District gears up for graduations

May 4, 2026 3 min read

With graduations approaching, just shy of 600 Lee County seniors have not yet qualified for a high school diploma.

As of Friday, 577 School District of Lee County seniors had not yet passed the required tests to graduate, school officials said.

With the state enacting House Bill 1105 last May and the State Department of Education subsequently agreeing to “sunset,” the option as of certification of completion option has been eliminated.

It was previously available for students who had earned credits but had not yet met all state assessments or grade point average requirements. This included students with disabilities, who were allowed to “walk” with their class, though they did not earn the diploma awarded to students who met all Florida graduation requirements.

District Spokesperson Rob Spicker said the number of students who have not passed the required tests to graduate decreases almost daily.

“Additionally, many of these students are missing other graduation requirements that would prevent them from walking the stage this month,” he said. “Schools have communicated with families about the importance of studying and interventions to help ensure that their students are able to meet this requirement and walk the stage.”

The 2025-2026 graduations will be held from Thursday, May 28, through Monday, June 1, at Alico Arena at Florida Gulf Coast University, 12181 FGCU Lake Pkwy., E and Suncoast Arena at Florida Southwestern State College, 13351 FSW Pkwy.

Each graduate will receive six guests’ tickets for the ceremony.

Graduations include:

Alico Arena at FGCU:

• Lehigh Senior High School, 7 p.m., Friday, May 29

• Cape Coral High School, 10 a.m. Saturday, May 30

• Fort Myers High School, 2:30 p.m. Saturday, May 30

• East Lee County High School, 7 p.m. Saturday, May 30

• Mariner High School, 10 a.m. Sunday, May 31

• Ida S. Baker High School, 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 31

• North Fort Myers High School, 7 p.m. Sunday, May 31

• Gateway High School, 7 p.m., Monday, June 1

Suncoast Arena at FSW:

• Bonita Springs High School, 7 p.m., Thursday, May 28

• South Fort Myers High School, 7 p.m., Friday, May 29

• Riverdale High School, 2:30 p.m., Saturday, May 30

• Dunbar High School, 7 p.m., Saturday, May 30

• Island Coast High School, 2:30 p.m., Sunday, May 31

• Cypress Lake High School, 7 p.m., Sunday, May 31

• Estero High School, 7 p.m., Monday, June 1

The Adult and Career Education graduation will take place at South Fort Myers High Auditorium, 14020 Plantation Road, at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 30. The Lee Virtual School graduation will also take place at South Fort Myers High School auditorium at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 30.

Graduation will also take place at the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center multipurpose room, 3291 Buckingham Road, at 3 p.m. Friday, May 29.