THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

As a middle-of-the-pack elementary-level community in FLEMING ISLAND, Florida, THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL educates 756 students from grades pre-K through 6, operated by CLAY. Enrollment runs roughly 25% bigger than the state mean of about 604.

Within CLAY, which oversees 50 schools and 39,116 students, THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one campus in the system.

On the student-mix side, THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL lists that 63% of the student body identifies as White; the rest is composed of 14% Hispanic, 9% Black, 7% multiracial, 6% Asian.

On the resource side, Staff filings list 62 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 12.2:1 students per teacher. The state averages around 17.5:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 40% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Clay County (around 54%), the school's rate is meaningfully below typical.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is in the OUTPERFORMING tier of the BeatsExpectations model, which fits a per-state line through proficiency and FRL share. Schools with this campus's poverty mix typically land near 61.0%; this one delivers 77.9%, a residual of +16.9 points.

Across the wider county, community-level numbers for Clay County indicate median household earnings sit near $87,820, roughly 28% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 8% of residents live below the federal poverty line. THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of 55 public schools in Clay County (combined enrollment of about 38,806 students).

Nearest neighbor: FLEMING ISLAND HIGH SCHOOL, around 0.6 miles off. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL at 5th of 8; the average score across the group is 72.6%.

Geographically, the school is in a suburban area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Over the past 7-year window, the student count shrank 19%: 938 students in 2018 compared to 756 in 2025. Class-load math has tightened: from 14.4:1 in 2018 to 12.2:1 in 2025.

On this page, members of the THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL community share and discuss pickup logistics, teacher feedback, and after-school programs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.