43 of 75 earned 'A' or 'B' marks
The Osceola County School District kept its 'B' district-wide grade, as released Monday by the Florida Department of Education.
As a component of that, 23 Osceola schools earned an 'A' rating, nearly doubling from 12 in last year's grades, and another 20 earned a 'B' among the 75 schools rated.
"The Osceola School District has earned its highest district grade to date," a release from the district said. "While the Osceola School District remained a ‘B,’ the district was only two percentage points away from achieving an ‘A.’ Over the past two years, the district’s overall grade has increased by seven percentage points."
As part of the equation that make up the grades, schools and districts are scored on 12 components: five achievement components and four learning gains components, middle school acceleration, graduation rate and college and career acceleration. Across those 12, an average of 64% of the available points is required to score an 'A'; Osceola received 62%. Neighboring districts in Polk and Lake counties also received 'B's, while Osceola, Seminole and Brevard county districts receive 'A's.
To see the full state school grade report go to: https://www.fldoe.org/accountability/accountability-reporting/school-grades/
But, according to the data, Osceola is trending up to join its neighbors.
“I am incredibly proud of our achievement gains as a district,” said Osceola school superintendent Dr. Mark Shanoff, who just completed his second school year at the helm. “We are well-positioned to make the leap to an 'A' rating. The hard work, talent, and professionalism of our teachers, staff, and leaders have made these gains possible. Our shared Day One culture has improved outcomes in all areas!”
Two success stories from 2024-25 were Poinciana and Gateway high schools, among the 23 'A' schools. Poinciana increased from a 'C' to an 'A' in one year, and Gateway has stepped from a 'C' two years ago to a 'B' in 2023-24 to an 'A'.
"I give all the credit to the staff, students and my leadership team," Gateway High School Principal James Long said. "This has been a long road, losing half our student population when Tohopekaliga opened, then going through COVID, and a major renovation definitely caused some challenges. But everyone here stayed focused on the work and what we needed to do to help our students succeed. I think moving back to a 'B' last year really gave us a lot of confidence and lit a fire that only an 'A' grade could quench."
Poinciana is an 'A' school for the first time ever.
"We are definitely proud of how the students, staff, and parents collaborated to accomplish this feat of earning the 'A' grade," PHS Principal Jeffrey Schwartz said. "The Poinciana High School Community is well-deserving of this recognition as all have been working hard to put academic achievement first and improve the culture and image of the school. This is a true testament to what our amazing students, staff, and parents are capable of achieving when we work together and put our minds to it."
Harmony, NeoCity Academy, New Dimensions, Osceola County School for the Arts, Professional and Technical High School (PATHS), and Tohopekaliga joined GHS and PHS as 'A' high schools; all other high schools scored a 'B'.
Also on the 'A' were: Canoe Creek K-8, Celebration K-8, Four Corners Charter and Upper School, Harmony Community School, Harmony Middle, Mater Academy at St. Cloud, Narcoossee Middle School, Neptune Middle School, Osceola Science Charter School, Osceola Virtual School secondary franchise (secondary), Renaissance Charter School at Tapestry, Sports Leadership Arts Management (SLAM), St. Cloud Middle School and, in its first year, Voyager K-8.
On the other end of the scale, Virtual Preparatory Academy of Florida was an 'F' school, and Florida Cyber Charter Academy, Knights Point K-8 (in its first year) were ranked as 'D's.
