SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY

As a substantial elementary campus in LAKELAND, Florida, SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY enrolls 1,200 students from grades pre-K through 6, operated by POLK. Enrollment runs roughly 99% larger than the state mean of about 604.

POLK runs 163 schools in total, collectively educating 116,552 students. SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY is one of those campuses.

For racial and ethnic makeup, SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY logs that White students make up the majority at 60%. The remainder reads as 21% Hispanic, 9% Black, 6% Asian, 5% multiracial.

Looking at school resources, The school reports having 69 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 17.4:1. That tracks the state average closely. Roughly 56% of students at SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. Set against Polk County (around 65%), the school's rate is noticeably below typical.

With demographic context factored in, SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 52.9%; this one delivers 80.5%, a residual of +27.6 points.

In the broader community, ACS estimates for Polk County put median household income runs about $65,978, about 24% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 11%. SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY is one of 172 public schools in Polk County (combined enrollment of about 117,004 students).

OSCAR J. POPE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.6 miles from this campus. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY at 1st of 4; the average score across the group is 34.4%.

SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY operates from a city-core location. SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY is a charter school, which puts it inside the public-school system but outside the standard district-managed model.

Trend over the last 7 years. SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY's enrollment has held roughly steady since 2018, when it stood at 1,195 (now 1,200). The White share of enrollment declined from 71% to 60% over that span. Class-load math has grew: from 15.1:1 in 2018 to 17.4:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, the feed for SOUTH MCKEEL ACADEMY typically covers fundraisers, lost-and-found posts, and report-card season. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.