WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The grades are in for school districts throughout Florida.
Florida on Monday released its school grades for the first year of the state's new progress monitoring system.
Palm Beach County schools dropped from an "A" to a "B," making Indian River County the highest-achieving school district in the viewing area.
Indian River County schools improved from a "B" to an "A."
"We couldn't kick off the holidays in a better way than to get the information that the school district is an 'A' for the first time since 2015," Indian River County Superintendent Dr. David Moore said.
Martin and St. Lucie counties maintained their "B" school grades, while Okeechobee County remained a "C" grade.
Grades are considered a baseline for information and will not lead to any repercussions or consequences.
"These school grades serve as a baseline for districts and provide a starting point for future achievement," Florida Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz Jr. said. "I look forward to seeing schools rise to the occasion as they continue to provide Florida students a first-rate education."
MORE: Florida school accountability reports
While there will be no negative consequences for schools or districts as a result of the 2022-23 informational baseline school grades, the state said schools may receive the benefits of an increased school grade by qualifying for school recognition or exiting turnaround status. A school or provider that receives the same or lower grade in 2022-23 compared to 2021-22 is also not subject to sanctions or penalties that would otherwise occur.
The grades were calculated using the new performance standards for the English Language Arts and Mathematics assessments (FAST). The state also said the percentage of schools that earned an "A," "B," "C," "D" or "F" are statistically equivalent to the 2021-22 grade results, as required by state law. For the 2023-24 school year, learning gains and consequences associated with school grades will return.
"I am proud of the work of our teachers, administrators, staff and students as they adjusted to the new assessments that were administered last year," St. Lucie County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Jon R. Prince said. "The transition included new ELA and math standards, as well as other changes such as computer-based test administration at all grade levels. Additionally, the new assessment has three progress monitoring periods throughout the year as opposed to one at the end of the year. With all the changes, SLPS saw their standing compared to other counties significantly improved compared to the last time the state changed assessments."
St. Lucie Schools also noted Manatee K8 moved from a "B" to an "A," Parkway Elementary, Bayshore Elementary and Creative Arts Academy all moved from a "C" to a "B," and Savanna Ridge Elementary moved from a "D" to a "C."
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In Martin County, district leaders noted while the district maintained its "B" grade in the state accountability system, it earned enough points to have been considered an "A" district under the previous iteration of the accountability model.
"The transition to the new assessment system provided an enhanced opportunity for our educators and administrators to conduct real-time data analysis and develop new ways to provide tailored support and educational experiences to our students," Superintendent Michael Maine said. "We found great value in FAST and our ability to carefully monitor students' growth and make adjustments throughout the school year. Our school grades reflect the fruit of this labor, as we've achieved remarkable progress in just a year's time. Our achievements will continue to fuel our commitment to achieving the top spot in Florida's accountability system."
Martin County also said it tied for ninth place out of Florida's 67 school districts in the accountability rankings, an increase of 18 spots over the 2021-22 school year. Half of all Martin County district-operated schools improved at least one letter grade, with Crystal Lake Elementary School and Felix A. Williams Elementary School each improving two letter grades from Cs to As. Pinewood Elementary School and Port Salerno Elementary School improved from "D" to "C." Hobe Sound Elementary School increased from a "C" to a "B."
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Leaders in the School District of Palm Beach County point out the district earned 66% of the possible district grade points, representing an increase of 3% from the 2021-22 school year. Additionally, the district retained its "high-performing" school district status that is awarded for school and district grades, class size compliance, and financial audit reports.
"The School District of Palm Beach County is proud of our students, teachers, staff, principals and parents for all their hard work and dedication to learning," Superintendent Mike Burke said. "Together, we will build upon our strengths, address areas for growth, and rise to the challenge with a renewed sense of purpose and unwavering dedication to student success."
In Indian River County, Moore said teachers and staff worked hard to use the new progress monitoring system to quickly react to students' needs.
"We use that information in real-time. We don't want to wait two or three weeks, not even a day. As we have information, we use it to drive and improve instruction," Moore said. "It's an informative assessment. What is it informing? It's informing the teacher's instruction, so making decisions as close to kids as possible, allow teachers to understand what needs to be retaught without having to prolong time to get that information to the child. We've tried to become a school system that thinks incredibly quick about what we need to do to shift or modify our instruction to make sure our kids get what they need each and every single day."
Moore said now the goal is to maintain the ranking.
"We're going to celebrate it and then we are going to use this information to drive our success forward," Moore said. "Because the goal wasn't just to be an 'A' school system but for every school in our county to be an 'A,' and now we are going to start working toward that."