LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY

Located at 400 FLORIDA AVE N, in LAKELAND, Florida, LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY is a middle-of-the-pack junior high that teaches 704 students (grades 6 through 8), overseen by POLK.

POLK comprises 163 schools with combined enrollment of 116,552 students; LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY is among them.

On demographics, LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY lists that the largest single group is White at 45%, but no single group is in the majority. Other groups include 23% Hispanic, 22% Black, 7% Asian, 4% multiracial. The wider county runs roughly 56% White, putting the school's mix visibly less White than the area baseline.

Looking at school resources, LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY records 34 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 20.7:1. The state averages around 19.6:1, so this campus is higher than the state norm typical. Around 44% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. That share is lower than Polk County's rate of about 65%.

After controlling for student poverty, LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 59.3%, the actual is 65.9%, a residual of +6.7 points.

In the surrounding community, Polk County reports that median household earnings sit near $65,978, about 24% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and the poverty rate sits near 11%. Across Polk County's 172 public schools (combined enrollment of about 117,004 students), LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: MCKEEL ACADEMY CENTRAL, around 0.1 miles off. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Among the 6 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY ranks 4th on composite proficiency, behind the local average of 69.4%.

The school occupies a high-density site.

Looking at the recent track record. LAWTON CHILES MIDDLE ACADEMY's enrollment has increased 8% since 2018, when it stood at 651 (now 704). Black enrollment moved from 17% to 22% across the same window. Class-load math has grew: from 17.6:1 in 2018 to 20.7:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.