Summary:
The 33596 zip code in Valrico, Florida, is home to six public schools within the Hillsborough School District, serving over 6,100 students from elementary through high school in a generally affluent community.
The elementary schools are the clear strength of this area. Lithia Springs Elementary School is the top performer, earning a 5-star rating and ranking in the 86th percentile statewide with the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (17.4%) and highest test scores. Cimino Elementary School is a consistent 4-star school, while Alafia Elementary School also performs well but showed a puzzling drop in 5th-grade science and math scores between school years. At the secondary level, Bloomingdale High School is a strong 4-star school with a 95.2% graduation rate, though its 38.5% chronic absenteeism rate is a major concern. Mulrennan Middle School excels in advanced coursework like Geometry and Algebra 1 but struggles with standard 7th-grade math (26% proficiency). The outlier is Navigator Academy Of Leadership Valrico, the only 2-star school in the zip code, which has the highest student-to-teacher ratio (25.5) and lowest per-student spending ($7,239), despite having the lowest free/reduced lunch rate (9.27%).
Key takeaways for parents: resource allocation strongly correlates with performance, as top elementary schools spend more per student and have smaller class sizes. The high school's attendance problem contrasts sharply with excellent elementary attendance, suggesting a need for better engagement at the secondary level. While most schools outperform district averages, Navigator Academy's paradox of low poverty yet low performance warrants a closer look at its curriculum and leadership.
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