Summary:
This analysis examines six elementary schools in Jacksonville, Florida (zip code 32277), all part of the Duval school district, serving grades from Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade in a predominantly low-income area where chronic absenteeism is a systemic challenge.
The schools in this zip code present a starkly diverse educational landscape. Lake Lucina Elementary School is the top performer, with a 3-star rating and the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (39.9%), while also spending the least per student ($9,906). In contrast, Grasp Academy is the lowest-performing school, consistently ranking in the bottom 1-3% of Florida schools despite spending the most per student ($16,686). Jacksonville Classical Academy East shows the most dramatic turnaround, jumping from the bottom 3% to the 57th percentile, with an exceptional 91% 3rd-grade ELA proficiency rate. Don Brewer Elementary School has shown modest improvement, rising from the 12th to the 34th percentile. Fort Caroline Elementary School struggles with the highest chronic absenteeism rate (59.8%) and ranks in the bottom 5% of the state. Merrill Road Elementary School is unique, serving only grades PK-2 with no test scores, but has the lowest student-teacher ratio (15.1) and high absenteeism (49.1%).
The most striking finding is that money does not guarantee success: Grasp Academy spends the most but performs the worst, while Lake Lucina spends the least and performs the best. Chronic absenteeism is a crisis across all schools, with every school exceeding the state average of 31.4%, and the two lowest-performing schools have the highest absenteeism rates. The grade configuration creates a natural pipeline from Merrill Road (PK-2) to Don Brewer (3-5), making Merrill Road's high absenteeism a worrying sign for future academic outcomes. Overall, this zip code is a microcosm of educational inequality, where a student's address can determine access to vastly different academic environments.
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