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Bay High School

Q: Is Bay High School a good school?

Bay High School ranks 490 th of 838 Florida high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

Public Grades 9-12

490^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 838 Florida High Schools

Better than 42% of Florida high schools

Summary

Bay High School in Panama City, FL, is a traditional public high school serving 1,289 students in grades 9-12 within the Bay district, where 44.2% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. The school presents a mixed academic picture: it performs near the district average in English Language Arts (60% proficiency) and U.S. History (72% proficiency), but struggles significantly in math and science, with only 32% proficiency in Algebra 1 and 31% in Geometry—well below the district averages of 58% and 53%, respectively. This contrast is especially stark when compared to nearby A. Crawford Mosley High School, which achieves higher math scores with less funding per student, or Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12, a high-performing charter just a mile away with 67% Algebra 1 proficiency.

The school's most critical issue is a chronic absenteeism rate of 45.1% for the 2023-2024 school year, nearly 10 percentage points above the district average and 14 points above the state average. This is significantly worse than A. Crawford Mosley High School (32.6%) and Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12 (27.0%), though not as extreme as Rosenwald High School (78.9%). This high absenteeism likely drives the poor math and science scores, as students miss foundational lessons in sequential subjects. Despite this, the school has a strong graduation rate of 95.7% for 2024-2025, a remarkable recovery from 83.6% just three years prior, suggesting a focus on credit recovery over mastery of core content.

Bay High spends $9,050 per student, below the district average for peer schools, yet outperforms Rutherford High School in several metrics despite Rutherford spending $10,918 per student. The school's socioeconomic profile has improved, with free/reduced lunch eligibility dropping from 53.2% to 44.2% in two years, but this hasn't yet translated into better test scores. To improve, Bay High must aggressively tackle its absenteeism problem and analyze its math and science instruction, which lags far behind district peers like A. Crawford Mosley High School and Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12.

1,289

Students ?

19.8

Student/teacher ratio ?

$9,050

Per pupil spending ?

44.2%

Free/discounted lunch ?

1200 Harrison Ave
Panama City, FL 32401

(850) 767-4600

District: Bay

Feeder schools for Bay High School:

Elementary:	Cedar Grove Elementary School
	Lucille Moore Elementary School
	Merriam Cherry Street Elementary
	Northside Elementary School
Middle:	Jinks Middle School

Racial breakdown:

White:

43.6%

African American:

26.6%

Hispanic:

18.9%

See top rated Florida high schools

Compare Bay High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▼ Ranking trend: Declining — 50th percentile in 2016 → 42nd in 2026

Strengths

✓96% graduate in 4 years — above the Florida average (92%)

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Florida average (53% vs 64% meeting standards)

!High chronic absenteeism (45% vs 31% Florida)

!Ranking has slipped — down 8 percentile points since 2016

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school53%

District avg63%

Florida avg64%

490^th of 838

Florida public high schools ?

Bottom 42%▼ down 9 pts since 2016

From top 50% (2016) to bottom 42% (2026)

See the entire ranking list of Florida High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

6^th of 9High Schools in the Bay

28^th of 70Bay among Florida districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Florida percentile	Rating
2026	38.6	490 of 838	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	40.5	459 of 844	45.6%	★★☆☆☆
2024	46.0	352 of 807	56.4%	★★★☆☆
2023	41.9	372 of 792	53.0%	★★★☆☆
2022	27.5	524 of 774	32.3%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.2	468 of 746	37.3%	★★☆☆☆
2019	47.9	304 of 734	58.6%	★★★☆☆
2018	40.9	368 of 716	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2017	35.8	418 of 714	41.5%	★★☆☆☆
2016	43.3	346 of 693	50.1%	★★★☆☆
2014	47.0	350 of 687	49.1%	★★☆☆☆
2013	47.0	311 of 648	52.0%	★★★☆☆
2012	58.9	168 of 606	72.3%	★★★★☆
2011	65.5	218 of 622	65.0%	★★★☆☆
2010	64.8	221 of 620	64.4%	★★★☆☆
2009	66.0	190 of 587	67.6%	★★★☆☆
2008	64.8	199 of 577	65.5%	★★★☆☆
2007	69.3	162 of 563	71.2%	★★★★☆
2006	71.9	117 of 477	75.5%	★★★★☆
2005	62.6	186 of 487	61.8%	★★★☆☆
2004	52.0	256 of 484	47.1%	★★☆☆☆

By subject vs Florida (2025-2026) ?

