Enrollment
99
Florida · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Fort Myers, FL
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center
Federal NCES profile for Royal Palm Exceptional School Center, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 65/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 120108002338
👥 S:T ratio 84
🌟 Gifted program 30
🎓 Counselors 80
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center earns 65/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 99% of Florida schools.
- #3 of 29
- schools in Fort Myers · Resource Index
- 65
- Resource Index · Higher
- 4:1
- small classes for Florida
- 55.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center has class sizes smaller than 99% of Florida schools. Computed live against every Florida school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Royal Palm Exceptional School Center ranks #3 of 29 schools in Fort Myers, FL.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
25.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
4:1
vs 17.8:1 Florida avg
-78% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
55.7%
vs 52.0% Florida avg
+7% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Royal Palm Exceptional School Center compares with Florida and U.S. medians
What stands out at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center is a higher-need, small combined-grade school in Fort Myers, Florida, enrolling 99 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 4:1, Royal Palm Exceptional School Center is leaner than roughly 99% of Florida schools and 78% under the state's 17.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Its free-meal eligibility rate of 55.7% lands close to the Florida typical range, neither a high- nor low-need campus by this measure.
Enrollment of 99 puts it in the smaller third of Florida schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index outscores 96% of the 3,996 Florida schools with a score on record, a top-tier result on this measure.
Among 67 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Florida schools statewide, it ranks #7, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is led by African American (36%) and White (30%) (diversity index 70/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 99 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Its district draws 17.0% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Discipline events run high: 122 in- and out-of-school suspensions were reported for 99 students in the 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection.
Lee also operates Gateway Charter Elementary School (3,192 students) and Lehigh Senior High School (2,550 students) alongside Royal Palm Exceptional School Center.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Royal Palm Exceptional School Center compares
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center on the metrics families compare, against Florida and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Florida | Florida avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 4:1 | ▼ 78% | 17.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 55.7% | ▲ 7% | 52.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 99 | top 89% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
4:1
Leaner classes than 99% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
99
Bigger than 10% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
55.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 7% above the Florida average of 52.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
4:1
students per teacher
- 78% below state mean
Top 1% in Florida - lower ratio than 99% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Funding equity
$10,788
per pupil, district-wide
- below Florida avg of $11,167
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 99 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
50
in-school suspensions + 72 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 50.5 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 123.2 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
African American 36.4%
White 30.3%
Hispanic or Latino 27.3%
Two or More 6.1%
Largest group: African American at 36.4% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 69.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 69.7, Royal Palm Exceptional School Center is more mixed than the Florida school average of 52.3.
Programs
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Lee, which includes Royal Palm Exceptional School Center.
$10,788
Per student
-3%
vs Florida
Avg $11,167
-35%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 58.0%
State 25.0%
Federal 17.0%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Royal Palm Exceptional School Center Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gateway Charter Elementary School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lehigh Senior High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Gateway High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Ida S. Baker High School | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| East Lee County High School | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Royal Palm Exceptional School Center's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 3,192
- Students per teacher
- 51.5:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 2,550
- Students per teacher
- 23.8:1
- Resource Index
- 23/100
- Enrollment
- 2,343
- Students per teacher
- 31.2:1
- Resource Index
- 28/100
- Enrollment
- 2,191
- Students per teacher
- 27.4:1
- Resource Index
- 24/100
- Enrollment
- 2,129
- Students per teacher
- 26.3:1
- Resource Index
- 17/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Florida, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~99 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~4:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Royal Palm Exceptional School Center's federal record.
- Compare Royal Palm Exceptional School Center against another school. Compare schools
- Lee's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Royal Palm Exceptional School Center
How many students attend Royal Palm Exceptional School Center?
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center has 99 students enrolled. It is a special-education school in Fort Myers, FL.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center?
The student-teacher ratio at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center is 4:1, which is 78% lower than the Florida average of 17.8:1 and 75% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center?
55.7% of students at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Florida average of 52.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Royal Palm Exceptional School Center?
The largest demographic group at Royal Palm Exceptional School Center is African American at 36.4% of enrollment, in Fort Myers, FL. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 69.7/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Royal Palm Exceptional School Center?
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center has a Resource Investment Index of 65/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 3 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Royal Palm Exceptional School Center rank among schools in Fort Myers?
By Resource Investment Index, Royal Palm Exceptional School Center ranks #3 of 29 schools in Fort Myers, FL. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Fort Myers on the city page.
Is Royal Palm Exceptional School Center a good school?
Royal Palm Exceptional School Center earns 65/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 99% of Florida schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Lee?
Besides Royal Palm Exceptional School Center, Lee also operates Gateway Charter Elementary School (3,192 students), Lehigh Senior High School (2,550 students), and Gateway High School (2,343 students). See the Lee district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.