Summary:
Daytona Beach, Florida, is served by 16 schools within the Volusia County school district, a mid-tier district with a 3-star rating, encompassing elementary, middle, high, and alternative schools that serve a predominantly low-income population with an average free/reduced lunch rate of 68.5%.
The standout performer is Seabreeze High School, the only school in the city with a consistent 4-star rating, boasting a 98.6% graduation rate and the lowest poverty rate (34.47%) among traditional high schools. In contrast, Richard Milburn Academy and The Chiles Academy face severe challenges, with critically low test scores and chronic absenteeism rates above 93%. Among elementary schools, R. J. Longstreet Elementary School excels with 74% proficiency in 3rd-grade reading and math, while Turie T. Small Elementary School struggles with the highest poverty rate (90.95%) and lowest test scores. David C. Hinson Senior Middle School shows a unique pattern, achieving 100% proficiency in advanced Geometry but only average results in standard grade-level math.
A city-wide crisis is chronic absenteeism, averaging 41.5% across schools, well above the state average of 31.4%, and even better-performing schools like Beachside Elementary School (35.5%) exceed this benchmark. Per-student spending varies dramatically, from $8,718 at Richard Milburn Academy to $38,904 at Halifax Behavioral Services, yet high spending does not guarantee high performance, as Seabreeze High achieves top results with a modest $10,197 per student. The comparison between Mainland High School (95.8% graduation, 65.07% poverty) and Seabreeze High highlights how demographic factors strongly influence academic outcomes, with Mainland's test scores and absenteeism (44.1%) lagging behind Seabreeze's despite both being large traditional high schools.
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