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What tradition at THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL should never be changed?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
823
Middle
DISTRICT 797 · STATE 794
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·SANTA ROSA·NCES 120165003504
THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL
5500 EDUCATION DR, PACE, FL 32571 · (850) 995-3676 · Santa Rosa County
GRADES 06–08MIDDLE21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL823 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
20.6:1
40 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 20.5:1 · STATE 19.6:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
40%
330 students
DISTRICT 48% · STATE 50%
Community
3
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other middle schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade
Student demographics
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. 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
69.3%
FL avg 56.7% . +2.8pp since 2023
Math
79.1%
FL avg 58.9% . +1.0pp since 2023
What this means: On the FAST / B.E.S.T., Florida's statewide test, about 69 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 79 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 3 points since 2023, while math scores are up about 1 points.
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
72.4%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
61.1%
based on FL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+11.3pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 72% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 61% 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 →
7-year change
SY 2017-18 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
823
-190 (-19%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
20.6:1
was 19.1:1
% White
76%
was 85%
% Hispanic
8%
was 5%
% Black
3%
was 3%
% Asian
2%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL
Located at 5500 EDUCATION DR, in PACE, Florida, THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL is a mid-tier middle school that hosts 823 students (grades 6 through 8), run under SANTA ROSA.
SANTA ROSA comprises 38 schools with combined enrollment of 29,643 students; THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL is among them.
On demographics, THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL records that the largest single group is White, at 76% of enrollment. Other groups include 10% multiracial, 8% Hispanic, 3% Black, 2% Asian.
Looking at school resources, THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL lists 40 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 20.6:1. Statewide, the average ratio sits near 19.6:1, putting THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL higher than the state norm the norm. About 40% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment.
On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 61.1%, the actual is 72.4%, a residual of +11.3 points.
In the area at large, the surrounding county (Santa Rosa County) shows that the typical household earns roughly $91,922 per year, roughly 32% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 7%. Across Santa Rosa County's 42 public schools (combined enrollment of about 29,382 students), THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL is one campus in the mix.
Nearest neighbor: S. S. DIXON INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL, around 0.2 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. On composite proficiency, THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL comes 2nd of 6 in the immediate cluster, above the nearby-schools average of 64.9%.
The school occupies a bedroom-community site.
Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count fell 19%: 1,013 students in 2018 compared to 823 in 2025. The White share of enrollment contracted from 85% to 76% over that span. Class-load math has rose: from 19.1:1 in 2018 to 20.6:1 in 2025.
Inside the community feed, recent activity here tends to focus on open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Posting is open to anyone connected to the school.
Santa Rosa County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
198,472
Census ACS
Median income
$91,922
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
32%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
7%
Below federal line
Schools in county
42
29,382 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in SANTA ROSA
- NAVARRE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,410 students
- PACE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,316 students
- MILTON HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,985 students
- GULF BREEZE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,946 students
- EAST BAY K-8 SCHOOLElementary · 1,100 students
- WALLACE LAKE K-8Elementary · 1,061 students
Other schools in PACE
- PACE HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 2,316 students
- WALLACE LAKE K-8Elementary · 1,061 students
- PEA RIDGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 846 students
- S. S. DIXON INTERMEDIATE SCHOOLElementary · 676 students
- S. S. DIXON PRIMARY SCHOOLElementary · 611 students
Nearby schools
- S. S. DIXON INTERMEDIATE SCHOOL0.2 mi · 676
- HIGH ROAD1.4 mi · 102
- PACE HIGH SCHOOL1.7 mi · 2,316
- S. S. DIXON PRIMARY SCHOOL2.4 mi · 611
- BERRYHILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL3.1 mi · 802
- WALLACE LAKE K-83.6 mi · 1,061
Frequently asked questions
About THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOLHow many students attend THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL?
THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL enrolls approximately 823 students in grades 06-08.
What grades does THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL serve?
THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL serves grades 06-08.
What is the student-teacher ratio at THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL?
The student-to-teacher ratio at THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL is approximately 20.6:1 (40 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL?
At THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL, the student body is approximately 76% White, 8% Hispanic, 3% Black, 2% Asian, 10% Two or more.
Is THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL public or private?
THOMAS L SIMS MIDDLE SCHOOL is a public K-12 school, overseen by SANTA ROSA.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.