highest in the areas of both English and math proficiency, as well as graduation rate.
“Another strong area for North this year was overall English and math gains for all students, as well as U.S. history proficiency. One of the biggest challenges we face is chronic absenteeism, especially among students who struggle the most academically. It’s difficult for learning to take place when they aren’t in school consistently. While this is a small percentage of our kids, every kid is important and we will continue to work toward helping every kid be successful,” Diggs said.
The 2024-2025 school grade report also showed improvement in their four former D schools, which removed them from the Florida Department of Education’s Bureau of School Improvement. Those four schools that went from a D to a C include Amanecer Elementary, Edgewood Elementary, J. Colin English Elementary, and Lemuel Teal Middle School.
Tortuga Preserve Elementary School dropped to a D grade and will be placed under state supervision next year.
No schools in the district received an F.
“I am thankful to all the teachers, staff, and administrators for their hard work and dedication to our students, it is truly appreciated. I’m truly encouraged to see improvements across the district, including four of our schools moving up from a D. However, there is still much work ahead, and we haven’t lost sight of that challenge. I am confident in Superintendent Dr. Denise Carlin and her team as they continue to put our students first and strive for excellence,” School Board Chair Sam Fisher said.
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