The top reported proficiency rate is 87% in Math. The lowest is 70% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Riverglades Elementary School
Riverglades Elementary sits on Parkside Drive in Parkland, a quiet, low-density city in the northwest corner of Broward County where most land is organized into master-planned and gated residential communities. The city grew deliberately over recent decades, with leaders keeping commercial development minimal to preserve a green, park-like character. The result is a suburb that feels more rural than most of South Florida, with tree-heavy streets, equestrian areas in some neighborhoods, and parks ranging from small tennis facilities to a large multi-use preserve just west of the city. Residents commute out for most jobs and shopping, typically heading toward regional corridors and employment hubs across Broward, Miami-Dade, and Palm Beach counties. Some new residential construction is underway in the city's northwest, including a Lennar development and a Toll Brothers community in Heron Bay, tied to a broader city plan that includes a proposed mixed-use town center still taking shape on a former golf course site.
The school itself serves prekindergarten through fifth grade and carries a sizable enrollment for a neighborhood elementary. The student body is predominantly white and Hispanic, with Asian and Black students also represented and a smaller share identifying as two or more races. The share of students qualifying for free or reduced-price lunch is quite modest relative to most Florida elementary schools, consistent with Parkland's economic profile as an affluent suburb. Data on English learner enrollment and students with IEPs was not available in the provided information.
Academic results from Florida's FAST assessments for the most recent year are a clear strength. Math proficiency across the tested grades runs very high in the earlier grades, with fifth grade coming in somewhat lower but still strong by statewide standards. ELA proficiency follows a similar pattern, with third and fourth graders performing well above what most Florida schools report, while fifth grade, though the lowest of the three years, remains solidly above typical statewide attainment. The fifth-grade science assessment result is the most modest of all the reported figures, sitting at a level a parent may want to ask the school about, though it still clears the midpoint comfortably. No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to characterize whether these results have been rising, holding, or shifting.
Broward is the only district in the county comparison set, so positioning Riverglades against peers within Broward County was not possible from the comparison data provided. Graduation rate and chronic absenteeism comparisons do not apply here: this is an elementary school that does not serve high school grades, so no graduation rate exists for this campus, and absenteeism data was absent from the payload.
Program and course access details were not available. No disciplinary or staffing data was provided either.
Housing in Parkland, using the ZIP code data available, is among the most expensive in South Florida. Median home values sit well above both the Florida and national medians, and the estimated monthly carrying cost for a typical home here runs substantially higher than national benchmarks. Rents are also elevated, with a rent-to-income ratio that makes the area a stretch on a median national income. Year-over-year home values have dipped slightly, roughly in line with the broader Florida trend, though both Florida and the local market are softening while national values have ticked up. The affordability picture is a practical constraint for families relocating specifically for this school.
For a family already living in Parkland or weighing a move there, Riverglades offers strong measured academic outcomes in a community that self-selects for families prioritizing quiet residential character, park access, and relatively low commercial density. The school's results in reading and math at the third- and fourth-grade levels are genuinely strong. Fifth-grade science is the one area where a parent may want to have a direct conversation with the school about curriculum and supports.
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