Dowdell Middle Magnet School, Tampa FL

Original Research by School Decision on Dowdell Middle Magnet School

Dowdell Middle Magnet School is a public middle school serving grades six through eight in Tampa's 33619 zip code, part of Hillsborough County Public Schools. Its enrollment sits in a range that is moderate for a middle school, and the student body is demographically diverse, with Hispanic students making up the largest share, followed by Black students and a smaller proportion of white students. A substantial majority of enrolled students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places this school in a high-poverty context by national measures. Data on English learners and students with IEPs was not available in what we reviewed.

The school carries a magnet designation in its name, though the specific magnet theme or academic focus was not present in the data available to us. Families considering Dowdell specifically for a magnet program would want to ask the school directly about its programming model, selection process, and what differentiates the magnet curriculum from a standard middle school experience.

On Florida state assessments, proficiency rates across all three grade levels and tested subjects are low. In both reading and math, fewer than a third of students scored at the proficient level in any grade. Eighth-grade science proficiency was lower still. These are reported results from the most recent year available, and a parent thinking about academic preparation for high school would want to ask the school about its intervention and support systems, how it tracks student growth over time, and what resources are available for students who are behind grade level. Multi-year trend data was not available, so it is not possible to characterize whether results have been improving, declining, or holding steady.

The comparison framework available placed Dowdell relative to districts in Hillsborough County, but the cohort was too small to generate meaningful peer comparisons on proficiency, and chronic absenteeism and graduation rate data were either not applicable at this grade level or not reported.

The school sits in a zip code where home values are meaningfully below the statewide median and below the national median, making this one of the more accessible parts of Tampa from a housing cost standpoint. Home values in the area have dipped modestly year over year, and rents have been roughly flat. For a family renting, the rent-to-income ratio in this zip code reflects a meaningful share of household income going toward housing, consistent with a market where affordability remains real but not effortless.

Tampa as a city is in an active development phase, anchored by major mixed-use projects downtown and employment across defense, healthcare, finance, and higher education. The broader metro continues to attract population, though there are early signs of employment moderation. For families thinking about the southeast Tampa neighborhoods near this school specifically, the texture is residential and more working-class than the historic preservation districts or waterfront enclaves on the city's western side.

At the district level, Hillsborough County voters approved a property tax levy in late 2024 to fund teacher and staff pay supplements, running through mid-2029. This is a direct cost for homeowners and represents a structural change in how the district funds salaries. The district also completed a significant boundary rezoning that took effect for the 2024-2025 school year, reshuffling attendance zones across many schools. Families who are newer to the area or who moved in the past year or two should confirm directly with the district that their address maps to Dowdell and that those boundaries are stable.

Program offerings beyond the magnet designation were not listed in the data we reviewed, which is a gap worth filling with the school directly before making enrollment decisions.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 629%

School 29% · District 54% · ▼ 25 pts below district

▼ 33 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

Grade 717%

School 17% · District 36% · ▼ 19 pts below district

▼ 32 pts below state median · ▼ 20 pts below county median

Grade 830%

School 30% · District 58% · ▼ 28 pts below district

▼ 21 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

English language arts

Grade 632%

School 32% · District 55% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 28 pts below state median · ▼ 21 pts below county median

Grade 732%

School 32% · District 55% · ▼ 23 pts below district

▼ 23 pts below state median · ▼ 22 pts below county median

Grade 828%

School 28% · District 52% · ▼ 24 pts below district

▼ 26 pts below state median · ▼ 25 pts below county median

Science

Grade 822%

School 22% · District 48% · ▼ 26 pts below district

▼ 24 pts below state median · ▼ 23 pts below county median

This schoolHILLSBOROUGH, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 6Lower-income31%Higher-income37%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income33%Higher-income28%5 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income28%Higher-income28%1 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income28%Higher-income33%5 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income18%Higher-income15%3 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income31%Higher-income28%3 pp gap