The top reported proficiency rate is 79% in Math. The lowest is 43% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Boulware Springs Charter
Boulware Springs Charter is a small kindergarten-through-fifth-grade charter school on the northeast side of Gainesville, serving a modestly sized group of elementary students. As a charter school, it operates within the Alachua County Public Schools district but with its own governance and, in this case, an identifiable campus address distinct from the district's traditional neighborhood schools.
The school's enrollment is small for an elementary program, with students spread across all six grade levels. A substantial majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, indicating that the school serves a predominantly lower-income population. In terms of racial composition, Black students make up the largest share of enrollment, with white students representing the next largest group and smaller shares of Hispanic and multiracial students. Data on students receiving special education services or English language learner support was not available in the records provided.
On Florida's state assessments, the academic picture is mixed and worth examining carefully. In math, results are genuinely strong: third, fourth, and fifth graders all passed at rates that place the school well above what many Florida elementary schools report, with fifth grade in particular showing very high proficiency. These math results stand out as a real strength of the school's program. Reading and language arts tell a different story. Third and fourth grade ELA proficiency rates sit around two-thirds of students meeting the bar, and fifth grade ELA drops to roughly half. That fifth-grade ELA figure in particular is one a parent would want to ask the school about directly. On the fifth-grade science assessment, fewer than half of students reached proficiency, which is notably lower than the school's own math performance and worth understanding in context of how the school approaches science instruction.
Relative to districts in Alachua County, the school's overall proficiency index across subjects and grades sits above the midpoint of the two-district county comparison set, though it falls short of the top of that range. The comparison set is narrow given that Alachua County has just two districts, so this positioning should be read as a general orientation rather than a precise ranking.
Chronic absenteeism and graduation rate data are not applicable here: graduation rates apply only to high schools, and chronic absenteeism figures were not available in the data provided.
Boulware Springs is located in Gainesville, a city shaped in large part by the University of Florida's presence. The city has a college-town character even outside the campus area, with an active downtown, a well-developed library system, and a public transit network operated by the Gainesville Regional Transit System. The local job market anchors heavily on UF, UF Health, and affiliated healthcare and research institutions. Housing in the immediate zip code is considerably more affordable than the Florida statewide median, and rents have ticked up modestly in the past year while home values have edged slightly downward. The rent-to-income ratio in the area remains relatively manageable compared to many Florida markets.
At the district level, Alachua County voters renewed the One Mill property tax in late 2024, publicly reported as sustaining arts, music, drama, band, library staff, school nurses, counselors, and career-technical programs across county schools through 2029. Because Boulware Springs is a charter school operating under the district's umbrella, families should ask directly which, if any, of these district-funded resources flow to the charter. The district's year-round school pilot at Metcalfe and Rawlings elementaries does not appear to involve Boulware Springs, but parents tracking district-wide calendar experiments may want to monitor how that evolving policy develops.
For a family weighing this school, the math performance is a genuine draw. The ELA and science results at the upper elementary grades are softer and merit a conversation with the school about curriculum and instructional supports. Program details beyond what state assessments capture, including any specific charter model, enrichment offerings, or student support structures, were not available in the data provided.
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