The top reported proficiency rate is 83% in Science. The lowest is 75% in English language arts.
Original Research by School Decision on Sutherland Elementary School
Sutherland Elementary sits on North Belcher Road in Palm Harbor, serving children from pre-K through fifth grade as a conventional public elementary within Pinellas County Schools. The school is a moderate size for its grade band, drawing from a community that is largely residential, built out, and suburban in character, with a student body that is predominantly white with Hispanic, multiracial, and Black students making up most of the remaining enrollment. A meaningful share of families qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, reflecting a mixed economic profile that is common across many Pinellas elementary schools. Data on English learner and special education populations was not reported in the available records, so those pieces of the picture are incomplete.
Academic results from the most recent Florida state assessments are strong across the board. Math proficiency is a clear standout: third graders tested at a very high rate, and fifth graders posted results well above what most Florida schools achieve at that grade. Fourth-grade math proficiency is somewhat lower than the other grades, which a parent may want to ask the school about directly. ELA tells a steady, encouraging story, with all three tested grades coming in well above the Florida midpoint, and fifth grade in particular showing results that are genuinely high. Fifth-grade science proficiency is equally solid. These are real academic signals that Sutherland's tested students are performing well against statewide peers, not just against a local curve.
The district context matters here. Pinellas County Schools publicly reported earning an "A" grade from the Florida Department of Education for the first time in the district's history, coinciding with a district-developed ELA curriculum built around the science of reading. That curriculum starts in kindergarten and runs through fifth grade with explicit phonics and word-study components, so Sutherland students are receiving instruction through that updated approach. The district also passed a voter-approved renewal and expansion of its local school property tax in late 2024, extending funding for teacher bonuses and arts, music, and technology programs across elementary schools. For a family buying into Palm Harbor, that levy adds a modest ongoing cost but also represents a direct investment in the programs and staffing that show up in classrooms.
Palm Harbor itself is a car-dependent, built-out unincorporated community in northern Pinellas County, publicly reported to sit roughly 22 miles north of St. Petersburg. The area offers a range of residential neighborhoods from golf and waterfront communities to family subdivisions and master-planned East Lake developments. Home values near Sutherland's zip code are above the Florida statewide median and well above the national figure, and they have edged slightly lower year over year. Rents have also softened recently. The area is not particularly walkable outside the historic Old Palm Harbor downtown and the Pinellas Trail corridor, so families should expect to drive to school and most daily destinations. Civic life is anchored by the Palm Harbor Library, the Pinellas Trail, and parks including Wall Springs Park and John Chesnut Sr. Park along Lake Tarpon.
No magnet designation, Title I designation, specialized program information, or course-access data was available for Sutherland in the underlying records. The school does not serve middle or high school grades, so graduation rates and AP access do not apply here. Comparison proficiency data against other Pinellas County districts was not computable because only one district serves the county, so no peer ranking is available.
What the data does show is an elementary school with consistently strong tested outcomes, embedded in a district that has made a visible, documented shift in literacy instruction and recently secured stable supplemental funding through a voter referendum. For a family settling into northern Palm Harbor looking for a neighborhood public elementary with high academic proficiency rates, Sutherland's results make it worth a close look.
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