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Scott Lake Elementary School

Q: Is Scott Lake Elementary School a good school?

Scott Lake Elementary School ranks 930 th of 2258 Florida elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

Public Grades PK, KG-5

930^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,258 Florida Elementary Schools

Better than 59% of Florida elementary schools

Summary

Scott Lake Elementary School is a public elementary school serving 777 students in grades PK-5 in Lakeland, Florida, which is part of the Polk School District. The school has consistently outperformed the district and state averages on standardized tests, with 67% of 3rd graders proficient in ELA and Math in 2024-2025, compared to 50% and 53% for the Polk district, and 57% and 63% for the state. However, the school has also struggled with high chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 30.9% to 39.1% in recent years, which is significantly higher than the state average.

Interestingly, while Scott Lake Elementary outperforms the district and state, some nearby schools like Cleveland Court Elementary and Valleyview Elementary also have strong academic performance, with higher test scores and lower chronic absenteeism rates. Additionally, the higher spending per student at Scott Lake Elementary does not necessarily translate to better outcomes compared to some nearby schools, suggesting that factors beyond just funding, such as school leadership, teacher quality, and community engagement, may play a significant role in student success.

The free/reduced lunch rates at Scott Lake Elementary are lower than some nearby schools, indicating a relatively more advantaged student population. This may contribute to the school's stronger academic performance, but also raises questions about equity and access for students from lower-income families. Overall, Scott Lake Elementary is a relatively strong-performing school within the Polk School District, but the school's high chronic absenteeism rates and fluctuating statewide rankings indicate areas for improvement.

735

Students ?

15.6

Student/teacher ratio ?

$11,561

Per pupil spending ?

55%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1140 County Road 540a E
Lakeland, FL 33813

(863) 648-3520

District: Polk

Students who attend Scott Lake Elementary School usually attend:

Middle:	Lakeland Highlands Middle School
High:	George W. Jenkins Senior High

Racial breakdown:

White:

50.9%

Hispanic:

27.2%

African American:

15.2%

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Compare Scott Lake Elementary School to nearby elementary schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 75th percentile in 2014 → 59th in 2025

Strengths

✓Among the top-ranked schools in Polk

✓Above the Florida median (59th percentile)

Worth a look

!Ranking has slipped — down 16 percentile points since 2014

Students meeting standards (2024-2025) ?

This school60%

District avg49%

Florida avg58%

930^th of 2,258

Florida public elementary schools ?

Top 41%▼ down 15 pts since 2016

From top 26% (2016) to top 41% (2025)

See the entire ranking list of Florida Elementary Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

18^th of 86Elementary Schools in the Polk

61^st of 67Polk among Florida districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Florida percentile	Rating
2025	57.7	930 of 2258	58.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	68.5	676 of 2256	70.0%	★★★★☆
2023	62.6	782 of 2240	65.1%	★★★☆☆
2022	63.2	779 of 2219	64.9%	★★★☆☆
2021	67.7	693 of 2247	69.2%	★★★☆☆
2019	61.2	809 of 2182	62.9%	★★★☆☆
2018	60.3	812 of 2118	61.7%	★★★☆☆
2017	66.3	696 of 2112	67.0%	★★★☆☆
2016	73.2	538 of 2087	74.2%	★★★★☆
2014	72.1	526 of 2064	74.5%	★★★★☆
2013	69.3	592 of 2029	70.8%	★★★★☆
2012	71.6	546 of 1984	72.5%	★★★★☆
2011	68.9	626 of 1985	68.5%	★★★☆☆
2010	63.5	748 of 1919	61.0%	★★★☆☆
2009	60.2	767 of 1847	58.5%	★★★☆☆
2008	64.2	662 of 1789	63.0%	★★★☆☆
2007	66.8	621 of 1786	65.2%	★★★☆☆
2006	66.5	570 of 1688	66.2%	★★★☆☆

By subject vs Florida (2024-2025) ?

Math64%+3 vs state

English Language Arts60%+4 vs state

Science48%-7 vs state

5.0

1 rating · 1 written review

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What people are saying

by a parent
Friday, July 25, 2014

I love this school! My daughter has been going to Scott Lake since 2nd grade and she is now in 4th grade. They have an ALPHA program for the more advanced kids so they can think outside the box and be knowledgable about things they wouldnt be learning in a normal classroom setting. For 3rd grade she was placed in an advanced classroom which I like alot so shes not bored or being slowed down. The assistant principle is a very friendly guy who gets back with you asap if there is any problems (which we had two on the bus) and he fixed it right away and made sure the bus was being watched for months afterwards. The only thing I wish the Principle didnt change was at the end of the year the children on the last day would get a paper stating who there next teacher is going to be and we didnt get that this year. It makes the kids excited for next year instead of dwelling and waiting to see who the teacher is going to be and who they know is going to be in there class with them. Close Quote

