The top reported proficiency rate is 29% in Math. The lowest is 22% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Matthew W. Gilbert Middle School
Matthew W. Gilbert Middle School sits on Franklin Street in Jacksonville's urban core, serving sixth through eighth graders as a regular public school within Duval County Public Schools. The neighborhood context matters here: the school is close to downtown Jacksonville, in a part of the city that is actively changing, with major riverfront development and residential construction underway nearby, though the immediate surrounding streets remain working-class in character.
The student body is predominantly Black, with Hispanic students making up a smaller share and white and multiracial students each present in modest numbers. A very large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places Gilbert well into the high-economic-need range for a Florida middle school. Data on English learner counts and students with IEPs were not available in what was provided.
Academic performance on Florida's state assessments is a real concern. Across all three tested grades in both reading and math, proficiency rates are low. In English language arts, roughly a quarter of students across sixth and eighth grade reached proficiency, with seventh grade somewhat lower. Math results vary more by grade, with sixth grade notably low and eighth grade somewhat stronger, though still well below what most parents would consider comfortable ground. The science assessment administered in eighth grade showed similarly low proficiency. Trend data across years was not available, so it is not possible to say whether these results are improving, holding steady, or declining. A parent would want to ask the school directly about instructional supports, intervention programs, and what progress looks like for individual students who arrive below grade level.
No program offerings data was provided, so specifics about electives, arts, athletics, clubs, or enrichment pathways could not be confirmed. The district brief search was exhausted before parent-relevant changes at Duval County Public Schools could be confirmed, so we left that out rather than guess.
The comparison set for Duval County contains too few districts to produce a meaningful relative ranking on proficiency, and chronic absenteeism and graduation rate data are not applicable at the middle school level, so those measures were not drawn. Absenteeism data specifically was missing from the record.
On the housing side, the zip code around Gilbert sits at a home value well below the Florida statewide median and well below the national median, making the area one of Jacksonville's more affordable pockets for buyers. Values have edged down slightly year over year. Rents are modest in absolute terms and have risen modestly over the same period. The rent-to-income ratio suggests the area is not particularly burdened by rental costs relative to income, and buying carries a mortgage cost noticeably above renting, which is typical in the current rate environment. For families weighing whether to purchase in the attendance zone, the affordability relative to the rest of Jacksonville and Florida broadly is a genuine draw, and the citywide growth trajectory, particularly the downtown investment activity publicly reported by Jacksonville's Downtown Investment Authority and the metro's recognition as a housing growth market, adds context to why the area is in motion.
Jacksonville itself is a large, sprawling city. Most of it is car-dependent, though the blocks nearest downtown, where Gilbert sits, are among the more walkable parts of the city. Public transit through the Jacksonville Transportation Authority, including bus service and the downtown Skyway people-mover, is accessible in this part of town. The city's major employment base in health care, logistics, military, and financial services is geographically spread, but the urban core concentration of employers and institutions is most proximate to this school's location.
For a family whose child is performing at or above grade level and who can supplement at home or through tutoring, the affordability of the surrounding neighborhood and the school's proximity to a city in genuine growth mode may be factors worth weighing. For a family whose child needs intensive academic intervention, the proficiency data raises real questions about capacity to close gaps, and a direct conversation with school staff about support programs and individual student plans would be an important step before enrolling.
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