POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL

POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL, an average-sized 6-8 campus in BROOKSVILLE, Florida, part of HERNANDO, educates 1,041 students, covering grades 6 through 8. Enrollment runs roughly 31% larger than the state mean of about 794.

POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL is one of 29 schools operated by HERNANDO, a district that instructs 23,734 students overall.

Demographically, POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL shows that the most-represented group is White (50%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups; the rest comes out to 34% Hispanic, 7% Black, 6% multiracial, 2% Asian. That is visibly less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 76%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, The school lists 55 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 18.9:1. That tracks the state average closely. About 53% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 54.8%, the actual is 51.1%, a residual of -3.6 points.

In the area at large, ACS estimates for Hernando County put the typical household earns roughly $66,058 per year, about 21% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 9%. Across Hernando County's 31 public schools (combined enrollment of about 23,734 students), POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is CHALLENGER K-8 SCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND MATH, roughly 1.0 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. On composite proficiency, POWELL MIDDLE SCHOOL comes 4th of 7 in the immediate cluster, behind the nearby-schools average of 59.8%.

The school occupies a residential site.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count rose 5%: 987 students in 2018 compared to 1,041 in 2025. The White share of enrollment shrank from 59% to 50% over that span. Class-load math has grew: from 16.7:1 in 2018 to 18.9:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.