Summary:
Zip code 32218 in Jacksonville, Florida, is home to two high schools within the Duval County school district: First Coast High School and Biscayne High School, serving grades 9-12 (with Biscayne also including grades 6-8).
These two schools represent a dramatic educational divide. First Coast High School is a large, traditional high school (enrollment: 2,098) that stands out as the stronger performer, with a 92.7% graduation rate that exceeds the state average and moderate academic proficiency, particularly in US History (72%) and Biology (65%). In contrast, Biscayne High School is a small alternative school (enrollment: 217) that is severely underperforming, with single-digit proficiency rates in Algebra 1 (0%), Geometry (3%), and 10th Grade ELA (9%), and a critically low graduation rate of 81.6%. Biscayne also has a staggering 97.5% chronic absenteeism rate, meaning nearly every student is chronically absent, which directly explains its academic struggles.
A key paradox is that Biscayne High School spends nearly $1,000 more per student ($9,457) than First Coast High School ($8,458), yet achieves far worse outcomes. This higher spending does not translate into effective instruction, likely due to extreme poverty (62% free/reduced lunch) and a staffing crisis, as Biscayne has a worse student-teacher ratio (36.1:1) than First Coast (24.6:1) despite its much smaller size. Meanwhile, First Coast faces its own hidden challenge: a 53.6% chronic absenteeism rate—nearly double the state average—which suggests many students are disengaged, even as the school maintains a strong graduation rate.
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