Summary:
In zip code 34461, there is one middle school, Lecanto Middle School, serving grades 6 through 8 with 786 students in the Lecanto area of Citrus County, Florida.
Lecanto Middle School is a standout within its district, consistently performing in the top 40% of Florida schools despite being part of the Citrus district, which ranks in the bottom 25% statewide. The school excels dramatically in advanced math, with 94% of students proficient in Algebra 1 and 93% in Geometry—far exceeding district and state averages. However, performance in standard grade-level math is uneven: only 47% of 6th graders were proficient, while 7th and 8th graders achieved 78% and 76% proficiency, respectively. This "math paradox" suggests the advanced courses may serve a select group, while younger students need more foundational support. The school also showed impressive year-over-year gains in English Language Arts, with 7th graders improving by 15 percentage points to 67% proficiency. Science and civics scores are solid, with 8th grade science at 56% and civics at 77%, matching the state average.
A key concern is chronic absenteeism, which affects 33.1% of students—better than the district average but slightly worse than the state. With 40.59% of students eligible for free or reduced lunch, the school serves a moderately economically diverse population. Spending per student is $10,345, and the student-teacher ratio is 18.7:1. The school has earned a consistent 3-star rating from SchoolDigger and improved its state ranking from the 57th to the 63rd percentile over the past two years. For parents, Lecanto Middle School offers strong advanced academics and rising ELA scores, but addressing attendance and supporting 6th-grade math will be critical for continued growth.
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