Panama City Reporter

There were 3,830 Black students enrolled in Bay County schools in the 2023-24 school year, a 3.2% increase from the 3,710 Black students in the previous school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Data showed that Bay County welcomed a total of 27,343 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, Black students comprised 14% of the student body to be the second most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 47 schools in Bay County, Rutherford High School recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 476 students, making up 33.5% of the school's total student body.

Gov. DeSantis has approved an education budget of over $28 billion for the 2024-25 school year. The new budget includes more than $1 billion earmarked exclusively for teacher salaries to better address the teacher shortage the state faces.

A 2024 WalletHub study ranked Florida 49th in the nation for teacher salaries when adjusted for cost of living, making it one of the lowest in the U.S.

School name	% of Black Students Enrolment	Total Enrollment
A. Crawford Mosley High School	8.7%	1,838
J. R. Arnold High School	9.5%	1,637
Rutherford High School	33.5%	1,423
Bay High School	26.7%	1,298
Breakfast Point Academy	8%	1,044
Tyndall Academy	15.4%	908
North Bay Haven Career Academy	6.5%	882
Surfside Middle School	10.2%	825
Mowat Middle School	16%	818
Bay Haven Charter Academy	9.3%	765
Tommy Smith Elementary School	6.8%	731
University Academy Sabl Inc.	5.9%	707
Deer Point Elementary School	6.1%	707
North Bay Haven Charter Academy Elementary School	4.3%	694
Merritt Brown Middle School	7.4%	680
Hiland Park Elementary School	14.5%	676
Lynn Haven Elementary School	9.2%	676
Patronis Elementary School	8.8%	634
Hutchison Beach Elementary School	17.1%	585
Jinks Middle School	35.8%	583
Northside Elementary School	18.4%	561
Cedar Grove Elementary School	35.2%	554
Callaway Elementary School	26.3%	537
North Bay Haven Charter Academy Middle School	6.1%	525
Lucille Moore Elementary School	28.6%	524
Parker Elementary School	29.7%	502
Bay Haven Charter Middle School	9.7%	432
A. Gary Walsingham Academy	13.9%	423
Merriam Cherry Street Elementary School	38.1%	381
West Bay Elementary School	3.1%	357
Rosenwald High School	25.6%	324
Palm Bay Elementary School	28.7%	317
Rising Leaders Academy	19.7%	309
Palm Bay Preparatory Academy 6-12	16.4%	201
Margaret K. Lewis in Millville	18.3%	169
Central High School	14.2%	106
New Horizons Learning Center	27.5%	91
St. Andrew School at Oakland Terrace	27.9%	68