Schools Near Scott Lake Elementary School

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2025)				Ranking (2024)				FAST English Language Arts (2025)			FAST Math (2025)			Statewide Science Science (2025)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	SchoolDigger Rating (2025)	Average Standard Score (2024)	Statewide Rank (2024)	State Percentile (2024)	Rank Change from Previous Year	FAST English Language Arts 3rd Grade	FAST English Language Arts 4th Grade	FAST English Language Arts 5th Grade	FAST Math 3rd Grade	FAST Math 4th Grade	FAST Math 5th Grade	Statewide Science Science 5th Grade	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Scott Lake Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	1140 County Road 540a E	Lakeland	33813	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3520	735	47	15.6	55.0%	374 (50.9%)	112 (15.2%)	200 (27.2%)	20 (2.7%)	1 (0.1%)	1 (0.1%)	27 (3.7%)	57.7	930^th of 2258 public elementary schools	58.8%		68.5	676^th of 2256 public elementary schools	70.0%	254	67.0	56.0	57.0	67.0	64.0	60.0	48.0	$11,561	$1,488	$10,074
Medulla Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	850 Schoolhouse Rd	Lakeland	33813	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3515	488	29	16.8	73.0%	138 (28.3%)	119 (24.4%)	204 (41.8%)	4 (0.8%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (4.5%)	21.6	1857^th of 2258 public elementary schools	17.8%		31.3	1584^th of 2256 public elementary schools	29.8%	273	56.0	33.0	39.0	45.0	33.0	40.0	45.0	$12,878	$2,001	$10,876
Valleyview Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2900 State Rd 540a E	Lakeland	33813	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	No	(863) 648-3535	783	52	15.0	41.4%	412 (52.6%)	117 (14.9%)	184 (23.5%)	43 (5.5%)	5 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	22 (2.8%)	79.4	416^th of 2258 public elementary schools	81.6%		84.4	313^th of 2256 public elementary schools	86.1%	103	67.0	70.0	66.0	71.0	78.0	82.0	70.0	$11,059	$1,070	$9,989
Highlands Grove Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	4510 Lakeland Highlands Rd	Lakeland	33813	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3002	691	46	15.0	50.1%	352 (50.9%)	101 (14.6%)	194 (28.1%)	20 (2.9%)	1 (0.1%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (3.3%)	70.2	636^th of 2258 public elementary schools	71.8%		72.9	576^th of 2256 public elementary schools	74.5%	60	69.0	61.0	62.0	65.0	70.0	73.0	64.0	$12,216	$1,547	$10,670
Carlton Palmore Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	3725 Clevelnd Hts Blvd	Lakeland	33803	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3510	402	26	15.4	66.7%	173 (43.0%)	89 (22.1%)	112 (27.9%)	5 (1.2%)	4 (1.0%)	3 (0.7%)	16 (4.0%)	34.2	1520^th of 2258 public elementary schools	32.7%		26.7	1720^th of 2256 public elementary schools	23.8%	200	56.0	49.0	52.0	53.0	42.0	44.0	40.0	$12,914	$1,902	$11,011
James W. Sikes Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2727 Shepherd Rd	Lakeland	33811	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3525	502	35	14.3	61.6%	230 (45.8%)	69 (13.7%)	176 (35.1%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	23 (4.6%)	50.7	1098^th of 2258 public elementary schools	51.4%		59	884^th of 2256 public elementary schools	60.8%	214	64.0	53.0	58.0	57.0	67.0	46.0	53.0	$12,290	$1,571	$10,720
Highland City Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	5355 9th Street SE	Highland City	33846	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 648-3540	414	28	14.7	63.5%	197 (47.6%)	41 (9.9%)	139 (33.6%)	6 (1.4%)	2 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	29 (7.0%)	47.7	1166^th of 2258 public elementary schools	48.4%		58.8	886^th of 2256 public elementary schools	60.7%	280	49.0	63.0	43.0	64.0	59.0	67.0	45.0	$13,608	$1,784	$11,823
Cleveland Court Elementary School	Public	K-5	328 Edgewood Dr E	Lakeland	33803	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 499-2929	374	27	13.8	54.0%	153 (40.9%)	90 (24.1%)	109 (29.1%)	12 (3.2%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	9 (2.4%)	76	495^th of 2258 public elementary schools	78.1%		77.1	477^th of 2256 public elementary schools	78.9%	18	77.0	72.0	63.0	84.0	70.0	66.0	54.0	$13,187	$1,655	$11,533
R. Bruce Wagner Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	5500 Yates Rd	Lakeland	33811	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 701-1450	899	58	15.5	65.0%	312 (34.7%)	103 (11.5%)	430 (47.8%)	18 (2.0%)	5 (0.6%)	0 (0.0%)	31 (3.4%)	53.1	1040^th of 2258 public elementary schools	53.9%		49.2	1109^th of 2256 public elementary schools	50.8%	69	59.0	59.0	53.0	62.0	65.0	55.0	51.0	$11,450	$1,689	$9,760
Southwest Elementary School	Public	PK, KG-5	2650 Southwest Ave	Lakeland	33803	Polk County	Polk	No	No	No	Yes	(863) 499-2830	376	31	12.1	77.7%	123 (32.7%)	79 (21.0%)	146 (38.8%)	2 (0.5%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	25 (6.6%)	43.7	1255^th of 2258 public elementary schools	44.4%		47.4	1161^st of 2256 public elementary schools	48.5%	94	49.0	48.0	55.0	44.0	40.0	71.0	71.0	$14,321	$2,064	$12,257

Frequently Asked Questions about Scott Lake Elementary School

What is the racial makeup of Scott Lake Elementary School?

Students at Scott Lake Elementary School are 51% White, 27% Hispanic, 15% African American, 4% Two or more races, 3% Asian.

What schools do graduates of Scott Lake Elementary School attend?

Students who attend Scott Lake Elementary School usually go on to attend:

Middle : Lakeland Highlands Middle School
High : George W. Jenkins Senior High

Is Scott Lake Elementary School a good school?

Scott Lake Elementary School ranks 930^th of 2258 Florida elementary schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 3 stars out of 5.

How many students attend Scott Lake Elementary School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 735 students attended Scott Lake Elementary School.

What district is Scott Lake Elementary School in?

Polk

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SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Florida Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.