Miami Edison Senior High School

Miami Edison Senior High School is a traditional public high school in the Miami-Dade district, serving 617 students in grades 9-12 from a predominantly low-income community where nearly 60% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.

The most striking feature of Miami Edison is its graduation rate paradox: the school boasts an impressive 94.8% graduation rate, outperforming both the district (93.1%) and state (92.2%) averages, yet it struggles with low academic test scores and a severe chronic absenteeism crisis affecting 52% of students—nearly double the district average. This creates a "graduation factory" dynamic where the school excels at getting students to cross the finish line with a diploma, but questions remain about academic rigor. The school spends significantly more per student ($17,090) than nearby traditional schools like Miami Jackson Senior High School ($12,265) and Miami Northwestern Senior High ($12,503), yet this investment hasn't translated into proportional academic gains. Interestingly, the school shares a campus with iTech@Thomas A Edison Educational Center, a top-tier magnet school (95th percentile) with 93% ELA proficiency and only 21.6% absenteeism, highlighting a stark equity divide within the same building.

Despite these challenges, Miami Edison shows a positive trajectory, climbing from the 16th percentile in 2021-2022 to the 23rd percentile in 2025-2026. Test scores have improved across nearly every subject over three years, with 9th Grade ELA rising from 22% to 33% proficiency and Algebra 1 from 27% to 35%. The school demonstrates stronger performance in Biology 1 (60% proficiency) and US History (56%) compared to math and English. However, with over half the student body chronically absent, addressing attendance is the critical first step for any meaningful academic improvement. The school's high graduation rate amid this crisis suggests reliance on credit recovery and flexible pathways, which help completion but may not ensure deep learning.