Pierce Hammock Elementary School, Loxahatchee FL

Original Research by School Decision on Pierce Hammock Elementary School

Pierce Hammock Elementary sits on Hamlin Boulevard in Loxahatchee, in the western reaches of Palm Beach County, serving children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade. It is a regular public school in the Palm Beach district, not a charter or magnet program.

The school's enrollment lands in a moderate range for an elementary campus. Roughly a third of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places it below the economically disadvantaged concentrations seen at many Florida schools. The student body is majority white, with Hispanic students making up the next largest group, and smaller populations of Black, Asian, and multiracial students. Data on English learner rates and students with IEPs was not available in the records reviewed.

On Florida's FAST assessments in the 2024-25 school year, proficiency results across reading, math, and science were generally solid. Third and fourth grade reading scores came in comfortably above the majority-proficient threshold, and fifth grade reading held at a similar level. Math results showed some variation by grade, with third and fifth grade performing well above the midpoint while fourth grade came in somewhat lower, a pattern worth asking the school about if you have a child entering that year. Fifth grade science proficiency was strong. A small number of sixth-grade math results appear in the data, likely reflecting an accelerated pathway for a handful of students; that group's performance is not meaningful as a general measure of the school. Taken together, the school's overall proficiency index places it above the midpoint relative to districts in Palm Beach County, though the comparison set contains only a small number of county districts, so that context is limited.

No multi-year trend data was available, so it is not possible to characterize whether performance has been improving or holding steady.

The surrounding Loxahatchee area is in the western suburban edge of Palm Beach County. The locale brief search returned no usable detail on the character of the area, its employers, or its walkability, so those questions are better answered through a visit or local community conversations. What the housing data does show is a market priced well above both state and national medians, with home values that have held roughly flat year-over-year and rents that have edged upward. At current mortgage rates, buying in this zip code would absorb a substantial share of a household's income, and renters face a similarly stretched affordability picture. Families weighing a move to this attendance zone are entering one of the more expensive residential markets in Florida.

No program data was available for Pierce Hammock, so it is not possible to speak to enrichment offerings, intervention supports, or extracurricular options beyond what the school would share directly. The Palm Beach district brief search did not return confirmed recent changes of parent relevance, so that section is left out here rather than filled with speculation.

A graduation rate does not apply to an elementary school, and chronic absenteeism data was not reported in the available records, a gap a parent may want to follow up on with the school directly since chronic absence patterns in the early grades can carry forward.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 368%

School 68% · District 64% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 8 pts above county median

Grade 457%

School 57% · District 55% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 5 pts above county median

Grade 575%

School 75% · District 59% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 6100%

School 100% · District 65% · ▲ 35 pts above district

▲ 38 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 369%

School 69% · District 57% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 19 pts above county median

Grade 473%

School 73% · District 56% · ▲ 17 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 572%

School 72% · District 56% · ▲ 16 pts above district

▲ 18 pts above state median · ▲ 18 pts above county median

Science

Grade 569%

School 69% · District 54% · ▲ 15 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above 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 3Lower-income58%Higher-income75%17 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income64%Higher-income77%13 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income55%Higher-income79%24 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income65%Higher-income70%6 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income44%Higher-income65%21 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income60%Higher-income81%21 pp gap