Flagler

The Flagler County School District serves approximately 13,521 students across 11 public schools, including 6 elementary, 2 middle, 2 high, and 1 alternative/virtual school, and is ranked 14th out of 70 districts in Florida, earning a 4-star rating.

Several schools stand out for their performance. Old Kings Elementary School is the top-performing elementary school, with 3rd Grade Math and ELA proficiency rates of 89% and 86%, respectively, significantly above district and state averages. Indian Trails Middle School excels in advanced math, with Algebra 1 and Geometry EOC proficiency rates of 91% and 90%, far exceeding district norms. In contrast, Bunnell Elementary School faces the greatest challenges, with the lowest state ranking (36th percentile), highest free/reduced lunch rate (52.4%), and highest chronic absenteeism among elementary schools (36.6%), despite having the highest per-student spending ($13,749) and lowest student-teacher ratio (12.6). The iFlagler-Virtual Franchise is a unique outlier with the lowest chronic absenteeism (6.5%) but highly volatile test scores due to its small enrollment of 178 students.

Key metrics reveal that chronic absenteeism is a critical district-wide issue, averaging 31.6%, with Flagler-Palm Coast High School having the highest rate at 40.9%. The data shows an inverse relationship between spending and performance at the elementary level, as the three lowest-performing schools have the highest spending. The middle school math pipeline is a major strength, with both Indian Trails and Buddy Taylor Middle School achieving Algebra 1 and Geometry proficiency rates 30-40 points above the district average. High school performance is mixed, with Matanzas High School having a higher graduation rate, while Flagler-Palm Coast outperforms in Geometry and Biology. The "Bunnell Paradox" highlights that high poverty and absenteeism can overwhelm even the most resource-rich schools, making absenteeism the most important non-academic metric to address for improving outcomes.