Summary:
Zip code 33917 in North Fort Myers, Florida, is home to two elementary schools serving grades PK-8 and PK-6 within the Lee County school district, which ranks in the 20th percentile statewide.
Bayshore School is the standout in this area, consistently outperforming North Fort Myers Academy For The Arts and district averages. Bayshore ranks in the 44th percentile (2 stars) for the 2025-2026 school year, while North Fort Myers Academy ranks in the 22nd percentile (1 star) and shows a concerning downward trend from a prior 3-star rating. Bayshore’s academic performance is exceptional, particularly in middle school math and civics: its 7th-grade math proficiency (78%) more than doubles the district average (37%), and its civics proficiency (90%) far exceeds the district (71%). Bayshore also has a lower chronic absenteeism rate (27.7%) compared to North Fort Myers Academy (35.7%) and the district (34.6%), indicating stronger student engagement. Despite a higher student-teacher ratio (21.2:1 vs. 19.2:1), Bayshore spends more per student ($10,388 vs. $9,655) and serves a lower percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch (40% vs. 53.22%).
The most dramatic difference between the two schools is in middle school math. While both perform similarly in early elementary grades, a massive gap emerges by 7th grade, with Bayshore’s 78% proficiency being an outlier and North Fort Myers Academy’s 22% representing a critical weakness. North Fort Myers Academy For The Arts shows a declining trend, underperforming district and state averages in nearly every subject for the most recent year. In contrast, Bayshore School consistently overperforms district averages across all grade levels and subjects, such as 6th-grade ELA (64% vs. 51%) and math (67% vs. 48%), reflecting a school-wide culture of academic achievement.
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