US History72%~ state avg

Biology 168%-6 vs state

English Language Arts58%~ state avg

Algebra 132%-31 vs state

Geometry31%-25 vs state

★

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Schools Near Bay High School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				FAST English Language Arts (2026)					FAST Math (2026)			Statewide Science Science (2026)	EOC Algebra 1 (2026)	EOC Geometry (2026)	EOC Biology 1 (2026)	EOC US History (2026)	EOC Civics (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	FAST English Language Arts 6th Grade	FAST English Language Arts 7th Grade	FAST English Language Arts 8th Grade	FAST English Language Arts 9th Grade	FAST English Language Arts 10th Grade	FAST Math 6th Grade	FAST Math 7th Grade	FAST Math 8th Grade	Statewide Science Science 8th Grade	EOC Algebra 1 End of Course	EOC Geometry End of Course	EOC Biology 1 End of Course	EOC US History End of Course	EOC Civics End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures Total	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Sub-total from State/Local Funds
Bay High School	Public	9-12	1200 Harrison Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	No	No	No	Yes	(850) 767-4600	1,289	65	19.8	44.2%	562 (43.6%)	343 (26.6%)	244 (18.9%)	24 (1.9%)	7 (0.5%)	3 (0.2%)	106 (8.2%)	38.6	490^th of 838 public high schools	41.5%		40.5	459^th of 844 public high schools	45.6%	31				57.0	60.0					32.0	31.0	68.0	72.0		$9,050	$813	$8,237
Chautauqua Charter School	Public, Charter	9-12	1118 Magnolia Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	Yes	No	No	No	(850) 785-5056	52	5	10.4	32.7%	33 (63.5%)	8 (15.4%)	9 (17.3%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (3.8%)								(n/a)
Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12	Public, Charter	6-12	1104 Balboa Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	Yes	No	No	Yes	(850) 215-0770	203	11	18.4	54.7%	86 (42.4%)	39 (19.2%)	60 (29.6%)	2 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	16 (7.9%)	68.3	152^nd of 838 public high schools	81.9%		48.3	355^th of 844 public high schools	57.9%	203	81.0	75.0	66.0	67.0	100.0	68.0	76.0	54.0	54.0	67.0	81.0	75.0		88.0	$11,366	$1,813	$9,554
Bay Virtual Instruction Program (District Provided)	Public, Virtual	6-12	1311 Balboa Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	No	No	Yes	No	(850) 767-4377	14	0		42.9%	13 (92.9%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (7.1%)								(n/a)															$5,417	$36	$5,381
Rosenwald High School	Public	6-12	924 Bay Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	No	No	No	Yes	(850) 767-4580	351	27	13.0	62.1%	194 (55.3%)	90 (25.6%)	46 (13.1%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.6%)	1 (0.3%)	18 (5.1%)	1.6	808^th of 838 public high schools	3.6%		2	808^th of 844 public high schools	4.3%		20.0	6.0	13.0	12.0	14.0	10.0	11.0	7.0	11.0	0.0	5.0	16.0	10.0	17.0	$18,158	$1,852	$16,307
Amikids Maritime Academy	Public, Charter	9-12	200 E Beach Dr	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(850) 919-2213	26	5	5.2	23.1%	16 (61.5%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (19.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (19.2%)	55.1	275^th of 838 public high schools	67.2%					(n/a)				68.0	42.0					57.0			84.0		$30,671	$00	$30,671
Central High School	Public, Charter	9-12	1250 W 17th St	Panama City	32405	Bay County	Bay	Yes	No	No	Yes	(850) 215-0770	99	4	24.7	40.4%	47 (47.5%)	18 (18.2%)	22 (22.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	12 (12.1%)	4.2	749^th of 838 public high schools	10.6%		6.5	718^th of 844 public high schools	14.9%	31					15.0					10.0	4.0	39.0	30.0		$13,762	$1,552	$12,211
New Horizons Learning Center	Public	6-12	3200 Minnesota Ave	Panama City	32405	Bay County	Bay	No	No	No	Yes	(850) 767-1110	93	17	5.4	79.6%	50 (53.8%)	32 (34.4%)	6 (6.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	5 (5.4%)								(n/a)															$36,492	$4,648	$31,845
Rutherford High School	Public	6-12	1000 School Ave	Panama City	32401	Bay County	Bay	No	No	No	Yes	(850) 767-4500	1,394	80	17.4	57.7%	467 (33.5%)	447 (32.1%)	304 (21.8%)	24 (1.7%)	3 (0.2%)	7 (0.5%)	142 (10.2%)	28	609^th of 838 public high schools	27.3%		23	648^th of 844 public high schools	23.2%	39	35.0	46.0	34.0	43.0	42.0	32.0	20.0	41.0	23.0	24.0	35.0	58.0	77.0	67.0	$10,918	$1,091	$9,828
The Collegiate School At Fsu Pc	Public, Charter	9-12	2430 St Andrews Blvd	Panama City	32405	Bay County	Fsu Bay	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(850) 770-2900	178	11	16.9	12.4%	121 (68.0%)	19 (10.7%)	21 (11.8%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	1 (0.6%)	14 (7.9%)	89.4	17^th of 838 public high schools	98.0%		89.6	19^th of 844 public high schools	97.7%	2				96.0	86.0					95.0	97.0	92.0	95.0

Frequently Asked Questions about Bay High School

What is the racial makeup of Bay High School?

Students at Bay High School are 44% White, 27% African American, 19% Hispanic, 8% Two or more races, 2% Asian.

Is Bay High School a good school?

Bay High School ranks 490^th of 838 Florida high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 2 stars out of 5.

What schools feed into Bay High School?

Bay High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Cedar Grove Elementary School
Elementary : Lucille Moore Elementary School
Elementary : Merriam Cherry Street Elementary
Elementary : Northside Elementary School
Middle : Jinks Middle School

How many students attend Bay High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,289 students attended Bay High School.

What district is Bay High School in?

Bay

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Latest Florida data All new data »

2025–26 EOC, FAST & Statewide Science test scoresJun 26, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataMar 20, 2026

2024–25 graduation ratesJan 13, 2026

2024–25 EOC, FAST & Statewide Science test scoresJun 26, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Florida Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.