School grades are a mixed result

After passing a revised rule to increase the thresholds for the state’s grading scale on Thursday, the Florida Board of Education revealed its district and school grades for the 2023-24 school year.

The state’s annual school grading system provides a comprehensive assessment of student performance, growth and overall school effectiveness.

The improved grading scale raised the bar this year for district grade and for middle, high and combination schools, basing grades on the percentage of points earned.

Assessment score expectations were also raised with the addition of the third grade English Language Arts Achievement cell this year.

With the availability of two years of progress monitoring data, the FDOE was also able to reintroduce annual learning gains components for English Language Arts and Mathematics.

Charlotte, Sarasota and DeSoto counties maintained their district scores, with no schools rating a D or F for 2024.

SARASOTA COUNTYDespite the grading criteria increase, Sarasota County Schools continued to maintain its district “A” grade for the 21st consecutive year, ranking fifth in the state again.

The district received a 49 point raise on the overall district accountability system, with its third-grade English Language Arts achievement — a new assessment cell for 2024 — placing second among the 67 Florida school districts.

All district-managed Venice schools maintained their “A” ratings, while Englewood Elementary was the only school in the district to fall a letter grade from an “A” to a “B.”

Brentwood Elementary, Brookside Middle, Woodland Middle and Heron Creek Middle attained an “A” rating this year. Now 95% of SCS schools, excluding charter schools, are A- or B-rated, a 13% increase from 2023.

Superintendent Terry Connor shared his pride for the students, teachers, staff and families’ hard work the past school year to raise student achievement.

“Achieving an ‘A’ grade as a district and improving school grades across the board is a true reflection of the hard work and dedication of our entire school community,” Connor said. “This achievement inspires us to continue striving for even greater success in the future.”

School Board Chair Karen Rose said the ratings, while outstanding, underscore the true strength of Sarasota’s educational programs and initiatives.

“Our district’s commitment to fostering a culture of high expectations and continuous improvement is evident and ensures the needs of our students, teachers, and staff members alike are met,” Rose said.

CHARLOTTE COUNTYWhile remaining a B-rated district, Charlotte County School District rose up the ranks by nine spots to the top 25 school districts in the state. Previously, Charlotte County sat at 33rd place.

The district also saw three of its district-managed schools attain an “A” rating, including Port Charlotte Middle, L.A. Ainger Middle and West Elementary, with now a total of seven “B” schools and eight “C” schools.

CCSD did see a drop in letter grades for five schools.

East Elementary, Neil Armstrong Elementary, Myakka River Elementary, Kingsway Elementary and Port Charlotte High all dropped from a B to C.

Despite the loss, CCSD saw 73% of its 2024 graduating class earn a College and Career Acceleration point, outperforming the state average by 7%.

Another notable achievement mark was the 61% of CCSD students who earned a level 3 or higher on the seventh grade FAST Mathematics assessment, outperforming the state average by 14%.

Superintendent Mark Vianello applauded staff and students for raising school grades to an “A” rating, stating initiatives are already underway to continue improving student achievement across the district.

“Improving our state ranking, while increasing the number of “A” schools is a remarkable accomplishment during a year of transition,” Vianello said. “As we advance our strategic plan and introduce a new instructional framework, adding instructional coaches and focusing on building academic rigor will be fundamental to driving our district toward even greater achievements.”

SCHOOL DISTRICT OF DESOTO COUNTYWhile the School District of DeSoto County remained at a “C” rating for 2024, it did see an improvement in the letter grades of two schools.

West Elementary rose from a “D” to a “C,” while Nocatee Elementary reached a “B” rating for the first time since 2011, according to the FDOE report.

Nocatee Elementary’s improvement also got them removed from the list of most persistently low-performing schools in the state, an achievement Superintendent Bobby Bennett said is one of big pride.

Currently, SDDC has no D- or F-rated schools, with four C- and one B-rated schools.

“We’re really proud of the faculty and staff, principals, administrators team that did it, all of them at Nocatee,” Bennett said. “And really throughout the district, you know, we’ve looked all over and elementaries have improved in terms of where they were at in the state of Florida.”

While point totals were not as high as expected, Bennett said he was confident the district’s overall grade could see a real change in the coming years.

“Our point totals still not where we want to be,” Bennett said. “We think we’re probably two years away from moving into being a ‘B’ district.”