Summary:
In zip code 33844, there is one high school, Haines City Senior High School, serving grades 9-12 in Haines City, Florida, within the Polk school district.
Haines City Senior High School is a large school with 3,105 students and a high student-to-teacher ratio of 25.4:1. A standout strength is its graduation rate of 91.2%, which outperforms the Polk district average of 87.7% and nearly matches the state average. However, the school faces significant challenges. Academic proficiency rates are well below state averages in every subject, with only 29% of students proficient in Algebra 1 compared to 63% statewide. The most critical issue is a chronic absenteeism rate of 44.5%, meaning nearly half of students miss substantial school time—this is far worse than both the district (39.1%) and state (31.4%) averages. The school also serves a high-poverty population, with 69.6% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, and has relatively low per-student spending of $7,978.
Despite these obstacles, the school's strong graduation rate suggests effective efforts to keep students on track for a diploma. The strongest academic subject is US History, where 67% of students are proficient, close to the state average of 74%. Performance has been largely stagnant over the past two years, with no significant improvement or decline. For parents, the key takeaway is that while Haines City Senior High School excels at graduating students, the combination of high absenteeism, large class sizes, and low test scores indicates that students may need additional academic support to reach grade-level proficiency.
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