Shadowlawn Elementary School

Shadowlawn Elementary School is a PK-5 public school in Naples, FL, serving 470 students within the highly-rated Collier County School District, and it has recently achieved a remarkable academic turnaround that sets it apart from many nearby schools.

Shadowlawn’s most impressive strength is its exceptional math performance. In the 2025-2026 school year, the school achieved 75% proficiency in 3rd grade math, 88% in 4th grade, and 73% in 5th grade—all well above state and district averages. Its 4th grade math score of 88% is the highest among comparable elementary schools in the area, tying only with the top-performing Lake Park Elementary School. This success is part of a dramatic upward trend: after ranking in the 24th percentile in 2018-2019, Shadowlawn has climbed steadily to the 68th percentile in 2025-2026, earning a 3-star rating. This is the most consistent improvement among its peers, especially compared to Avalon Elementary School, which has a similar demographic profile but ranks in the 37th percentile. Shadowlawn also invests heavily in its students, with a per-student spending of $19,577 and a low student-teacher ratio of 13.3:1, which is significantly better than the 15.9:1 ratio at Avalon or the 21.7:1 ratio at Bridgeprep Academy Collier.

However, the school faces two notable challenges. First, there is a puzzling "3rd Grade ELA anomaly": while 3rd grade English Language Arts proficiency is strong at 72%, it drops to 58% in 4th grade and 60% in 5th grade—the opposite pattern of most nearby schools like Parkside Elementary School, where 5th grade ELA is the strongest. Second, chronic absenteeism remains a persistent issue at 20.2%, higher than the district average of 17.4% and far above the 9.1% rate at Lake Park. Despite these hurdles, Shadowlawn is achieving strong academic growth, demonstrating that its in-school instruction is effectively supporting students and mitigating the impact of socioeconomic factors on achievement.