WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is an elementary-level community of medium-sized scale in WAUCHULA, Florida, part of HARDEE, teacheing 577 students in grades pre-K through 5.

WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one of 9 schools operated by HARDEE, a district that instructs 4,547 students overall.

In terms of who attends, WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL logs that the largest single group is Hispanic, at 57% of enrollment. The remainder breaks down as 30% White, 10% Black, 3% multiracial. That is meaningfully more Hispanic than the county at large, where the share is closer to 42%.

In terms of school funding signals, On paper, WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL has 37 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 15.6:1. That figure is tighter than the state norm's 17.5:1 average. Around 76% of the student body qualifies for free or reduced-price meals, often used as a Title I proxy.

With demographic context factored in, WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL sits in the top 10% of Florida schools after the BeatsExpectations adjustment. Predicted proficiency for the school's FRL share is roughly 43.2%; actual is 58.5%, +15.3 points clear of the demographic baseline.

In the surrounding community, the surrounding county (Hardee County) shows that the typical household earns roughly $60,489 per year, about 12% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 20% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, Hardee County runs 11 public schools (combined enrollment of about 4,547 students), of which WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL is one.

The closest other public school is PIONEER CAREER ACADEMY, roughly 0.2 miles away. Within five miles, there are 7 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts WAUCHULA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL at 1st of 7; the average score across the group is 46.8%.

The campus sits in a small-town setting.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count ticked down 15%: 676 students in 2018 compared to 577 in 2025. Hispanic enrollment moved from 50% to 57% across the same window. Class-load math has rose: from 12.8:1 in 2018 to 15.6:1 in 2025.

Within the allk12 community for this school, posts here usually surface around sports schedules, lunch menu changes, and school spirit week. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.