Q&A of the Day – Where Does Florida Rank in Education?
Each day I feature a listener question sent by one of these methods.
Email: brianmudd@iheartmedia.com
Social: @brianmuddradio
iHeartRadio: Use the Talkback feature – the microphone button on our station’s page in the iHeart app.
Today’s Entry: Submitted via talkback asking about Florida’s ranking in education outcomes.
Bottom Line: Florida is used to being on top in a lot of categories. We’re first for net migration. First for new business formation. Florida’s economy has been the fastest growing post-pandemic. Florida also has the lowest total personal tax burden. But something Florida historically hadn’t been known for was excelling at was education. Having lived in and covered Florida for decades there’s still one number that sticks out to me above all others. It’s 59.2%. Do you know what that that number, in education, represents in Florida? The all-time bottom-of-the-barrel high school graduation rate.
In 2004, Florida’s graduation rate was 59.2%. I remember seeing that number, doing a double take, checking it multiple times to make sure it wasn’t a mistake, and thinking something along the lines of holy poo...this is way worse than I knew. Twenty years ago, Florida truly was just about at the bottom-of-the-barrel educationally in this country. No, high school graduation rates didn’t and don’t tell the entire story, but when barely more than half of students are graduating from high school there’s not much more of a story that’s left unsaid. But that was then...
Today, Florida’s high school graduation rate is at a non-pandemic record high near 90%. It still doesn’t tell the entire story, however that massive improvement tells much of the story. Florida’s education system has only continued to become considerably better with time. According to the annual US News and World Report Rankings, Florida ranked #1 for higher education for the 8th year in a row this year, but the good news doesn’t stop there... Florida is #1 overall for education nationally for the second year in a row. Twenty years ago, when Florida was near the bottom, who’d have envisioned that would be possible?
Florida is #1 in for education with all levels of education being considered due to being first in higher education but also by rising to... #10 for Pre-K through 12th grade education. That’s determined in the analysis because of Florida’s high rankings in most categories. Florida ranks:
- 19th for High School Graduation rate
- 12th for Preschool Enrollment
- 5th for College Readiness
- 21st for Reading Scores
- 32nd for Math Scores
Obviously, there’s room for improvement, however the progress that’s been made in our state in recent years has been nothing short of remarkable. As noted in the US News & World Report rankings: In higher education, Florida – which is No. 9 in the overall Best States rankings – posted the second-highest rates of timely graduation among students at public institutions pursuing two- and four-year degrees, respectively. Students attending its public, four-year institutions also faced the lowest average amount in the country for in-state tuition and fees. In metrics reflecting pre-K through high school, Florida excelled the most in college readiness – an assessment of the share of 12th-graders who scored highly on the SAT, ACT or both. It was No. 12 for preschool enrollment in the U.S., was tied alongside Illinois with a No. 19 ranking for high school graduation rate, and was No. 21 and No. 32 for eighth-grade reading and math scores, respectively.
As Florida Department of Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. said following Florida’s initial rise to #1 in overall education last year: The Florida education model stands alone as a shining example for all other states to follow. Thank you to the leadership of Governor DeSantis and Florida’s outstanding teachers and students who made this recognition possible. While we are proud of this accomplishment, we will continue to multiply our efforts to solidify Florida’s reputation as the Education State.
Florida’s education commissioner also pointed out these related wins out as well:
- Florida has the lowest in-state tuition for colleges in the country
- Florida’s 2nd nationally in trade school graduation rate and 4th in four-year degree graduation rates
- The average college graduate has $5,000 less in student loan debt than the national average
So yes, Florida is #1 for education for two years running. And for all who’ve been critical of the state’s education approach under Governor DeSantis...the proof has been in the results. Clearly there’s been a better path forward for education in Florida than what we’d done in the past. And with universal school choice now in place there’s room for continued optimism going forward and plenty of reasons to believe Florida will continue on its long-term trend of improved educational outcomes.
Florida’s laser focus on education as opposed to indoctrination is frequently fodder for those on the political left which includes their allies in most news media. But while many states have been busy teaching DEI initiatives, Florida has taken the initiative to focus on providing a straight-forward education agenda and it’s working. For the second straight year Florida’s number one for education, but for the second straight year Florida’s the top overall gainer in education. What often makes the news is noise. Where it matters most Florida is winning and I’ll never get tired of it.