Florida school grades aren’t due out for weeks.
That’s not stopping Pasco County educators from celebrating.
Student test results, on which the grades are based, now arrive in real time, and Pasco data crunchers spent the end of last week poring over performance at the district’s eight “opportunity” schools.
Superintendent John Legg got so enthusiastic about the outcomes that he spent Monday morning visiting campuses to share with teachers and staff.
“For the first time since 2004, there’s not going to be a single D or F school in Pasco County,” Legg said, adding that he projects the district to receive its first overall A since 2009. “Obviously it’s all projected. But we’re pretty confident.”
Legg started the day at Gulf Middle School, which was threatened with takeover by outside management after four consecutive D grades.
“You had a decision to make 10 months ago, lean in or lean out,” Legg told the Gulf Middle staff, which had gathered in the media center for a year end breakfast. “This school absolutely leaned in. ... What you guys did here is nothing short of miraculous.”
He teased the announcement briefly, telling the gathering that they hadn’t earned a C needed to get out from state oversight. They hadn’t made a B either, he continued.
The room erupted in cheers before he could announce the school’s projected A grade. It was one of three D-rated Pasco schools the district expects to improve to A, with Gulfside Elementary and New River Elementary being the others.
The district also expects F-rated Chester Taylor Elementary to rise to a C.
Gulf Principal Joel DiVincent, brought in this year to change the school’s culture, told the faculty and staff that they made a huge difference in the performance.
“Of course it’s all about the kids,” DiVincent said. “But this is your achievement.”
Math teacher Sarah Kostandy stood up to thank DiVincent for saying so. But he deserves credit, too, she said, with most everyone in the room nodding in agreement.
“You have been supporting the teachers from Day 1,” said Kostandy, in her first year at the school. “We have the right principal, too.”
She and others showered praise on the principal, saying he brought a newfound sense of confidence to students and staff alike with his relentless focus on high expectations, a cheerful and omnipresent demeanor and a strong belief that everyone can succeed.
Each morning, he would get on the announcement system to remind everyone that they are scholars capable of making all A’s and B’s, said Patty Allen, the school’s intensive reading teacher since 2020. He paired that support with changes in curriculum, added training, targeted hiring and plenty of analysis on where students needed more attention.
“The kids believed it. They can do it,” Allen said, noting that nearly two-thirds of her students improved their skills to no longer require her course.
Angela Napolitano, the school’s media specialist and yearbook sponsor, pointed to the yearbook page listing A/B honor roll students. It had more names than ever, she said.
“I believe the kids just needed to know that we believe in them, that they’re capable of great things,” said Napolitano, who attended the school in the 1980s and later sent her two children there. “The school culture, we did a complete 180.”
Anne Cannon, who has taught at Gulf since 2005, said people at the school were cautiously optimistic when the year began. They talked about surpassing a C, because they believed Gulf is better than average, but mostly discussed making a B.
She recalled challenging DiVincent to shave an A in the side of his hair if they could get there, a goal that appeared more realistic as the year wore on.
“I have witnesses,” Cannon said, saying she would have done it Monday morning. “I just didn’t know to bring my clippers today.”
Even with the success, no one viewed the work as being complete.
“We still have some proficiency to work on,” said Shana Rafalski, assistant superintendent for opportunity schools. “Our team has already been working to look at exactly where there’s room for growth. While we are closing gaps, we’re not there yet.”
That’s why it’s critical to have results before the state releases official grades, Legg said. Staffing and teaching decisions can’t be implemented well if they’re occurring as students are returning, he explained.
“If you make that call in August, the year has already gotten away from you,” he said.
Editor’s note: The Pasco County school district earned an A grade from the state in 2009. This story has been updated to include that information.
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