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What do students at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL actually talk about outside of class?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
969
High
DISTRICT 447 · STATE 1,035
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·WALTON·NCES 120198002025
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL
449 WALTON RD, DEFUNIAK SPRINGS, FL 32433 · (850) 892-1270 · Walton County
GRADES 09–12HIGH32-TOWNTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL969 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
17.1:1
56 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.5:1 · STATE 23.5:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
63%
613 students
DISTRICT 47% · STATE 50%
Community
3
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high 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
56.8%
FL avg 56.7% . +8.3pp since 2023
Math
39.0%
FL avg 58.9% . -7.0pp since 2023
What this means: On the FAST / B.E.S.T., Florida's statewide test, about 57 of every 100 students at this school read and write at grade level and about 39 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 8 points since 2023, while math scores are down about 7 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
58.0%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
49.5%
based on FL schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.5pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 58% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 49% 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
969
+251 (+35%) vs 2017
Student : Teacher
17.1:1
was 15.6:1
% White
66%
was 71%
% Hispanic
19%
was 10%
% Black
8%
was 12%
% Asian
1%
was 1%
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
About WALTON HIGH SCHOOL
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL, a middle-of-the-pack high school in DEFUNIAK SPRINGS, Florida, overseen by WALTON, enrolls 969 students, covering grades 9 through 12.
Within WALTON, which oversees 22 schools and 12,069 students, WALTON HIGH SCHOOL is one campus in the system.
On demographics, WALTON HIGH SCHOOL lists that 66% of the student body identifies as White. The remainder breaks down as 19% Hispanic, 8% Black, 6% multiracial. That is noticeably less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 84%.
Looking at school resources, The school employs 56 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 17.1:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 23.5:1 average. An estimated 63% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Walton County (around 47%), the school's rate is north of typical.
With demographic context factored in, WALTON HIGH SCHOOL tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 49.5% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 58.0%.
In the surrounding community, ACS estimates for Walton County put median household earnings sit near $81,986, 35% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 9%. WALTON HIGH SCHOOL is one of 26 public schools in Walton County (combined enrollment of about 12,069 students).
The closest other public school is WALTON INITIATIVE FOR SUCCESS IN EDUCATION (WISE), roughly 0.2 miles away. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around WALTON HIGH SCHOOL. On composite proficiency, WALTON HIGH SCHOOL comes 3rd of 4 in the immediate cluster, beneath the nearby-schools average of 60.2%.
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL operates from a town-based location.
Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL has climbed 35%, going from 718 students in 2018 to 969 in 2025. Over the same period, the Hispanic share ticked up from 10% to 19%. The student-to-teacher ratio grew from 15.6:1 in 2018 to 17.1:1 today.
On the community side, recent activity here tends to focus on sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.
Walton County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
82,948
Census ACS
Median income
$81,986
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
35%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
9%
Below federal line
Schools in county
26
12,069 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in WALTON
- SOUTH WALTON HIGH SCHOOLHigh · 1,127 students
- FREEPORT ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 1,120 students
- DUNE LAKES ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 924 students
- VAN R. BUTLER ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 914 students
- EMERALD COAST MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 872 students
- WALTON MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 796 students
Other schools in DEFUNIAK SPRINGS
- WALTON MIDDLE SCHOOLMiddle · 796 students
- WEST DEFUNIAK ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 704 students
- MAUDE SAUNDERS ELEMENTARY SCHOOLElementary · 554 students
- MOSSY HEAD SCHOOLElementary · 521 students
- WALTON INITIATIVE FOR SUCCESS IN EDUCATION (WISE)Combined · 264 students
- WALTON ACADEMY INC.High · 130 students
Nearby schools
- WALTON INITIATIVE FOR SUCCESS IN EDUCATION (WISE)0.2 mi · 264
- MAUDE SAUNDERS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL0.5 mi · 554
- WEST DEFUNIAK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL1.5 mi · 704
- WALTON VIRTUAL SCHOOL WCSD2.1 mi · 7
- WALTON VIRTUAL FRANCHISE2.1 mi · 21
- WALTON MIDDLE SCHOOL2.1 mi · 796
Frequently asked questions
About WALTON HIGH SCHOOLHow large is WALTON HIGH SCHOOL?
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL enrolls approximately 969 students in grades 09-12.
Is WALTON HIGH SCHOOL an elementary, middle, or high school?
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL is a high school covering grades 09-12.
How many students per teacher at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL?
Approximately 17.1:1 students per teacher at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL.
What is the student diversity at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL?
Student demographics at WALTON HIGH SCHOOL are roughly 66% White, 19% Hispanic, 8% Black, 1% Asian, 6% Two or more.
What district is WALTON HIGH SCHOOL in?
WALTON HIGH SCHOOL is part of WALTON.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.