Palm Beach - Florida Schools Improved Their School Grade during the 2015-2016 School Year

July 8, 2016

DOE Press Office
850-245-0413
DOEPressOffice@fldoe.org

Florida Schools Improved Their School Grade during the 2015-2016 School Year
~ Number of “F” schools cut in half since last year ~

Tallahassee, Fla., July 8, 2016 – Today, the Florida Department of Education (FDOE) released the 2015-2016 district and school grades, and the number of schools earning an “F” dropped by approximately 50 percent from 204 in 2014-2015 to 103 in 2015-2016. Additionally, 58 percent of schools that earned a “D” or “F” in 2014-2015 improved by at least one letter grade in 2015-2016. Overall, a total of 1,137 schools maintained an “A” grade or increased their grade in 2015-2016.

"Even as we have continued to raise the bar for student performance and implemented more rigorous standards by which schools are graded, Florida’s educators and students have continued to excel," said Commissioner of Education Pam Stewart. "It is clear that our focus on Florida’s most struggling students is paying off, especially in our ‘D’ and ‘F’ schools, 58 percent of which increased their grade in 2016. The great benefit of our state’s accountability system is that it constantly shines a light on areas that need improvement. I applaud the schools which improved, and I encourage all schools to pursue excellence persistently."

Highlights from the Palm Beach area include:

Indian River

Five schools are graded “A” in 2016 and four schools graded “B”.
In 2016, two schools improved their grade from a “D” to a “C”.
In 2016, one school improved its grade from an “F” to a “C”.

Martin

Six schools are graded “A” in 2016 and six schools graded “B”.
In 2016, 60% of schools are graded “A” or “B”.
There are no schools graded “D” or “F” in the district.

Okeechobee

Two schools are graded “B” in 2016.
In 2016, three schools improved their grade from a “D” to a “C”.
There are no “F” schools in the district.

Palm Beach

There are 62 schools graded “A” in 2016 and 48 schools graded “B”.
In 2016, 56% of schools are graded “A” or “B”.
In 2016, 18 schools improved their grade from a “D” to a “C” or higher (one from a “D” to a “B” and 17 from a “D” to a “C”).
In 2016, there are 12 fewer schools graded “F” than in 2015, dropping from 18 “F” grades in 2015 to six “F” grades in 2016.
In 2016, five schools improved their grade from an “F” to a “C”.

St. Lucie

Three schools are graded “A” in 2016 and 10 schools graded “B”.
In 2016, two schools improved their grade from a “D” to a “C”.

A.D. Henderson University Schools

In 2016, both schools were graded an “A”, maintaining their “A” grades from 2015.

On January 6, 2016, the State Board of Education adopted revisions to the school grades rule (6A-1.09981, F.A.C.), which establishes the grading formula, to reflect major changes made to Florida Statute during the 2014 Legislative Session. Together, these changes simplified the school and district grading process and ensure that schools receive credit when students make meaningful gains toward grade level performance and beyond. The simplified grading formula focuses on annual student results important for students in elementary, middle and high schools, and removes provisions such as the safety net, which are now prohibited by law.

For more information about school grades, visit http://schoolgrades.fldoe.org/.

Palm Beach - Florida Schools Improved Their School Grade during the 2015-2016 School Year

Subscribe to the Florida Department of Education