Palm Beach County shines when it comes to education of all levels and preferences. The public school district boasts a high school graduation rate of about 94.1 percent, higher than the state average.
The county is home to some of the most highly rated private and parochial schools in the United States, offering everything from early childhood care to nationally recognized college preparatory high schools. Among the most notable of these schools are Pine Crest School and Saint Andrew’s School in Boca Raton, and The Weiss School in Palm Beach Gardens.
Local charter schools offer unique specialties and career education options. Notable charter school examples are the Renaissance Charter School at West Palm Beach, Palm Beach Maritime Academy, and Palm Beach School for Autism in Lantana.
Florida’s customized common placement test is the Postsecondary Education Readiness Test (PERT). The PERT determines accurate college-level course readiness based on the student’s skills and abilities. Educational institution data company Niche reports that the average SAT score in the county is 1140, above average, and the average ACT score is 24—both higher than the national average.
Postsecondary education in the county offers a wide array of private career and technical colleges and one of the fastest-growing universities in the United States, Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton. Palm Beach State College offers associate degrees, professional certificates, and apprenticeship programs through a variety of campuses and online programs.
Private universities in the area have garnered national reputations, including Boca Raton’s Lynn University and the private Christian school Palm Beach Atlantic University. There are also local campuses for other Florida universities, including the Nova Southeastern University Palm Beach campus.
Education Resources
Local/Regional
CareerSource Palm Beach County
CareerSource is the organization chartered by the state of Florida to develop, create, and retain a quality workforce system in Palm Beach County and offers its professional services to all employers and job seekers in the county. Employment services are available to all Palm Beach County businesses, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies.
Employer services include recruiting, interviewing, candidate screening, assessments, and training. CareerSource operates two Career Centers offering innovative employment-related services. For job seekers, CareerSource Career Centers provide job-search workshops; the use of computers, phones, and faxes to assist in a job search; training opportunities for those who qualify; and counseling, assessments, and job-placement services.
Children’s Services Council of Palm Beach County
Children’s Services Council is a special-purpose government created by Palm Beach County voters in 1986 and reauthorized in 2014. The council provides leadership, funding, services, and research to enhance local children’s academic, emotional, and physical wellbeing. The council focuses on prenatal health and early childhood development so more children are born healthy, are ready to learn when they enter school, and have access to quality after-school and summer programming.
Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin Counties
In 2022, the community foundation awarded more than $1.27 million dollars in scholarships to 127 students in Palm Beach and Martin counties. The foundation provides both need- and merit-based scholarships. Students who fill out a general scholarship application will automatically be considered for more than 120 scholarships.
Early Learning Coalition of Palm Beach County
The Early Learning Coalition works to increase the availability of quality early-learning programs to meet the needs of families, particularly those working toward economic self-sufficiency. Its Child Care Resource & Referral is a free community service for all families.
Education Foundation of Palm Beach County
The Education Foundation of Palm Beach County fulfills unmet funding gaps in the School District of Palm Beach County through programs and grants by engaging community leaders in supporting public education.
This website is a county-wide resource, launched by the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County, highlighting public, private, faith-based, and special needs schools in Palm Beach County.
School District of Palm Beach County
The School District of Palm Beach County is the fifth largest school system in Florida and the tenth largest in the country, with 182 schools, serving 165,600 PK-12 students in district-operated schools in 2023 representing 192 countries. It is consistently high-ranking based on Florida Department of Education criteria. With an annual budget of $5.3 billion, it offers 335 award-winning programs in several career academies and 37 dual-language programs. The graduation rate is 94.1 percent for District-operated schools.
Choice & Career Options – School District of Palm Beach County
Choice programs offer the opportunity for K-12 students to discover their talents and explore their interests while focusing on academics. Applications are accepted for assignments the following school year. In-house programs are available only to students residing within the school attendance zone. Selection is a lottery-based process. Students who want to earn industry certifications or focus on their career pathway through Career Academies and sequenced Career and Technical Education Programs connecting students’ high school and post-secondary educational experiences.
Virtual Showcase – School District of Palm Beach County
This virtual tour of the county’s public schools provides a wealth of information about each public school, unique choice and in-house programs, demographics, mapping, statistics, graduation rates, matriculation rates, and other useful data.
Statewide
Most colleges and universities in Florida have incorporated online degree programs. The Center for Online Education is a resource for investigative review of the current online education landscape to evaluate online college rankings.
Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Programs
Provides scholarships based on high school academic achievement and is Florida’s largest merit-based scholarship program. The Florida Bright Futures Scholarship Program has helped hundreds of thousands of Florida students attend a postsecondary institution. The program offers four levels of scholarship awards: Florida Academic Scholars, Florida Medallion Scholars, the Florida Gold Seal Vocational Scholars, and Gold Seal CAPE Scholars. Each award level has its own academic requirements, award amounts, and funding length.
The Florida Education Foundation is a nonprofit corporation dedicated to the success of Florida students by providing resources to teachers, celebrating outstanding educators, and creating learning opportunities for students in civics and debate, literacy, leadership, and science, technology, engineering, and math.
With a Florida Prepaid College Plan, you lock in today’s plan prices to save money to invest in your child’s future. A Florida 529 Savings Plan is a flexible, affordable, tax-free way to save for higher education at a college, technical or trade school, or university. The funds pay for tuition and fees, housing and meal plans, books, supplies, computers, and equipment.
The 529 Savings Plan can be used at private and public institutions throughout Florida, nationwide, and even in other countries. If the designated child doesn’t pursue higher education, the plan can balance can be withdrawn or it can be transferred to another family member.
FloridaShines is a comprehensive online education and career-planning resource that lets users research and compare all public colleges and universities in Florida, search for online courses, and more.
Homeschooling in Florida
Homeschooling is popular in Florida, with more than 154,000 homeschooled students —among the highest in the nation. Families interested in homeschooling must register with the Palm Beach County School District by filing a letter of intent. Parents must also maintain a portfolio logging each student’s educational activities and provide an annual evaluation, which may include the Florida Standards Assessment, among other required actions. Comprehensive information is available at the Palm Beach County School District website: palmbeachschools.org/homeeducation.
Resources and support for homeschoolers, including legal and practical information for both new and experienced homeschoolers, as well as county-specific listings of evaluators, tutors, support groups, field trips, and private schools for homeschoolers.
Florida Parent-Educators Association
This organization serves thousands of homeschooling families in Florida, delivering support and guidance, an annual statewide convention, local conferences, and information to both new and longtime home educators in accordance with Judeo-Christian principles.
Florida Virtual School (FVS) is a free, online public school offering more than 190 courses. FVS gives K-12 homeschooled students the ability to complete year-round, 24/7 courses when and where they want. Virtual students can chart an educational path around individual needs, activities, and travel. They also can participate in public school extracurricular, athletic, and dual enrollment programs.
The South Florida HEAT (Home Education Athletic Teams) is a Christian-based, FHSAA-accredited, nonprofit organization that offers eight sports teams for fall, spring, and summer for homeschooled students so they can apply life lessons from the competitive interscholastic athletic arena.
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