Florida DOE school grades are out for Escambia, Santa Rosa counties. See how they scored

Brittany Misencik, Pensacola News Journal

Updated December 12, 2023 at 7:54 AM·6 min read

Escambia County Public Schools maintained a district-wide grade of "B" for the 2022-2023 school year, while the state awarded the Santa Rosa County School District an "A" grade. A break-down of each school’s results can be found at the bottom of this article.

While Florida’s school district report cards are typically unveiled in July, this year the process was delayed due to a change in state standards and state assessments called FAST (Florida Assessment of Student Thinking.)

These tests were unlike anything students have seen in past years because the computerized questions are programmed to get progressively more challenging as the student correctly answers. This makes the test difficult for the state to score, because students sitting in the same testing room will be answering entirely different questions with varying degrees of difficulty.

This test was written specifically for Florida students, based on the roll-out of the Florida Department of Education’s new B.E.S.T. standards (Benchmarks for Excellent Student Thinking).

While districts were aware of this delay, they had no idea how the new system would affect their schools’ standings.

Because of the new testing system, the state was unable to take student “learning gains” into account, or individual student progress from past years that contributes toward that school’s grade.

As a result, schools with greater needs and lower test performance scores were judged more harshly if their students did not meet the state’s mark, regardless of how much they have grown.

Per the Florida Department of Education, the 2022-2023 school grades serve as an “informational baseline” to guide school districts.

“FLDOE has clarified that no negative consequences shall result from these grades; they are purely informational. However, schools may benefit from these grades by qualifying for School Recognition and/or exiting turnaround status,” Santa Rosa County Schools PIO Tonya Shepherd wrote in a statement.

Escambia County school grades

Escambia County District maintained a "B" grade for the 2022-2023 school year, despite the state changing assessments and grading processes.

In total, 52 Escambia County schools received grades rom the state. Eleven were awarded an A, 11 received a B, 21 earned a C and five received a D. Four schools received an F.

While two more Escambia County schools rose into the A category compared to last year, two more also fell into the F range.

“These latest school grades come as no surprise, as we have been aware for quite some time about the changes the state was making to the grading formula this year,” wrote ECPS Interim Superintendent Keith Leonard in a statement. “Because the number of components for each school’s grade calculation was decreased by four, changes, both positive and negative, were to be expected.”

“Hopefully, next year, the state will go back to something similar to the original formula, so we can get a more accurate snapshot of the progress being made by our schools,” continued Leonard. “Make no mistake, we still have challenges, but we are more determined than ever to address those long-standing issues and work hard to prepare our students for their best possible futures.”

Santa Rosa County school grades

Of the 29 Santa Rosa County schools that were eligible for state-issued grades, 12 earned an A, 11 received a B and six schools were given a C grade. None of the district’s schools received a D or F. Of all the schools tested, six schools improved a letter grade from the previous year.

The district was one of only 16 school districts statewide to receive an A.

Superintendent Dr. Karen Barber wrote in a statement, “The school board and I are extremely proud that Santa Rosa County District Schools is once again an A school district, based on the performance of our students during the 2022-2023 school year: one of only 16 school districts in Florida! I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to our students and their families, as well as the 3,500 educators who are dedicated to the success of our students. Six schools increased their rating by a full grade, with others making significant progress.”

“Santa Rosa County School District remains committed to excellence by providing quality education, increasing the learning opportunities for students, including an expansion of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) programs, Career Technical Education, advance placement, dual enrollment, and fine arts,” Barber continued. “The school district’s A rating is a clear indicator that our students are excelling on the pathway to a lifetime of success.”

Mike Thorpe, assistant superintendent for curriculum, instruction, and assessment, said the district is “currently analyzing the data from DOE and will be addressing areas of improvement.”

2022-2023 Escambia County State Report Cards

Escambia County schools that received “A” grade

Hellen Caro Elementary School
N.B. Cook Elementary School
Cordova Park Elementary School
Pine Meadow Elementary School
Pleasant Grove Elementary School
A. K. Suter Elementary School
Molino Park Elementary
Kingsfield Elementary School
Pensacola Beach Elementary School, Inc.
Brown Barge Middle School
West Florida High School

Escambia County schools that received “B” grade

Jim Allen Elementary School
Bratt Elementary School
Scenic Heights Elementary School
Beulah Elementary School
R. C. Lipscomb Elementary School
Blue Angels Elementary School
Byrneville Elementary School, Inc.
Random Middle School
Ernest Ward Middle School
J.M. Tate Senior High School
Escambia Virtual Academy Franchise

Escambia County schools that received “C” grade

Bellview Elementary School
Ferry Pass Elementary School
Myrtle Grove Elementary School
Navy Point Elementary School
Oakcrest Elementary School
Sherwood Elementary School
C. A. Weis Elementary School
West Pensacola Elementary School
Reinhardt Holm Elementary School
Longleaf Elementary School
L. D. McArthur Elementary School
Jim C. Bailey Middle School
Beulah Middle School
Beulah Academy of Science
Ferry Pass Middle School
J.H. Workman Middle School
Escambia High School
Pensacola High School
Pine Forest High School
Washington Senior High School
Northview High School

Escambia County schools that received “D” grade

Brentwood Elementary School
Ensley Elementary School
O.J. Semmes Elementary School
Bellview Middle School
Warrington Middle School

Escambia County schools that received “F” grade

Montclair Elementary School
Warrington Elementary School
Lincoln Park Elementary School
Global Learning Academy

2022-2023 Santa Rosa County State Report Cards

Santa Rosa County schools that received “A” grade

Chumuckla Elementary School
Gulf Breeze Elementary School
Holley-Navarre Intermediate
Oriole Beach Elementary School
S.S. Dixon Intermediate School
West Navarre Intermediate School
Gulf Breeze Middle School
Holley-Navarre Middle School
Thomas L. Sims Middle School
Gulf Breeze High School
Navarre High School
East Bay K-8 School

Santa Rosa County schools that received “B” grade

Berryhill Elementary School
Jay Elementary School
Pea Ridge Elementary School
Bennett C. Russell Elementary School
Avalon Middle School
Woodlawn Beach Middle School
Milton High School
Pace High School
Central School
Jay High School
Santa Rosa Virtual Franchise

Santa Rosa County schools that received “C” grade

Bagdad Elementary School
East Milton Elementary School
W. H. Rhodes Elementary School
Hobbs Middle School
Martin Luther King Middle School
Coastal Connections Academy

Santa Rosa County schools that received “D” grade

None

Santa Rosa County schools that received “F” grade