The top reported proficiency rate is 67% in Science. The lowest is 52% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Springhead Elementary School
Springhead Elementary sits on Nesmith Road in Plant City, a growing agricultural city about 25 miles east of Tampa along the I-4 corridor. Plant City is known publicly as a hub for midwinter strawberry farming and operates as a regional distribution center, with major employers including a large hospital, produce and wholesale grocery operations, and logistics firms like Tesla and Sysco. The city has an active historic downtown with brick streets, a linear park, monthly food truck events, and early-1900s residential neighborhoods nearby. New single-family subdivisions are being delivered at a notable pace as the city works through a comprehensive plan update to manage growth that is expected to continue over the coming years.
Springhead serves prekindergarten through fifth grade and draws a substantial enrollment for its grade band. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with white students making up a meaningful secondary share and smaller populations of Black, multiracial, and other students. A large majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places this in the higher range of economic need for an elementary school. Data on English learners and students with IEPs were not available in the provided records.
On Florida's state assessments, the picture is mixed. In math, third and fourth graders perform at levels that sit comfortably above the majority threshold, while fifth-grade math proficiency is somewhat lower. Science results for fifth grade, measured on the Florida Statewide Science Assessment, run close to the stronger math grades. Reading and ELA tell a different story: third-grade ELA proficiency comes in below half of students tested, fourth grade climbs modestly but stays below the majority threshold, and fifth grade reaches just over half. These reading results are below what many families would hope to see, and a parent considering this school would do well to ask directly how the school supports literacy development and what interventions are in place for students who are not yet reading on grade level. Trend data across prior years was not available, so it is not possible from this data alone to say whether these results are improving, stable, or declining.
The comparison framework in the provided data notes that Hillsborough County has only one district, so a meaningful within-county comparison against peer districts is not possible here. Chronic absenteeism and graduation rate metrics do not apply to an elementary school serving these grades.
On the housing side, the Plant City zip code shows home values running close to the Florida state average and roughly in line with national benchmarks, with modest year-over-year softening. Rents have moved slightly upward year over year. Affordability is a real consideration: the estimated monthly cost of ownership runs high relative to income, and rent consumes a meaningful share of a typical household budget. Families buying into this area are entering a market with active new construction from multiple builders, which provides options but also reflects a community in active transition.
Two district-level developments are worth knowing. Hillsborough County voters approved a property tax referendum in late 2024 that adds a supplemental levy beginning in summer 2025 and running through mid-2029, publicly described as directed toward teacher and support staff pay increases. Homeowners in the district will see this as a direct cost increase, and the district frames it as a response to chronic staffing shortages. Separately, the district approved a major boundary rezoning for the 2024-2025 school year affecting a large number of schools and students across the county. Families should confirm current attendance zone assignments with the district, as assignments may have shifted.
Program information for Springhead was not included in the provided data, so the range of enrichment, intervention, or specialty offerings at the school is not something this account can characterize.
See more original research from School Decision →