Enrollment
336
Elementary
DISTRICT 641 · STATE 604
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·POLK·NCES 120159001791
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY
1350 MAPLE AVE N, BARTOW, FL 33830 · (863) 534-7455 · Polk County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY31-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL336 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
14.6:1
23 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.3:1 · STATE 17.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
79%
266 students
DISTRICT 65% · STATE 50%
Community
0
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 59 | 18% |
| Kindergarten | 55 | 16% |
| Grade 1 | 38 | 11% |
| Grade 2 | 52 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 59 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 40 | 12% |
| Grade 5 | 33 | 10% |
This year's kindergarten class (55) is 67% larger than its 5th grade class (33).
Student demographics
68%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 67% · 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
Test scores
FAST / B.E.S.T. 2024-25 . % at Level 3 or AboveEnglish Language Arts
57.8%
FL avg 56.7% . +17.1pp since 2023
Math
59.6%
FL avg 58.9% . +3.3pp since 2023
What this means: On the FAST / B.E.S.T., Florida's statewide test, about 58 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 60 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 17 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 3 points.
FAST / B.E.S.T. results by year
| School year | English Language Arts | Math |
|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 57.8% | 59.6% |
| 2023-24 | 40.7% | 56.3% |
% 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
51.5%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
41.5%
based on FL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+10.0pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 52% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 41% 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 JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY's state test result (51.5% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY this school | 336 | 79.2% | 51.5% |
| GRIFFIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL LAKELAND | 431 | 80.7% | 43.4% |
| GROVE PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL ORANGE PARK | 445 | 77.1% | 41.7% |
| JANIE HOWARD WILSON SCHOOL LAKE WALES | 462 | 78.1% | 37.3% |
| INWOOD ELEMENTARY SCHOOL WINTER HAVEN | 423 | 82.3% | 37.0% |
| TARPON SPRINGS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TARPON SPRINGS | 417 | 74.8% | 51.1% |
Matched among Florida elementary 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 JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Florida | In Polk County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 51.5% | #1,255 of 2,136 | #30 of 85 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 59.6% | #1,113 of 2,149 ▼ 9 | #25 of 86 ▲ 3 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 57.8% | #940 of 2,149 ▲ 666 | #21 of 86 ▲ 34 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 336 | #1,923 of 2,267 | #81 of 89 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 14.6:1 | #536 of 2,077 | #7 of 85 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 68.2% | #340 of 2,108 | #21 of 85 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 79.2% | #169 of 2,188 | #17 of 88 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -11.6% | #864 of 1,374 | #17 of 39 |
Ranked against other public elementary 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
336
+20 (+6%) vs 2020
-44% since 1990-91, when it was 602
Student : Teacher
14.6:1
was 11.3:1
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 | 336 | 23 | 14.6:1 | 79% (266) |
| 2023-24 | 328 | 27 | 12.2:1 | 81% (267) |
| 2022-23 | 356 | 25 | 14.2:1 | 69% (244) |
| 2020-21 | 316 | 28 | 11.3:1 | 82% (260) |
| 2017-18 | 380 | 25 | 15.2:1 | 72% (274) |
| 2015-16 | 351 | 21 | 16.7:1 | 74% (258) |
| 2010-11 | 430 | 29 | 14.8:1 | 81% (349) |
| 2000-01 | 429 | 27 | 15.9:1 | 65% (278) |
| 1990-91 | 602 | 33 | 18.2:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY.
About JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY
In BARTOW, Florida, part of Polk County, JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is an elementary school. The school had 336 students in pre-K through 5 in 2024-25. Average enrollment for elementary schools in Florida is about 604, so this school runs 44% smaller than that.
Across its 163 schools, POLK enrolls 116,552 students. JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is one of those schools.
The most common group at JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is Black students, at 41%. Smaller groups are 32% Hispanic, 22% White, and 4% multiracial. County-wide, 15% of Polk County residents are Black. JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY's diversity index is 68%, against a US figure of 70%.
The school's student-to-teacher ratio is about 14.6:1, with 23 full-time-equivalent teachers. That is lower than the 17.5:1 average for elementary schools in Florida. Lunch subsidy eligibility at JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is 79%. Public schools in Polk County average 65%.
The model predicts 41.5% for a school in Florida with JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY's free or reduced-price lunch share. JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY posts 51.5%.
Across Polk County, the median household income is $65,978, roughly 24% of adults have a four-year degree or more, and about 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Polk County is home to 172 public schools and about 117,004 public school students.
The nearest public school is GAUSE ACADEMY OF LEADERSHIP, at about 0.7 miles. Inside a five-mile radius, there are at least 8 other public schools. Nearby schools with test data average 52.7% proficiency; JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY posts 51.5%.
Locale: Town: Fringe. In NCES terms, the school is in a town close to an urbanized area.
Enrollment has grown by 20 students since 2020-21, to 336. The number of students per teacher rose from 11.3 to 14.6 over 4 years.
Conversations here can range across enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Reviews and ratings from people who know the school are welcome.
Polk County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
790,694
Census ACS
Median income
$65,978
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
24%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
172
117,004 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in POLK
- HAINES CITY SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 3,105 students
- DAVENPORT HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,731 students
- WINTER HAVEN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,648 students
- RIDGE COMMUNITY HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,632 students
- GEORGE W. JENKINS SENIOR HIGHHigh · 2,469 students
- BARTOW SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,276 students
Other schools in BARTOW
- BARTOW SENIOR HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,276 students
- BELLA CITTAElementary · 1,459 students
- BARTOW MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 881 students
- SPESSARD L HOLLAND ELEMENTARYElementary · 843 students
- FLORAL AVENUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 585 students
- BARTOW ELEMENTARY ACADEMYElementary · 524 students
Nearby schools
- GAUSE ACADEMY OF LEADERSHIP0.7 mi · 97
- BARTOW ELEMENTARY ACADEMY1.5 mi · 524
- BARTOW SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL2.0 mi · 2,276
- JEAN O'DELL LEARNING CENTER2.0 mi · 81
- FLORAL AVENUE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL2.1 mi · 585
- BARTOW MIDDLE SCHOOL2.3 mi · 881
Frequently asked questions
About JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMYWhat is the total enrollment at JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY?
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY enrolls approximately 336 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY serve?
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY serves grades PK-05.
What is the student-teacher ratio at JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY?
The student-to-teacher ratio at JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is approximately 14.6:1 (23 FTE teachers).
How diverse is JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY?
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY reports a student body of 22% White, 32% Hispanic, 41% Black, 1% Asian, 4% Two or more.
Is JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY public or private?
JAMES E. STEPHENS ACADEMY is a public K-12 school, overseen by POLK.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.