Summary:
Zip code 33917 in North Fort Myers, Florida, is home to two public elementary schools serving a combined 2,038 students from Pre-Kindergarten through 8th grade, both part of the Lee district, which ranks in the bottom 20% of Florida districts.
Bayshore School is the clear academic leader in the area, consistently outperforming both district and state averages in every tested subject. Its 7th-grade math proficiency (78%) is more than double the district average, and its civics proficiency (90%) crushes the state average (77%). The school also boasts a lower chronic absenteeism rate (27.7%) and spends $10,388 per student. In contrast, North Fort Myers Academy For The Arts presents a paradox: it excels in advanced courses like Algebra 1 (80% proficiency) but struggles with grade-level proficiency in 5th-grade science (35%) and 7th-grade math (22%). Its chronic absenteeism rate is alarmingly high at 35.7%, and its state ranking has plummeted from the 46th percentile to the 22nd percentile in just two years.
The key differentiator between these schools is chronic absenteeism, which strongly correlates with lower test scores and declining rankings at the Academy. Bayshore School achieves superior results despite a slightly higher student-teacher ratio (21.2:1 vs. 19.2:1), suggesting its spending yields a higher return. For parents, Bayshore School offers consistent, strong academic performance across all grades and subjects, while North Fort Myers Academy For The Arts provides excellent advanced coursework opportunities but struggles with overall consistency and attendance issues that require urgent attention.
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