Polk State collegiate high schools to host information sessions
With application periods set to open in November for Polk State College’s collegiate high schools, information sessions will be held over the next several months for parents and prospective students interested in enrolling for the 2027-28 Academic Year.
Polk State’s three charter high schools allow students to simultaneously complete requirements for their high school diplomas while earning college credits at no cost to them. In most cases, students graduate with both their high school diplomas and Associate in Arts (AA) degrees.
To help parents and prospective students make informed decisions about which school is right for them, each of the three collegiate high schools will hold multiple information sessions. Polk State Chain of Lakes Collegiate High School (Chain of Lakes) will begin accepting applications on November 1. Polk State Lakeland Gateway to College Collegiate High School (Gateway)’s application period opens November 5. Polk State Lakeland Collegiate High School (Lakeland Collegiate) accepts applications from January 1 through February 27.
Housed on the Lakeland Campus, Gateway will be the first school to hold an information session on November 2. It will also hold an information session on February 9. Gateway sessions will start at 6:30 p.m. in Lakeland Technology Building (LTB) Room 1100.
Lakeland Collegiate has sessions scheduled for November 10, January 12, February 9, and March 9 – all at 6 p.m. in the LTB Auditorium.
Chain of Lakes, on the Winter Haven Campus, has information sessions scheduled for November 10 and February 11 in the Winter Haven Learning Resource Center (WLR) Room 102 and January 12 in the Winter Haven Fine Arts (WFA) Theatre. All three Chain of Lakes information sessions are scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
| School | Application Dates | 2026-27 Info Sessions | Location |
| Gateway | Open Nov. 5 | Nov. 2, Feb. 9 | LTB 1100 |
| Lakeland Collegiate | Jan. 1-Feb. 27 | Nov. 10, Jan. 12, Feb. 9, March 9 | LTB 1100 |
| Chain of Lakes | Nov. 1-March 7 | Nov. 10, Jan. 12, Feb. 11 | WLR 102 and WFA Theatre |
*Lakeland Collegiate sessions set for 6 p.m.; all other sessions scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
Chain of Lakes and Lakeland Collegiate serve 10th, 11th, and 12th-grade students. Gateway serves 11th and 12th-grade students with at least 11 high school credits who are no older than 21. All three schools earned A grades for the second straight year during the 2025-26 Academic Year.
Lakeland Collegiate and Chain of Lakes were each designated as Schools of Excellence by the Florida Department of Education. Visit polk.edu/charter-high-schools to learn more about Polk State’s charter high schools and to apply.