The top reported proficiency rate is 93% in Math. The lowest is 86% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Ponte Vedra Palm Valley- Rawlings Elementary School
Ponte Vedra Palm Valley-Rawlings Elementary sits on US Highway A1A North in Ponte Vedra Beach, a large unincorporated coastal community in St. Johns County roughly eighteen miles southeast of downtown Jacksonville. The school serves prekindergarten through fifth grade as a regular public school within the St. Johns County School District, and its enrollment places it on the larger end for an elementary school serving these grades.
The academic picture here is one of the strongest you will find anywhere in Florida. On the most recent Florida FAST assessments, math proficiency across third, fourth, and fifth grades ranged from solidly high to exceptionally high, with fifth grade matching third grade near the very top and fourth grade still well above what most Florida schools report. ELA results follow a similar pattern, with all three tested grades coming in well above state norms. The fifth-grade statewide science assessment likewise showed a clear majority of students proficient. Positioned against the two districts that make up St. Johns County, Rawlings lands in the top quartile on an overall proficiency index that aggregates results across subjects and grades, and its index value sits substantially above the county median. That comparison set is small, so it is worth saying plainly that the underlying proficiency rates themselves tell the story: this school is performing at a high level by any statewide measure.
The student body is large enough that every grade from kindergarten through fifth has a meaningful cohort, with fifth grade the largest. The share of students who qualify for free or reduced-price lunch is quite small, among the lowest you would encounter at a Florida public elementary school, which reflects the community's economic profile. Racial and ethnic composition shows a predominantly white enrollment, with Hispanic, multiracial, and Asian students making up most of the remaining share. Data on students with IEPs and English learners was not available in what was provided, so a parent with specific questions about special education services or language support should ask the school directly.
The setting matters to the school profile. Ponte Vedra Beach is built around beach neighborhoods, gated golf communities, and resort properties, with commercial life concentrated in nodes rather than spread across a traditional downtown. There is no incorporated city government; civic services come through St. Johns County and a local Municipal Service District. Daily life is car-oriented, and sidewalk connectivity is uneven in parts of the community, though gated neighborhoods tend to be pedestrian and golf-cart friendly. The PGA TOUR is headquartered here, TPC Sawgrass is nearby, and resort hospitality employs a significant slice of the local workforce alongside the school district itself.
Housing in the school's zip code is priced well above both the Florida state median and the national median, with the gap substantial enough to place this among the more expensive residential markets in the state. Rents have moved upward recently. The monthly cost of ownership on a typical home in the zip code requires a considerable income, and the rent-to-income ratio is meaningful for anyone considering renting instead. This is St. Johns County, described publicly as Florida's wealthiest county, and the housing market reflects that.
For families buying into this area, two ballot measures approved by St. Johns County voters in November 2024 carry direct financial implications. A new one-mill property tax increase dedicated to school operations is now in effect, directing a large share of its proceeds to teacher and staff salaries and the rest to school safety, nurses, mental-health counselors, and programs including arts, music, and athletics. Separately, voters renewed a half-cent capital sales surtax for another multi-year term to fund school construction, technology, and maintenance as the district continues to grow. Both were passed with public support, and both factor into the cost of owning or spending in the county.
The adjacent Nocatee master-planned community, now in its final development phase, drove much of St. Johns County's rapid growth over the past two decades. New construction there is winding down, and the broader Ponte Vedra Beach area is shifting toward a more settled pace of development, with the main near-term growth story being a multi-phase resort expansion along the oceanfront. The school itself has no program-specific data in what was provided; questions about enrichment offerings, gifted programming, or after-school options are worth raising directly with the school.
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