Osceola Middle School

Osceola Middle School in Okeechobee, FL, is a public school serving 689 students in grades 6-8 within the Okeechobee district, a high-poverty area where over 77% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch.

The school shows a striking contrast in performance. On one hand, it excels in advanced coursework: 82% of students taking Algebra 1 are proficient, outperforming both the district (45%) and state (63%) averages, and even surpassing nearby Yearling Middle School (78%). Additionally, 7th-grade math proficiency has consistently exceeded the state average for four years, reaching 65% in 2025-2026 compared to the state's 53%. However, the school struggles significantly with foundational skills, as only 38% of 8th graders are proficient in grade-level math. The biggest challenge is a severe chronic absenteeism crisis: 51% of students are chronically absent, far above the state average of 31.4% and higher than Yearling's 49%. This rate has been persistently high, peaking at 65.4% in 2021-2022, and is the primary factor holding the school back from overall improvement.

Compared to Yearling, Osceola has a slightly lower poverty rate (77.4% vs. 81.8%) but spends less per student ($11,960 vs. $12,576) and has a higher student-to-teacher ratio (16.9:1 vs. 14.3:1). While both schools are low-performing in a district ranked near the bottom in Florida, Osceola's unique strength in advanced math and 7th-grade instruction suggests significant potential. The school's path to better outcomes hinges on dramatically improving student attendance and engagement, which would allow its academic strengths to benefit more of its students.