Pinellas, Hillsborough school districts see improvement in latest school ratings

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — School grades are out for the 2023-2024 school year, and it was good news for both Pinellas and Hillsborough counties, as Pinellas earned its first district-wide A grade.

In this past school year’s grades, Hillsborough County had a steep decrease in the number of D and F rated schools after having the most across the state last year.

In a statement, Superintendent Van Ayres wrote, “We are excited with our momentum and are ready for the new year to start so we can continue our work.”

Pinellas County had no D or F rated schools for the first time.

Superintendent Kevin Hendrick wrote in a statement, “The excellence of our amazing students continues to elevate because of the work in our classrooms, schools, and district offices.”

And while Pasco County remained at a B grade, it had no F rated schools, but it did have more than a dozen schools drop grades.

In Hernando County, no district schools were graded below a C, and several moved up a letter.

In a statement, the assistant superintendent congratulated the district and wrote, “School teams will be diving deep into their results to find opportunities to improve.”

Across the Tampa Bay Area, Sarasota and Pinellas counties got A grades, Hillsborough, Hernando, Manatee, and Pasco counties got a B grade and Citrus, Hardee, Highlands and Polk counties got a C grade.

This comes after the state changed its testing model two years ago and established a baseline last year. The state now tests students three times a year, instead of once a year, which the Florida Department of Education attributed to the better scores.

Schools that get an A grade, or show and sustain improvement are eligible for school recognition. That means bonuses for each full time student that they can use to pay teachers and staff or buy equipment.

Across the state, 64 percent of all schools earned an A or B, compared to 57 percent last year. Less than 4 percent of all schools received a D or F grade.

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