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What do you wish you knew before starting at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
922
Middle
DISTRICT 463 · STATE 794
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·DESOTO·NCES 120042000624
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL
420 E GIBSON ST, ARCADIA, FL 34266 · (863) 494-4133 · DeSoto County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL922 STUDENTS
D
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 12% of Florida public middle schools
- DTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- DBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- ·Three-year trend Not available for this school, so the grade uses the other parts.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Florida public middle schools
Student : Teacher
16.5:1
56 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 23.8:1 · STATE 19.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
57%
530 students
DISTRICT 60% · STATE 50%
Community
6
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 254 | 28% |
| Grade 7 | 275 | 30% |
| Grade 8 | 393 | 43% |
Student demographics
60%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 70% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL→DESOTO COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL
Based on grade levels within DESOTO. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
FAST / B.E.S.T. 2024-25 . % at Level 3 or AboveEnglish Language Arts
41.3%
FL avg 56.7% . +9.2pp since 2023
Math
49.7%
FL avg 58.9% . +8.6pp since 2023
What this means: On the FAST / B.E.S.T., Florida's statewide test, about 41 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 50 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Florida schools, those numbers are about 57 and 59. Reading and writing scores are up about 9 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 9 points.
FAST / B.E.S.T. results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 41.3% | 49.7% |
| 2023-24 | 32.1% | 41.1% |
% at Level 3 or Above, all students and all tested grades.
Source: FAST / B.E.S.T.. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
39.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
52.4%
based on FL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-13.0pp
below demographic expectation
What this means: About 39% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 52% typical for Florida schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Florida's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL's state test result (39.3% proficient) is higher than 0 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL this school | 922 | 57.5% | 39.3% |
| MARSHALL MIDDLE MAGNET SCHOOL PLANT CITY | 1,066 | 60.4% | 42.6% |
| GALAXY MIDDLE SCHOOL DELTONA | 939 | 57.4% | 45.9% |
| CALOOSA MIDDLE SCHOOL CAPE CORAL | 1,018 | 57.7% | 46.2% |
| DELTONA MIDDLE SCHOOL DELTONA | 1,132 | 55.7% | 47.8% |
| HERITAGE MIDDLE SCHOOL DELTONA | 932 | 54.9% | 47.9% |
Matched among Florida middle schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL ranks
Among middle schools| Measure | This school | In Florida |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 39.3% | #474 of 560 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 49.7% | #376 of 560 ▲ 51 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 41.3% | #445 of 560 ▲ 26 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 922 | #199 of 584 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 16.5:1 | #60 of 547 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 60.1% | #254 of 553 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 57.5% | #207 of 565 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -16.0% | #176 of 379 |
Ranked against other public middle schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
922
-67 (-7%) vs 2020
+9% since 1990-91, when it was 847
Student : Teacher
16.5:1
was 17.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 922 | 56 | 16.5:1 | 57% (530) |
| 2023-24 | 1,011 | 50 | 20.2:1 | 70% (711) |
| 2022-23 | 1,169 | 49 | 23.9:1 | 74% (863) |
| 2020-21 | 989 | 57 | 17.4:1 | 65% (638) |
| 2017-18 | 1,098 | 58 | 18.9:1 | 7% (81) |
| 2015-16 | 1,064 | 56 | 19.0:1 | 65% (695) |
| 2010-11 | 1,005 | 63 | 15.9:1 | 78% (783) |
| 2000-01 | 1,067 | 58 | 18.4:1 | 61% (655) |
| 1990-91 | 847 | 50 | 16.9:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL.
About DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL
At 420 E GIBSON ST in ARCADIA, Florida, DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL operates as a medium-sized middle school. A federal count lists 922 students at the school, in grades 6 through 8.
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is a school in DESOTO. The district has 9 schools and 4,171 students.
By race and ethnicity, DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is 55% Hispanic. After that, the student body is 27% White, 13% Black, and 3% multiracial. That is higher than the 30% Hispanic share among all DeSoto County residents. DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL has a diversity index of 60%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL counts 56 full-time-equivalent teachers, about 16.5 students for each one. The 19.6:1 average for middle schools in Florida is higher than this school's figure. About 57% of students at the school meet free or reduced-price lunch income limits. Across public schools in DeSoto County, the average is about the same, 60%.
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is graded D by allk12, scoring above 12% of Florida public middle schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
Test results at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL are 13.0 points below what its free or reduced-price lunch share predicts (39.3% actual, 52.4% predicted).
County data help place the school in context: in DeSoto County, median household income is about $54,417, roughly 11% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 19%. The public schools of DeSoto County number 11 and enroll about 4,171.
The nearest other public school, DESOTO VIRTUAL ACADEMY, is about 0.2 miles away. In all, 7 other public schools sit within five miles of DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL. By average proficiency, DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is 5th among 5 schools close by.
Under the NCES locale system, DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is Town: Distant.
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL saw enrollment fall 7% between 2020-21 and 2024-25.
Discussion on this page can cover school safety, transportation, and start times. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
DeSoto County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
35,386
Census ACS
Median income
$54,417
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
11%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
19%
Below federal line
Schools in county
11
4,171 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in DESOTO
- DESOTO COUNTY HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,215 students
- MEMORIAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 861 students
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 622 students
- NOCATEE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 475 students
- DESOTO SECONDARY SCHOOLCombined · 51 students
- DESOTO VIRTUAL FRANCHISECombined · 10 students
Other schools in ARCADIA
- DESOTO COUNTY HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,215 students
- MEMORIAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 861 students
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 622 students
- DESOTO SECONDARY SCHOOLCombined · 51 students
- DESOTO VIRTUAL FRANCHISECombined · 10 students
- REDUCED SERVICESCombined · 9 students
Nearby schools
- DESOTO VIRTUAL ACADEMY0.2 mi · 6
- MEMORIAL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.6 mi · 861
- DESOTO COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL0.7 mi · 1,215
- REDUCED SERVICES0.8 mi · 9
- DESOTO VIRTUAL FRANCHISE0.8 mi · 10
- WEST ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.8 mi · 622
Frequently asked questions
About DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOLHow large is DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL?
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL enrolls approximately 922 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL serve?
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL serves grades 06-08.
How many students per teacher at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL?
Approximately 16.5:1 students per teacher at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL.
What is the student diversity at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL?
Student demographics at DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL are roughly 27% White, 55% Hispanic, 13% Black, 0% Asian, 3% Two or more.
Is DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL public or private?
DESOTO MIDDLE SCHOOL is a public K-12 school, overseen by DESOTO.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.