Polk Times

Hispanic students made up the largest ethnic group enrolled in Polk County County school districts during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Of the 116,031 students attending Polk County schools, 42.0% were Hispanic. White students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 32.4% of Polk County students.

In the previous school year, Hispanic students were also the most common ethnicity in Polk County, representing 40.5% of the student body.

Polk Halfway House had the most even distribution of races among the county schools, including 50% Black students.

In the 2023-24 school year, the total number of students enrolled in the county increased by 1.4% when compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, Florida continues to face a teacher shortage in the 2023-24 school year. Despite some improvements, the state reported nearly 4,800 instructional vacancies at the beginning of the year. According to the Florida Department of Education, core subjects such as English, reading, and math among the areas with the highest demand for teachers.

According to the National Education Association (NEA), Florida ranked 50th in the U.S. for teacher pay in the 2022-23 school year, with salaries lower than they were a decade ago when adjusted for inflation.

Governor DeSantis's budget for the 2024-25 school year allocates nearly $38 billion for education, with $1.25 billion dedicated to teachers' salaries and other instructional personnel.

School Name	Most Prevalent Ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
Achievement Academy	Hispanic	40.1%	157
Alta Vista Elementary School	Hispanic	65.3%	760
Alturas Elementary School	White	65.2%	296
Auburndale Central Elementary School	Hispanic	40.1%	372
Auburndale Senior High School	White	40.3%	1,777
Bartow Elementary Academy	White	50.7%	531
Bartow Middle School	White	42.6%	999
Bartow Senior High School	White	42.4%	2,243
Bella Citta Elementary School	Hispanic	61.7%	1,111
Berkley Accelerated Middle School	White	68.6%	627
Berkley Elementary School	White	69.4%	696
Bethune Academy	Black	49.8%	430
Bill Duncan Opportunity Center	Black	43.5%	85
Bok Academy	White	48.5%	627
Bridgeprep Academy of Polk	Hispanic	65.2%	535
Carlton Palmore Elementary School	White	45.3%	413
Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School	White	42.4%	314
Chain of Lakes Elementary School	White	36.3%	1,008
Citrus Ridge A. Civics Academy	Hispanic	58.7%	1,347
Clarence Boswell Elementary School	White	39.9%	619
Cleveland Court Elementary School	White	43.7%	398
Combee Academy of Design and Engineering	White	44.8%	529
Compass Middle Charter School	Hispanic	41.6%	161
Crystal Lake Elementary School	Hispanic	43.5%	425
Crystal Lake Middle School	Hispanic	42.7%	865
Cypress Junction Montessori	White	61.7%	193
Dale R. Fair Babson Park Elementary School	White	72.3%	465
Daniel Jenkins Academy of Technology Middle School	Hispanic	57.9%	499
Davenport Elementary School	Hispanic	64%	880
Davenport High School	Hispanic	59.5%	2,481
Davenport School of the Arts	Hispanic	53.3%	1,513
Denison Middle School	Hispanic	39.4%	729
Discovery Academy of Lake Alfred	Hispanic	47.6%	911
Discovery High School	Hispanic	49.5%	812
Dixieland Elementary School	Hispanic	45.5%	325
Don E. Woods Opportunity Center	Hispanic	49.2%	65
Doris A. Sanders Learning Center	White	47.6%	84
Dr. Ne Roberts Elementary School	White	41%	749
Dundee Elementary Academy	Hispanic	50.6%	636
Dundee Ridge Middle Academy	Hispanic	59.3%	723
Eagle Lake Elementary School	Hispanic	40.6%	697
Eastside Elementary School	Hispanic	67.4%	668
Edgar L. Padgett Elementary School	White	36.8%	554
Edward W. Bok Academy North	White	40.5%	670
Elbert Elementary School	Black	35.9%	596
Floral Avenue Elementary School	White	45.8%	629
Fort Meade Middle/Senior High School	Hispanic	52%	771
Frank E. Brigham Academy	White	41.7%	551
Fred G. Garner Elementary School	Black	40.6%	840
Fresh Start Community School	Hispanic	43.6%	133
Frostproof Ben Hill Griffin Jr. Elementary School	Hispanic	46.4%	856
Frostproof Middle/Senior High School	Hispanic	46.3%	1,082
Garden Grove Elementary School	White	35.2%	691
Gause Academy of Leadership	Hispanic	37.8%	82
George W. Jenkins Senior High School	White	47.2%	2,517
Griffin Elementary School	Hispanic	40.4%	411
Haines City Senior High School	Hispanic	58.8%	2,914
Hartridge Academy	White	48.5%	171
Highland City Elementary School	White	50.1%	415
Highlands Grove Elementary School	White	52.8%	712
Hillcrest Elementary School	White	46.6%	665
Horizons Elementary School	Hispanic	63.6%	1,500
