DESOTO ELEMENTARY SCHOOL vs GRADY ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Grady Elementary School holds a substantial edge in overall rating, sitting at 9.3/10 against DeSoto Elementary School's 8.5/10 — a gap that compounds sharply when viewed through state rankings: Grady Elementary School ranks #30 of 3,777 Florida elementary schools, placing it in the top 1% statewide, while DeSoto Elementary School ranks #294 of 3,777, a respectable top 8% but a clear tier below. For families who weight a school's standing against the full field of Florida elementaries, that 264-position difference in state rank is not marginal.

The academic score tells the starkest story between these two Tampa schools: Grady Elementary School scores 9.7/10 in academics versus DeSoto Elementary School's 6.5/10, a 3.2-point gap on a 10-point scale. The picture flips entirely on growth, where DeSoto Elementary School leads with a 9.9/10 growth score against Grady Elementary School's 9.2/10. That combination — lower academic proficiency but elite-tier growth — suggests DeSoto Elementary School is moving students forward at an exceptional rate relative to their starting points, which is meaningful context for families whose children are entering below grade level.

Demographically, the two schools serve distinctly different populations. DeSoto Elementary School enrolls 180 students with 75% qualifying for free or reduced lunch and a student-teacher ratio of 9.5:1. Grady Elementary School enrolls 557 students — more than three times the headcount — with 18% free or reduced lunch eligibility and a 14.3:1 student-teacher ratio. DeSoto Elementary School's near-one-to-ten adult-to-student ratio is exceptionally low and translates to more individualized attention per child, a structural advantage that its growth score appears to validate.

Both DeSoto Elementary School and Grady Elementary School serve grades PK through 05 and sit 5.0 miles apart in Tampa, making either a realistic option for families in the corridor between them. The program offerings and grade-level structure are equivalent, so the decision turns entirely on the metrics above rather than on access to different grade bands or specialized tracks.