Pahokee Middle-senior High, Pahokee FL

Original Research by School Decision on Pahokee Middle-senior High

Pahokee Middle-Senior High sits on Larrimore Road, a bit removed from Pahokee's historic downtown core near Lake Okeechobee. It serves grades six through twelve, making it the single combined secondary institution for this small agricultural city on the southeastern rim of Lake Okeechobee, in the part of Palm Beach County known as The Glades or Muck City. A family choosing to live in Pahokee is, for practical purposes, choosing this school for all of their children's middle and high school years.

The student body is predominantly Black and Hispanic, reflecting the city's demographics, which are majority African American with a sizeable Latino population. A very large share of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, consistent with Pahokee's standing as one of the poorer communities in a county that also holds some of Florida's wealthiest areas. The school is a regular public school, not a charter or magnet, and it operates within the Palm Beach County School District.

On state assessments, the picture is uneven and worth understanding in some detail. In reading and language arts, sixth graders perform at a solid level on the FAST ELA, and seventh graders are close behind, though eighth-grade ELA results fall noticeably lower. Math tells a different story across the grades: seventh and eighth graders reach proficiency at rates that look reasonably strong, while sixth-grade math proficiency is considerably weaker. The eighth-grade science assessment shows that fewer than a third of students tested as proficient, which is the softest result in the data. No high school assessment data was available in this payload, so the picture covers only the middle grades. Across tested subjects and grades combined, the school's overall proficiency index sits in the bottom quartile relative to other districts in Palm Beach County, which is a comparison set of just a few districts; a parent may want to ask the school directly about supports in place, particularly in science and sixth-grade math, and about what academic trajectory looks like from middle into high school.

Graduation rate data was not available in what was provided. Program information was also not present, so it is not possible to say from this data whether AP courses, dual enrollment, career pathways, or extracurricular programs are available. What is publicly reported is that Pahokee's high school has an unusually strong tradition as an NFL pipeline, and football is described as a defining cultural thread in the community. Chronic absenteeism data was not available.

The housing market in Pahokee is one of the most affordable in Palm Beach County. Home values here are well below the state and national medians, and they have declined modestly over the past year. No rental index data was available for this zip code specifically. The city is actively pursuing affordable and workforce housing development, including projects on former institutional sites, so the local housing stock is expected to grow in the near term. For a family priced out of southeastern Palm Beach County, Pahokee presents a notably different cost of entry.

The town itself is compact and oriented around agriculture. Sugar cane operations, the county school district, and health care are among the primary employers locally. The Palm Beach County public library system operates a branch here, and the marina and campground on Lake Okeechobee is the main outdoor civic anchor. Transit connects Pahokee to Belle Glade via the county bus system. Outside the walkable downtown, the city is low-density and driving is the practical way to get around. Larger retail, hospital services, and additional school options require a longer trip to the eastern part of the county.

The district brief for Palm Beach County yielded little on recent strategic priorities or changes specific to this school, so that was left out rather than guessed at.

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Academic performance

State test results and graduation outcomes.

Graduation rate (ACGR)

>=95%Cohort of 105 students · Class of 2021

The federal source publishes a banded range instead of an exact rate when the graduating cohort is small enough that an exact number could risk identifying individual students.

How this school compares to all schools in this state

Each dot is one school’s SY 2020-21 graduation rate, binned by integer rate. Taller columns mean more schools at that rate. This school is highlighted.

867 schools plotted. 183 additional schools' rates are federally suppressed and not shown. Data: EDFacts SY 2020-21.

Math

Grade 633%

School 33% · District 65% · ▼ 32 pts below district

▼ 29 pts below state median · ▼ 61 pts below county median

Grade 761%

School 61% · District 42% · ▲ 19 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 17 pts above county median

Grade 860%

School 60% · District 65% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▲ 9 pts above state median · even with county median

English language arts

Grade 661%

School 61% · District 62% · ▼ 1 pts below district

▲ 1 pts above state median · ▼ 1 pts below county median

Grade 758%

School 58% · District 60% · ▼ 2 pts below district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▼ 4 pts below county median

Grade 847%

School 47% · District 56% · ▼ 9 pts below district

▼ 7 pts below state median · ▼ 9 pts below county median

Science

Grade 829%

School 29% · District 51% · ▼ 22 pts below district

▼ 17 pts below state median · ▼ 16 pts below county median

This schoolPALM BEACH, 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-income58%Higher-income74%16 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income57%Higher-income62%5 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income44%Higher-income58%14 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income34%Higher-income30%4 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income57%Higher-income72%15 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income59%Higher-income69%11 pp gap