Clay, FL - District Data

Original Research by School Decision on Clay

Clay County School District serves a large and geographically spread swath of northeast Florida, running from suburban communities along the St. Johns River corridor through more rural interior towns. The district is one of the larger public systems in this part of the state, with a sizable enrollment spanning pre-kindergarten through twelfth grade. Communities in the district range from Fleming Island and Orange Park, which sit close to Jacksonville and carry higher housing values, to Keystone Heights, Middleburg, Starke, and smaller rural pockets where home prices are noticeably lower. That spread means the district is not one uniform place: families choosing where to live within Clay County will encounter meaningfully different neighborhood characters and price points, from established suburban subdivisions to rural settings with lake access.

On the housing side, the district-weighted home value sits below the Florida statewide benchmark and close to the national midpoint. Rental costs are moderately high relative to typical incomes, with rents consuming close to thirty cents of every income dollar at current market rates. Home values in the district as a whole have ticked down slightly over the past year, a mild correction after years of growth, though some smaller inland zip codes like Keystone Heights and Florahome have seen modest appreciation. The gap between estimated mortgage costs and rents is meaningful, which may factor into buy-versus-rent calculations for incoming families.

Academic performance across the district, as reported through Florida's FAST assessment for the 2024-25 school year, shows a pattern worth understanding. Elementary math results in third grade are solid, and sixth-grade and eighth-grade math proficiency rates are genuinely strong, placing a clear majority of tested students at or above proficiency. Seventh-grade math is weaker, with less than half of students reaching proficiency at that grade level, and fifth-grade math also dips below the majority threshold. ELA results follow a similar pattern: sixth grade is the relative high point, while fourth and fifth grades and seventh grade sit below sixty percent proficiency. Science scores at both the fifth and eighth grade checkpoints show roughly three in five students reaching proficiency. This kind of grade-to-grade variability is worth paying attention to, and parents may want to ask individual school staff about what drives the dips in fifth and seventh grade, since results can differ considerably from one school to the next within a district this size.

Graduation rate data was not available in the dataset provided. District-level comparison data against other Clay County districts was not applicable because the county effectively has only one district for comparison purposes.

The district operates a large number of schools spread across its geography, including multiple high schools serving different communities. Families in the western part of the county around Oakleaf and Middleburg attend schools that are among the newer builds in the system. Fleming Island High School serves the northeastern corridor. Keystone Heights has a combined junior-senior high serving a smaller, more rural student population. The district also runs virtual instruction options, a classical academy, a PACE center for girls, and alternative learning settings, giving families and students a wider menu than a single attendance-zone model would suggest.

The student body is predominantly white, with Black and Hispanic students each making up a meaningful share of enrollment. Free and reduced-price lunch eligibility data was not reported in the dataset, so the district's economic profile by that measure is not available here.

The district brief search did not surface confirmed parent-relevant policy or operational changes in the recent period, so that context was left out rather than guessed at. Information on per-pupil spending, chronic absenteeism, and staffing ratios was also not available in the data provided.

For a family weighing a move into Clay County, the practical picture is a large, geographically diverse district with housing options at multiple price points, reasonably strong results in certain grade levels and subjects, and meaningful variation both across grades and almost certainly across individual schools. The size of the system means individual school research will matter more than district averages alone.

See more original research from School Decision →

District Context

Officially reported figures, 2024-25.

Enrollment

39,362

Grades

PK–12

Schools

Student body

Hispanic 16%

Black 18%

White 56%

Asian 2%

Two+ 7%

Am. Indian / AK Native 0%

Hawaiian / Pac. Isl. 0%

By economic status

Percent proficient by grade, as reported

Economically disadvantaged

Not disadvantaged

ELA

Gr 3

57%

76%

Gr 4

51%

68%

Gr 5

47%

66%

Gr 6

62%

72%

Gr 7

51%

70%

Gr 8

53%

70%

Math

Gr 3

58%

75%

Gr 4

56%

71%

Gr 5

45%

66%

Gr 6

72%

82%

Gr 7

45%

55%

Gr 8

66%

77%

Science

Gr 5

53%

70%

Gr 8

52%

69%

Schools in this District

55 schools are officially reported under this district.

