The top reported proficiency rate is 45% in Math. The lowest is 29% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Rodney B. Cox Elementary School
Rodney B. Cox Elementary sits on Martin Luther King Boulevard in Dade City, serving children from pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school in Pasco County. The school draws a student body that is predominantly Hispanic and Black, with a smaller share of white students and a mix of other backgrounds. The great majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which places this school squarely among Florida's higher-need elementary campuses. Data on English learner identification rates and students with IEPs were not available in the data provided, so parents with questions about those specific programs should contact the school directly.
Academic results, measured by Florida's FAST assessments and the statewide science exam, tell a consistent story across subjects and grades. Proficiency rates in math run from the upper thirties through the low fifties depending on grade level, with fifth grade performing best. ELA proficiency sits in the mid-to-upper thirties at all three tested grade levels, and fifth-grade science proficiency falls well below the math results. Across every subject and grade, more students are not yet reaching the proficiency threshold than are clearing it. These numbers are below what most Florida families would hope to see, and a parent who wants to understand what the school is doing to move those numbers should ask directly about literacy intervention, tutoring structures, and how the school uses its student support staff. Multi-year trend data were not available, so it is not possible to say whether results are improving, holding steady, or declining.
The comparison data provided could not be used to position the school against neighboring schools within Pasco County because only one district serves the county in the comparison set, making a meaningful ranking impossible. That gap does not change the picture the FAST scores themselves paint.
The school is part of Pasco County Schools, a district facing the characteristic pressures of a fast-growing Florida county. Voters approved a property-tax referendum in 2022 to fund salary increases for teachers and non-administrative staff, and publicly reported figures show teacher vacancies fell sharply in the years after those raises took effect. Families who own homes in the attendance zone carry that additional millage cost; a renewal is publicly expected to appear on the November 2026 ballot. A separate county sales tax, renewed by voters in 2022, directs a share of proceeds to the school district for construction, renovations, and safety improvements, which matters in a county building new schools to keep pace with residential growth.
Dade City itself provides the setting. It is the county seat of Pasco County, a small city with a historic downtown built around the courthouse square. The commercial core, anchored by antique shops, cafes, and boutiques in brick storefronts, is walkable, but the broader residential areas are car-dependent and public transit coverage is limited, with county bus routes serving core destinations. The local economy runs on healthcare, education, and government, with AdventHealth Dade City and Pasco County Schools among the larger employers. Saint Leo University and Pasco-Hernando State College are nearby. The area is growing, with master-planned residential developments and new roads, utilities, and school sites under construction; community opinion on that growth is publicly described as divided between those welcoming development and those concerned about traffic and the loss of a quieter, small-town character.
Housing in the zip code that includes the school is priced below the Florida statewide median and slightly below the national median, with values edging downward year over year at the time this data was pulled. Rents in the area represent a meaningful share of a typical household budget at current income levels, and mortgage costs run modestly below rental costs, a gap worth considering for families deciding between renting and buying.
For a family already in this neighborhood or weighing a move to Dade City, Rodney B. Cox Elementary is the neighborhood public option for pre-K through fifth grade. The academic proficiency data are low relative to statewide expectations, and that warrants direct conversation with the school about what academic supports are in place and how they track individual student progress.
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