LEE COUNTY, Fla. — The Lee County School District says 11 of its schools have been designated as "Schools of Excellence" for the 2022 - 2023 school year by the Florida State Board of Education.
Schools are designated as a School of Excellence if the school’s percentage of possible points earned in its school grade calculation is in the 80th percentile or higher for schools comprised of the same grade group, according to the Florida Department of Education.
The eleven schools earning this recognition are the following:
- Edison Park Creative and Expressive Arts School
- Fort Myers Beach Elementary
- Pine Island Elementary
- Pinewoods Elementary
- Rayma C. Page Elementary
- Three Oaks Elementary
- Cypress Lake Middle School
- Gulf Middle School
- Trafalgar Middle School
- The Sanibel School
- Fort Myers High School
Five charter schools also earned the School of Excellence designation:
- The Island School
- Oasis Charter Elementary-North
- Oasis Charter Elementary-South
- Oasis Charter Middle
- Florida Southwestern Collegiate High School
"I am deeply grateful for the state's recognition of these schools,” said Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Savage. “It's a testament to the dedication and hard work of our entire educational community. Every school within our district shares in this honor, and it reflects the collective excellence of our principals, teachers, and students."
Florida's Board of Education says the Schools of Excellence program was created by the Florida Legislature in 2017.
Schools that qualify for the designation keep their designation for up to three years.
Then, they have to renew.
In 2022-23, 783 schools were designated as a School of Excellence. Of these schools, 658 maintained their designation from 2021-22, 37 renewed their designation, and 88 were newly designated in 2022-23 by meeting the requirements for the first time.
