Summary:
This analysis examines four elementary schools in the 32174 zip code of Ormond Beach, Florida, all part of the Volusia County School District, serving grades PK through 5 with enrollments ranging from 363 to 737 students.
Ormond Beach Elementary School is the standout performer, consistently earning a 5-star rating and ranking in the top 5% of all Florida elementary schools (96th percentile) for the 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 school years. Its academic proficiency rates in Math and English Language Arts are dramatically higher than district and state averages, with 95% of 3rd graders proficient in Math compared to 63% for the district. This is particularly notable because Ormond Beach has the highest percentage of students eligible for free/reduced lunch (52.07%) among the four schools, demonstrating that socioeconomic factors are not a barrier to exceptional achievement. Pine Trail Elementary School is another strong performer, earning a 4-star rating and showing an upward trend to the 80th percentile in state rankings, with test scores consistently above district and state averages. Pathways Elementary School and Tomoka Elementary School are solid, middle-of-the-pack schools performing at or slightly above district and state averages.
All four schools share a strength in low chronic absenteeism rates, ranging from 19.6% at Pine Trail to 25.8% at Pathways, well below the district average of 34.1%. Interestingly, per-student spending does not correlate with performance, as Pine Trail has the lowest spending ($10,293) but is the second-highest performer, while Pathways has the highest spending ($11,802) but is the second-lowest performer. Math proficiency rates are generally higher than ELA rates across all schools, suggesting a strong math curriculum. Ormond Beach Elementary's unique profile—smallest school, highest poverty rate, yet highest academic results—points to intangible factors like school leadership and teacher quality as key drivers of its outstanding performance.
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