Best Public Schools in Zip Code 33936

The seven public schools in zip code 33936 (Lehigh Acres, FL) serve students from pre-kindergarten through high school within the Lee district, a district ranked in the 20th percentile statewide, and face significant socioeconomic and academic challenges.

Veterans Park Academy For The Arts stands out as the highest-performing school in the area, achieving a 2-star rating and the only school to score at or above the state average in any subject. It excels in advanced math, with 100% proficiency in Geometry for two consecutive years, and has the lowest chronic absenteeism rate (30.5%) and student-teacher ratio (18.9:1) in the zip code. In contrast, Donna J. Beasley Technical Academy faces a severe crisis, with a 0-star rating, a 35.3% graduation rate, and a catastrophic 94.7% chronic absenteeism rate—the highest in the dataset by far. Among middle schools, Lehigh Acres Middle School and Lemuel Teal Middle School show a striking strength in advanced math, with 81% and 88% proficiency in Algebra 1, respectively, significantly outperforming district and state averages. Elementary schools like Lehigh Elementary School, Amanecer Elementary School, and G. Weaver Hipps Elementary School all struggle with chronic absenteeism rates above 33% and state rankings in the bottom quartile.

Key takeaways include a systemic attendance crisis across all schools, with every school exceeding the state average for chronic absenteeism. G. Weaver Hipps Elementary School experienced a dramatic decline, dropping from the 51st percentile (3 stars) in 2023-2024 to the 14th percentile (1 star) in 2025-2026. While Veterans Park Academy For The Arts is the local academic leader, its state ranking has been declining, suggesting it is not keeping pace with statewide improvements. The high school crisis at Donna J. Beasley Technical Academy is fundamentally an attendance problem, with abysmal test scores and graduation rates directly tied to students not being in class. Overall, the data indicates a community-wide struggle with poverty and engagement that requires holistic intervention.