ROBERT M. PATERSON ELEMENTARY

GREEN COVE SPRINGS JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

CHARLES E. BENNETT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

ORANGE PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

GROVE PARK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

W E CHERRY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

ORANGE PARK HIGH SCHOOL

DOCTORS INLET ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

MIDDLEBURG ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

KEYSTONE HEIGHTS ELEMENTARY

KEYSTONE HEIGHTS JUNIOR/SENIOR HIGH

S BRYAN JENNINGS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

CLAY HIGH SCHOOL

LAKESIDE JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

LAKESIDE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

ORANGE PARK JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

WILKINSON JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

MONTCLAIR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

MIDDLEBURG HIGH SCHOOL

TYNES ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

RIDGEVIEW ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

CLAY HILL ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

RIDGEVIEW HIGH SCHOOL

LAKE ASBURY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

R. C. BANNERMAN LEARNING CENTER

J.L. WILKINSON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

MCRAE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

FLEMING ISLAND ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

FLORIDA YOUTH CHALLENGE ACADEMY

RIDEOUT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

FLEMING ISLAND HIGH SCHOOL

SWIMMING PEN CREEK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

THUNDERBOLT ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

LAKE ASBURY JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

ARGYLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

COPPERGATE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

OAKLEAF JUNIOR HIGH

OAKLEAF VILLAGE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

SHADOWLAWN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

PLANTATION OAKS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

OAKLEAF HIGH SCHOOL

CLAY VIRTUAL INSTRUCTION PROGRAM

CLAY VIRTUAL FRANCHISE

CLAY VIRTUAL ACADEMY

PACE CENTER FOR GIRLS CLAY

FLORIDA CYBER CHARTER ACADEMY AT CLAY

CLAY CHARTER ACADEMY

AMIKIDS CLAY COUNTY

DISCOVERY OAKS ELEMENTARY

ST JOHNS CLASSICAL ACADEMY

CONTRACTED RESIDENTIAL SERVICES

SPRING PARK ELEMENTARY

HOSPITAL HOMEBOUND HOMEBASED PROGRAMS

ST. JOHNS CLASSICAL ACADEMY ORANGE PARK

SCHOOL AA

Academic Performance

Percent of students meeting or exceeding state standards, by grade.

Mathematics

6 grades reported

66%

Grade 3

63%

Grade 4

55%

Grade 5

77%

Grade 6

49%

Grade 7

71%

Grade 8

English Language Arts

6 grades reported

65%

Grade 3

59%

Grade 4

56%

Grade 5

67%

Grade 6

60%

Grade 7

61%

Grade 8

Science

2 grades reported

61%

Grade 5

60%

Grade 8

Housing & Real Estate

Data as of April 2026 | District-weighted from constituent ZIP codes

Home Values

Typical home value$324,065

Year-over-year change-0.7%

Range across 11 ZIP codes$217K to $444K

vs. state typical0.86x

vs. national typical0.88x

Home value trend (12 months)

ZIP code home values (11 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Value	YoY	Weight
32043	Green Cove Springs	$347K	-1.7%	40.1%
32068	Middleburg	$327K	-1.5%	21.8%
32656	Keystone Heights	$284K	+3.1%	12.6%
32234	Jacksonville	$294K	-1.0%	8.3%
32091	Starke	$234K	+2.2%	4.5%
32065	Orange Park	$328K	-2.3%	3.7%
32073	Orange Park	$300K	-1.5%	3.2%
32003	Fleming Island	$444K	-1.0%	3.0%
32666	Melrose	$316K	+2.3%	1.7%
32140	Florahome	$217K	+2.3%	0.6%
32058	Lawtey	$234K	+0.9%	0.4%

Rental Market

Typical monthly rent$2,003/mo

Year-over-year change+2.3%

Range across 6 ZIP codes$1,565 to $2,100/mo

Rent trend (12 months)

ZIP code rents (6 ZIP codes)

ZIP	City	Rent/mo	YoY	Weight
32043	Green Cove Springs	$2,100	+2.1%	40.1%
32068	Middleburg	$1,970	+2.8%	21.8%
32234	Jacksonville	$1,913	—	8.3%
32065	Orange Park	$1,931	+2.8%	3.7%
32073	Orange Park	$1,565	+2.5%	3.2%
32003	Fleming Island	$1,743	+1.5%	3.0%

Affordability

Est. monthly mortgage (20% down at 6.48%)$1,635/mo

Home price / national median income3.9x

Annual rent / national median income28.7%

Rent exceeds est. mortgage by$367/mo

Comparison

State typical home value$376,504 (-3.7% YoY)

National typical home value$368,198 (+0.6% YoY)

State ZHVI trend (12 months)

National ZHVI trend (12 months)

Economic Context

30-year fixed mortgage rate6.48%

National unemployment rate4.3%

National median household income$83,730

CPI: Rent of shelter (index)447.05

30-year fixed mortgage rate (12 months)

National unemployment rate (12 months)

National median household income (12 months)

CPI: Rent of shelter (index) (12 months)

Sources: Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index (Zillow Group), Realtor.com via Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRED)

Data Currently Unavailable

Civil Rights Data (CRDC)

This profile is derived exclusively from publicly available federal and state datasets. It may not reflect the most current information available. We encourage parents and families to supplement this data with information published directly on the school’s website, which may include more recent figures, additional programs, or updated enrollment data.