Middle Schools in Hendry

The two middle schools in the Hendry County school district, Labelle Middle School and Clewiston Middle School, serve grades 6-8 in a high-need area where a majority of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. The district itself ranks in the bottom 16th percentile statewide, indicating significant challenges, but the two schools show distinct strengths and trends that parents should consider.

Clewiston Middle School stands out as the higher-performing and more rapidly improving school. It jumped 117 spots in state ranking to the 36th percentile, and it excels in advanced coursework, with 100% proficiency in Geometry and 79% in Algebra 1—far exceeding state averages. However, it also has a very high chronic absenteeism rate of 40.7%, suggesting that while the school achieves strong results with attending students, getting all students to class is a major hurdle. In contrast, Labelle Middle School offers more stable, consistent performance, hovering around the 30th percentile for three years. It outperforms Clewiston in 8th Grade Science (51% vs. 46%) and does not experience the same dramatic drop in 8th-grade math proficiency that Clewiston does, where proficiency plummets from 63% in 7th grade to just 12% in 8th grade.

A key takeaway is that both schools spend more per student than typical, with Clewiston investing $12,117 per student compared to Labelle's $10,608, which correlates with its higher advanced course performance. Yet both schools struggle with chronic absenteeism above the state average, and their average ELA and math proficiency for grades 6-8 lags behind state benchmarks. For parents, Clewiston offers a rising trajectory and exceptional advanced programs, while Labelle provides more predictable results and stronger science instruction.