Hospital Homebound	White	48.3%	151
Inwood Elementary School	Black	50.6%	393
James E. Stephens Elementary School	Black	44.2%	328
James W. Sikes Elementary School	White	47.2%	551
Janie Howard Wilson School	Hispanic	42.1%	430
Jean O'Dell Learning Center	Hispanic	46.2%	78
Jere L. Stambaugh Middle School	Hispanic	39.3%	1,090
Jesse Keen Elementary School	Hispanic	73%	614
Jewett Middle Academy Magnet	White	36.1%	587
Jewett School of the Arts	Black	46.5%	737
John Snively Elementary School	Hispanic	57.2%	397
Karen M. Siegel Academy	Hispanic	46.5%	159
Kathleen Elementary School	White	43.3%	480
Kathleen Middle School	Hispanic	40%	835
Kathleen Senior High School	Hispanic	41.8%	1,951
Lake Alfred Elementary School	Hispanic	45.9%	880
Lake Alfred Polytech Academy	Hispanic	44.5%	767
Lake Gibson Middle School	White	41.2%	1,118
Lake Gibson Senior High School	White	40.3%	2,039
Lake Marion Creek Middle School	Hispanic	54.1%	1,038
Lake Region High School	Hispanic	46.2%	1,554
Lake Shipp Elementary School	Black	35.5%	620
Lake Wales Senior High School	White	42.5%	1,599
Lakeland Highlands Middle School	White	48.2%	1,260
Lakeland Montessori Middle School	White	50%	30
Lakeland Montessori School House	White	66.7%	108
Lakeland Senior High School	White	39.7%	2,057
Language & Literacy Academy for Learning	Hispanic	45.2%	341
Laurel Elementary School	Hispanic	51.1%	1,049
Lawton Chiles Middle Academy	White	47.1%	671
Lena Vista Elementary School	Hispanic	39.3%	963
Lewis Anna Woodbury Elementary School	Hispanic	55.4%	587
Lincoln Avenue Academy	White	42.3%	522
Loughman Oaks Elementary School	Hispanic	58.7%	1,113
Magnolia Montessori Academy	White	63.5%	178
Maynard A. Traviss Technical Academy	White	44.6%	110
McKeel Academy Central	White	59.2%	610
McKeel Academy of Technology	White	64.6%	1,722
McLaughlin Middle School and Fine Arts Academy	Hispanic	44.1%	666
Medulla Elementary School	Hispanic	39%	503
Mi Escuela Montessori	Hispanic	53.1%	239
Mulberry Middle School	Hispanic	52.8%	1,176
Mulberry Senior High School	Hispanic	49%	1,399
Navigator Academy of Leadership Davenport	Hispanic	77.6%	994
New Beginnings High School	Hispanic	48.3%	837
North Lakeland Elementary School of Choice	Hispanic	43.6%	637
Oscar J. Pope Elementary School	Hispanic	55.8%	378
Pace Center for Girls	White	49.1%	57
Palmetto Elementary School	Hispanic	68.3%	473
Philip O'Brien Elementary School	Hispanic	34.3%	633
Pinewood Elementary School	Hispanic	43.8%	692
Polk Avenue Elementary School	Hispanic	43.6%	534
Polk City Elementary School	White	62.3%	539
Polk County Sheriff's Central Center	Black	66.7%	36
Polk County Sheriffs Regional Detention Center	Black	38.8%	49
Polk Full Time Eschool	White	43.7%	455
Polk Grad Academy	Black	< 10%	20
Polk Halfway House	Black	50%	24
Polk Pre-Collegiate Academy	White	43.6%	39
Polk State College Collegiate High School	White	61.1%	334
Polk State Lakeland Gateway to College Charter High School	Black	37.8%	254
Polk Virtual Instruction Program	White	50%	28
Purcell Elementary School	Hispanic	47.3%	474
R. Bruce Wagner Elementary School	Hispanic	43.8%	954
R. Clem Churchwell Elementary School	White	41.8%	686
Real Academy (Reaching Every Adolescent Learner)	Black	39.8%	264
Ridge Community High School	Hispanic	64%	2,666
Ridge Technical Academy	Hispanic	45.5%	143
Ridge Teen Parent Program	Black	< 10%	10
Ridgeview Global Studies Academy	Hispanic	42.4%	1,573
Rochelle School of the Arts	Black	35.1%	803
Roosevelt Academy	Hispanic	46.9%	277
Rosabelle W. Blake Academy	Black	41.5%	603
Sandhill Elementary School	Hispanic	59.4%	1,017
Scott Lake Elementary School	White	55.2%	777
Shelley S. Boone Middle School	Hispanic	63.7%	1,421
Sleepy Hill Elementary School	Hispanic	43%	766
Sleepy Hill Middle School	Hispanic	47.6%	1,087
Socrum Elementary School	White	45.8%	515
South McKeel Academy	White	59.9%	1,199
Southwest Elementary School	Hispanic	38.2%	380
Southwest Middle School	Hispanic	39.5%	745
Spessard L. Holland Elementary School	White	40.4%	769
Spook Hill Elementary School	Hispanic	35.5%	547
Tenoroc High School	Hispanic	41.1%	1,157
Transition School	Hispanic	41.5%	41
Union Academy	White	47.3%	389
Valleyview Elementary School	White	54.6%	817
Victory Ridge Academy	Hispanic	41.4%	314
Wahneta Elementary School	Hispanic	86.2%	492
Walter Caldwell Elementary School	Hispanic	36%	895
Wendell Watson Elementary School	White	48.6%	835
Westwood Middle School	Hispanic	47.2%	829
Willow Oak School	Hispanic	57.4%	902
Winston Academy of Engineering	White	36.4%	520
Winter Haven Elementary 21c	Hispanic	37.5%	494
Winter Haven Senior High School	Hispanic	32.8%	2,553