TARA ELEMENTARY SCHOOL vs IDA M. STEWART ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Tara Elementary School and Ida M. Stewart Elementary School sit 11.8 miles apart in Bradenton, Florida, and both rank among the very best elementary schools in the state. Tara Elementary School holds the edge in overall rating — 9.5/10 versus 9.3/10 for Ida M. Stewart Elementary School — a 0.2-point gap that translates into a meaningful difference in state rank: Tara Elementary School is #3 of 3,777 schools in Florida, while Ida M. Stewart Elementary School is #17 of 3,777. Both positions are exceptional, but Tara's ranking places it in a class of two other schools statewide.

Academically, Tara Elementary School scores 9.5/10 versus Ida M. Stewart Elementary School's 9.3/10 — a 0.2-point delta that mirrors the overall gap. Growth tells a different story: both schools post identical growth scores of 9.7/10, meaning students at each school are making comparable year-over-year gains regardless of where they start. The academic edge at Tara likely reflects its higher baseline proficiency levels rather than faster in-school progress.

The two schools differ more sharply in enrollment and demographics. Tara Elementary School enrolls 568 students compared to 391 at Ida M. Stewart Elementary School — 45% more students. Student-teacher ratios are close but not identical: 13.9:1 at Tara versus 14.5:1 at Ida M. Stewart, giving Tara a slight per-classroom advantage. The free and reduced-price lunch rate diverges significantly — 51% at Tara Elementary School versus 32% at Ida M. Stewart Elementary School — indicating Tara serves a considerably higher share of economically disadvantaged families while still outperforming nearly every school in the state.

Both schools serve grades PK through 5, so families with children across the early elementary span will find the same grade coverage at either campus. The structural difference between them is size and socioeconomic composition: Tara is the larger school with more economic diversity, while Ida M. Stewart is the smaller campus with a higher-income enrollment profile and a fractionally lower student-teacher ratio.