Witter Elementary School

Witter Elementary School in Tampa, FL, is a PK-5 public school serving 530 students within the Hillsborough school district, where over 76% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.

Witter Elementary is currently facing significant challenges, ranking in the bottom 3rd percentile of all elementary schools in Florida for the 2025-2026 school year. The most critical issue is an extraordinarily high chronic absenteeism rate of 45%, which is nearly 1.5 times the state average and has remained above 40% for four consecutive years. This absenteeism crisis is the primary driver of the school's academic struggles, with proficiency rates in English Language Arts ranging from 28% to 39% and in Math from 37% to 46%—all well below district and state averages. For example, 5th Grade Science proficiency is just 22%, compared to the district's 55%. Interestingly, Witter spends $14,162 per student, which is the second-highest among nearby schools, yet this high spending does not translate to better outcomes.

When comparing Witter to nearby schools, the contrast is stark. Muller Elementary Magnet School, just 1.76 miles away, serves a similar demographic but achieves dramatically better results with a chronic absenteeism rate of just 20% and a ranking in the 35th percentile. This suggests that the magnet designation and its associated programs are powerful differentiators. Witter is part of a cluster of struggling schools in north Tampa, including Shaw Elementary (2nd percentile) and Dr. Carter G Woodson K-8 (1st percentile), all sharing extremely high absenteeism rates. While Witter shows a slight relative strength in Math compared to English Language Arts, the school's most urgent priority must be a radical, community-engaged strategy to improve student attendance, as without solving this foundational problem, other academic interventions will continue to have limited impact.