Panama City Reporter

The majority of students in Bay County schools were white in the 2022-23 school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Of the 27,324 students attending Bay County schools, 62.9% were white. Black students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 14.1% of Bay County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common ethnicity in Bay County, representing 62.2% of the student body.

Bay Virtual Instruction Program had the most diverse student body in the county, which included Black, white, Black, white, Hispanic, multiracial, and Alaskan Native or American Indian.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 4.3% when compared to the previous year.

Florida's choice to stick with in-person classes during the pandemic may have shielded students from significant learning setbacks. A recent Harvard study highlighted that districts heavily reliant on remote learning saw the most significant declines in student achievement amid the COVID-19 crisis.

Interestingly, gaps in math achievement by race and school poverty did not widen in school districts in states such as Texas and Florida and elsewhere that remained largely in-person, said Thomas Kane, professor at Harvard Graduate School of Education.

School Name	Most Prevalent Ethnicity	Percent of Total Student Body	Total Enrollment
A. Crawford Mosley High School	White	74%	1,901
A. Gary Walsingham Academy	White	59.5%	343
Amikids Maritime Academy	White	72.7%	22
Bay Haven Charter Academy	White	69.7%	765
Bay Haven Charter Middle School	White	70.2%	433
Bay High School	White	44.1%	1,255
Bay Regional Juvenile Detention Center	White	60.9%	23
Bay Virtual Franchise	White	78.8%	66
Bay Virtual Instruction Program	White	73.5%	117
Breakfast Point Academy	White	67.8%	1,058
Callaway Elementary School	White	42.1%	511
Cedar Grove Elementary School	Black	37%	562
Central High School	White	60.2%	93
Chautauqua Charter School	White	73.9%	46
Deane Bozeman School	White	90.4%	1,619
Deer Point Elementary School	White	76.5%	705
Hiland Park Elementary School	White	55.2%	643
Hutchison Beach Elementary School	White	56.7%	621
J. R. Arnold High School	White	70.7%	1,617
Jinks Middle School	White	34.9%	570
Lucille Moore Elementary School	Hispanic	38.4%	503
Lynn Haven Elementary School	White	73%	699
Margaret K. Lewis in Millville	White	62.1%	182
Merriam Cherry Street Elementary School	White	43.4%	362
Merritt Brown Middle School	White	76.3%	701
Mowat Middle School	White	60.1%	868
New Horizons Learning Center	White	57%	107
North Bay Haven Career Academy	White	73.6%	897
North Bay Haven Charter Academy Elementary School	White	74.1%	695
North Bay Haven Charter Academy Middle School	White	68.9%	524
Northside Elementary School	White	50.5%	598
Palm Bay Elementary School	White	41.1%	316
Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12	White	43.6%	195
Parker Elementary School	White	36.5%	496
Patronis Elementary School	White	71.8%	648
Rising Leaders Academy	White	58.1%	301
Rosenwald High School	White	49%	345
Rutherford High School	White	38.7%	1,337
Southport Elementary School	White	89.1%	506
St. Andrew School at Oakland Terrace	White	57.5%	94
Surfside Middle School	White	65.1%	843
Tommy Smith Elementary School	White	72%	639
Tyndall Academy	White	55.4%	800
University Academy Sabl Inc.	White	79.1%	688
Waller Elementary School	White	87.7%	439
West Bay Elementary School	White	74.8%	313