Renaissance Charter School At Cypress

Renaissance Charter School At Cypress is a K-8 charter school in West Palm Beach, FL, serving 728 students within the Palm Beach district. This school presents a unique "tale of two schools" under one roof: its middle school students achieve exceptional results on advanced high-school-level End-of-Course (EOC) exams, with 95% proficiency in Algebra 1, 100% in Geometry, and 100% in Biology 1—far exceeding district and state averages. However, the majority of its elementary and middle school students struggle with foundational skills, as seen in 6th grade math where only 24% are proficient compared to 65% district-wide, and 3rd grade ELA at 45% proficiency versus 59% district-wide.

The school's most pressing challenge is chronic absenteeism, which at 37.2% is the highest among nearby schools and significantly above the state average of 31.4%. This rate is nearly identical to its closest neighbor, Benoist Farms Elementary School (37.3%), despite Benoist Farms spending 84% more per student ($18,718 vs. $10,186). This suggests that community-wide attendance issues, rather than funding alone, are a core driver of low performance. The school's spending per student is the lowest among all nearby schools, which may limit its ability to provide targeted support for struggling students.

Renaissance Charter School's state ranking has declined from the 47th percentile in 2020-2021 to the 19th percentile for 2025-2026, reflecting a downward trend. The school also shows an unusual volatility in its free/reduced lunch population, swinging from 72% to 40% and back to 71% in recent years, which may indicate shifts in enrollment or reporting. While the school excels at accelerating a select group of students through advanced coursework, it appears to be failing the majority, creating a stark contrast between its elite EOC scores and its below-average performance in core elementary and middle school subjects.