The Main Squeeze: How SLPS really got that A

Last week I posted a video and story about how St. Lucie County Public Schools became an A-rated district for the first time ever. Most people showed love. Rightfully so.

But I kept seeing this idea pop up that the only reason we got an A is because teachers are just passing kids or being lenient in the classroom. So I took it a step further. I attended and rewatched the full July 8 board meeting and looked into exactly how school and district grades are calculated in Florida. Here’s what I found.

📊 How district grades actually work: Florida’s grading system is made up of 12 separate areas called cells. Each one is tied to state testing, learning gains, acceleration, or graduation rate. The day-to-day classroom stuff doesn’t really factor into the district grade except for graduation.

To get an A, a district needs at least 762 out of 1200 points. St. Lucie scored 777. That’s 65 percent. The graduation rate makes up just 8 percent of the overall grade. Everything else is test data and benchmarks.

So no, a teacher giving you a 70 instead of a 68 is not the reason the district got an A.

🚀 How we pulled it off: This wasn’t a fluke. St. Lucie County outpaced the state in every single accountable area this year.

We improved 44 points across the board. The state improved by 16.

Reading went up 43 points

Math jumped 35

Algebra proficiency rose 5 percent

Geometry went up 7

Graduation rate hit 94 percent

Middle school and college acceleration both climbed

No D or F schools in the entire district

Ten years ago, 36 percent of our schools were rated D or F. Today, 80 percent are A or B.

💬 Why it matters: This isn’t about spinning numbers. It’s about long-term growth.

More students are reading better, graduating faster, and earning college credit earlier.

This took work. From the kids. From the teachers. From the schools.

📣 Watch or weigh in

🎥 Full July 8 board meeting here

📝 Drop your thoughts here