Digital Academy Of Florida

Digital Academy Of Florida is a large, statewide virtual charter school in Jacksonville, FL, serving 6,069 students in grades K-12 and operating under the Hendry district, with 63% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch.

This school stands out for its massive scale and low spending per student ($5,507), which is 35% less than nearby alternatives. While it reports a puzzling 0.0% chronic absenteeism rate for five years—likely due to different attendance tracking—nearby virtual schools like Duval Virtual Instruction Academy report 32.6% absenteeism. Academically, DAOF consistently underperforms state averages, especially in Math, where 5th grade proficiency is just 22% (20-30 points below the state). However, there are bright spots: Biology 1 and US History EOC scores (54% and 58%) are closer to state benchmarks, and the graduation rate has jumped from 59.3% to 77.5% in two years. Interestingly, DAOF shares an address with Florida Cyber Charter Academy (Duval), which serves a wealthier population (33.5% poverty) but doesn't dramatically outperform DAOF in test scores—for example, DAOF's 8th grade Math (39%) beats FCCA's (25%).

Compared to high-performing local schools like Cornerstone Classical Academy (Duval) and St. Johns Classical Academy Orange Park (Clay), which serve far fewer low-income students and achieve 70-97% proficiency, DAOF is clearly serving a different demographic—likely students who need virtual flexibility or have struggled in traditional settings. The school's low-cost, high-scale model shows mixed results, but its recent improvement in graduation rates and relative strength in content-heavy subjects suggest it may be finding its footing for the families it serves.