Thomas L Sims Middle School, Pace FL

Original Research by School Decision on Thomas L Sims Middle School

Thomas L. Sims Middle School sits on Education Drive in Pace, a fast-growing residential suburb in Santa Rosa County on the northwest Florida panhandle. Pace functions as a bedroom community of Pensacola, drawing a substantial share of military families from nearby naval installations, and it has been adding new subdivisions rapidly as population growth pushes construction northward into what was once farming land. The school serves sixth through eighth graders in that expanding community.

Academic results from Florida's FAST assessments are generally solid. In math, proficiency rises from a strong level at sixth grade to quite high by eighth grade, with seventh grade sitting comfortably in between. ELA results are more even across the three years, clustering in the upper-sixties to low-seventies range statewide, which represents passing performance though not the kind of gap from the state midpoint that would draw headlines. The one science result available, from the eighth-grade statewide science assessment, comes in around the low-to-mid sixties, placing it a bit below the math picture. Trend data across years was not available in this data set, so whether those numbers are moving up or down is something a parent may want to ask the school directly. No subgroup breakdowns were available, so it is not possible to characterize how students with IEPs, English learners, or particular racial and ethnic groups are performing relative to their peers; that information was also absent from the civil-rights and special-populations fields.

Enrollment places Sims in a typical size range for a three-grade middle school in a growing suburb. The student body is predominantly white, with Hispanic students making up the next largest group and multiracial students a meaningful presence as well. Just under half of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which is a substantial share and places the school in a mixed economic context. The neighbor comparison field was not applicable here because Santa Rosa County contains only one district, so there is no within-county peer group to draw on for positioning.

The housing market around Pace tells a clear story about who is arriving. Home values in the relevant zip code sit modestly below the Florida statewide benchmark and are essentially flat year over year, a relative affordability that has helped drive inbound migration. Rents have ticked up slightly. The rent-to-income ratio sits in a range that is workable compared to many Florida metros, though mortgage affordability is affected by the same elevated rates facing buyers everywhere. For families relocating, particularly military families on PCS orders, the combination of large lots, new construction, and prices below the state median is part of what makes Pace attractive.

Pace itself is car-dependent; there is no meaningful walkable district around the school. Outdoor recreation is genuinely accessible, with Floridatown Park, the Blackwater River corridor, and trail systems nearby. The community leans family-oriented and lower-density, and the school's location on a dedicated education drive reflects that the civic and school infrastructure was built to serve subdivisions rather than a traditional town center.

Program details for Sims were not included in the data provided, so specific course offerings, extracurriculars, or supports beyond the standard grade band are not possible to describe here. The Santa Rosa district brief did not return confirmed information on recent policy or staffing changes within the search window, so that was left out rather than guessed at. A parent wanting to understand elective options, acceleration pathways into high school, or particular student support programs would want to contact the school directly.

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Academic performance

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

Math

Grade 674%

School 74% · District 69% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 12 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Grade 768%

School 68% · District 57% · ▲ 11 pts above district

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

Grade 886%

School 86% · District 73% · ▲ 13 pts above district

▲ 35 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 669%

School 69% · District 68% · ▲ 1 pts above district

▲ 9 pts above state median · ▲ 1 pts above county median

Grade 771%

School 71% · District 61% · ▲ 10 pts above district

▲ 16 pts above state median · ▲ 11 pts above county median

Grade 868%

School 68% · District 63% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 14 pts above state median · ▲ 2 pts above county median

Science

Grade 865%

School 65% · District 58% · ▲ 7 pts above district

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

This schoolSANTA ROSA, 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-income62%Higher-income75%13 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income61%Higher-income77%16 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income56%Higher-income76%20 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 6Lower-income64%Higher-income83%18 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income65%Higher-income72%7 pp gap

Grade 8Lower-income79%Higher-income91%13 pp gap