Aurelia M. Cole Academy, Clermont FL

Original Research by School Decision on Aurelia M. Cole Academy

Aurelia M. Cole Academy is a prekindergarten through eighth grade public school in Clermont, Florida, sitting within the Lake County Schools district. With an enrollment that places it on the larger side for a PK-8 school, it draws a genuinely diverse student body: white, Hispanic, and Black students each make up substantial shares of enrollment, and multiracial students add further variety. Close to half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mix of economic circumstances across the community it serves.

On Florida's state assessments, the academic picture is uneven and worth a close look. In math, third grade and eighth grade students post proficiency rates that are reasonably strong, but the middle grades tell a different story: fifth, sixth, and seventh grade math proficiency drops into territory where fewer than half of students are meeting the standard. That dip is notable, and a parent whose child is heading into those years may want to ask the school what supports are in place for students who are not yet on grade level. ELA scores are more consistent across grades, clustering in the mid-to-upper half of the tested range, with seventh grade showing the strongest reading results. Science, tested at fifth and eighth grade, comes in just above or right at the halfway mark. Multi-year trend data was not available, so it is not possible to say whether these results represent improvement or a longer pattern.

No information on program offerings, staffing ratios, attendance, or discipline data was provided for this school, so those dimensions cannot be characterized here. Civil rights data was also not available.

The school sits in Clermont, publicly described as the largest city in Lake County and one of the faster-growing communities in Central Florida. It functions as a residential suburb within the broader Orlando metro, anchored by a historic downtown along Montrose Street that gives it some identity apart from the sprawl that characterizes much of the region. Healthcare, retail, and hospitality are the main employment sectors; Orlando Health South Lake Hospital and AdventHealth are among the larger employers. Most daily travel requires a car, though a trail system and some bus service exist. Publicly reported accounts note that rapid population growth has been a recurring tension for longtime residents who feel the city's small-town character is under pressure, with housing development accelerating in both the downtown corridor and outlying areas.

For families weighing housing near the school, the local market around Clermont shows home values that sit above the Florida state median and noticeably above the national median, with values having pulled back modestly over the past year. Rents have been roughly flat over the same period. Monthly carrying costs for a typical purchase, at current mortgage rates, would exceed rental costs by a meaningful margin, which is a real consideration for families deciding between buying and renting in this zip code.

At the district level, Lake County voters renewed a school safety property tax that funds safety officers, nurses, and mental health staff including counselors, social workers, and psychologists. A separate, additional millage measure is on the November 2026 ballot, aimed at teacher pay and recruitment; if passed, it would take effect in 2027. The district recently opened a new K-8 campus in the Minneola area, and boundary adjustments associated with that opening affected which school some families attend. Florida's statewide cell phone restriction during instructional time is in effect across all Lake County schools, a classroom environment change that some families will view as a positive shift.

Data on IEP and English learner populations was not available for this school, so students with those needs and their families would want to ask directly about available services and staffing.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 63% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 455%

School 55% · District 62% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 6 pts below state median · ▼ 6 pts below county median

Grade 544%

School 44% · District 57% · ▼ 13 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

Grade 649%

School 49% · District 57% · ▼ 8 pts below district

▼ 13 pts below state median · ▼ 7 pts below county median

Grade 738%

School 38% · District 43% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 11 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 870%

School 70% · District 58% · ▲ 12 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 13 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 355%

School 55% · District 56% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▼ 1 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 446%

School 46% · District 53% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 8 pts below state median · ▼ 5 pts below county median

Grade 547%

School 47% · District 54% · ▼ 7 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 8 pts below county median

Grade 655%

School 55% · District 57% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▼ 5 pts below state median · ▼ 3 pts below county median

Grade 761%

School 61% · District 55% · ▲ 6 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Grade 855%

School 55% · District 53% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Science

Grade 550%

School 50% · District 55% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 3 pts below state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 852%

School 52% · District 50% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 6 pts above state median · even with county median

This schoolLAKE, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income54%Higher-income56%2 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income35%Higher-income54%18 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income40%Higher-income56%15 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income44%Higher-income64%20 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income47%Higher-income77%30 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income34%Higher-income67%34 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income61%Higher-income77%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income40%Higher-income66%26 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income30%Higher-income62%33 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income39%Higher-income57%19 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income37%Higher-income39%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income69%Higher-income72%3 pp gap