By Peter Busch
06/13/2025 – Gulf Coast News ABC
The Acceleration Academy takes Lee County teens who couldn’t make it work at traditional schools.
“Somewhere along the line, they lost hope in themselves, and they stopped coming to school, and they just gave up because nobody was believing,” said Shelley Markgraf, the principal at Acceleration Academy.
The school started with five kids in 2023. Now it has 360.
“Last year, we graduated 25. This year it was 75. Our goal was 50, and we surpassed that. Our kids are working really, really hard. And we’re hoping that we have another 40 graduates by the end of the summer to earn their 2025 diploma as well,” said Markgraf….Read and watch more on Gulf Coast News ABC.