POLK

District-Level NCES Analysis

POLK operates 160 public schools serving 109,558 students, placing it among the larger districts in Florida. The school portfolio breaks down into 103 other, 23 middle, 22 high, 12 elementary schools, giving families a clear picture of grade-band coverage before they move, rent, or enrol. Aggregated across those campuses, enrollment totals 115,404 pupils using the NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2022-23 release, and the district is geographically located in Polk County County.

Per-pupil expenditure runs $12,580 according to the NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey, which aggregates every revenue and spending line reported under federal accounting standards. The funding mix is 35.2% local, 43.8% state, and 21.0% federal — a breakdown that matters because districts leaning heavily on local revenue are more exposed to property-tax swings, while higher federal shares typically track Title I concentration. Average teacher compensation clocks in at $49,240 per NCES F-33, a signal of the district's ability to recruit and retain staff against neighbouring districts. The district's equity score — 49/100, ranked #35 of 67 in Florida against a state average of 51 — measures how evenly funding reaches schools within its boundaries.

Academic infrastructure includes 19 of 160 schools offering Advanced Placement (223 AP courses district-wide), a 531.3:1 student-counselor ratio, above the 250:1 ASCA recommendation, and 43.7% chronic absenteeism from the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection. Demographically, the student body averages 40.8% Hispanic or Latino, 32.5% White, 22.0% African American across the district's schools.