About Us

The Young Women’s Academy for Academic and Civic Development at J.R.E. Lee Opportunity School is located in South Miami, Florida. Originally built as a community elementary school, the facility was converted to an alternative middle school in the 1970s. This year we transitioned to the Young Women’s Academy for Academic and Civic Development, a single gender, grades 6–12 alternative school with a fashion marketing academy focus. Historically, this public school accommodates students from the southern half of Miami-Dade County who are assigned to the alternative education program for various infractions of the Code of Student Conduct. While most students have been assigned by the District, approximately 10 percent attend on a voluntary basis. Many of the J.R.E. Lee parents/caregivers do not have a vested interest in this school because they do not live here nor do they interact with the surrounding community. Few, if any, of our parents have encountered positive experiences in the school arena as their children were growing up. The staff in this school is greatly concerned about the need for parental education and involvement; one of the main goals of this school is to empower parents/caregivers with the skills needed to redirect student behavior and to become their child’s partner in academic achievement.

All of the students at J.R.E. Lee Opportunity School are considered to be at–risk, and 90 percent receive free or reduced lunch. There is an overwhelming concern regarding the low academic level of our students; of the current population, only 27 percent scored at the state proficiency level in reading and seven percent in mathematics. Seventy–five percent of the students have been retained at least once since entering school.

The Young Women’s Academy at J.R.E. Lee is a part of the District’s Secondary School Reform (SSR) initiative and Alternative Education’s Highways to Success. One of our many goals is to prepare this special population for entry into the adult world of gainful employment. In today’s competitive job market, it has become essential to correlate educational achievement with actual job skills. As our students are faced with the challenge of working and competing in a global society, it is imperative that their reading, mathematics, writing, science, technology, social, and workplace skills are sufficient for the world of work.