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Alternative public school · Hillsborough · Ruskin, Florida

South County Career Center

South County Career Center rates 6.2 on our scale, which leans on how many students test on grade level; on Florida's learning-gains rating it is Commendable.

Schools, 1 to 10This campus on our ten-point scale.
6.2this school

6.2 on a one-to-ten scale.

#2,148 of 3,811 schools in Florida · Florida School Improvement Rating 2025-26: Commendable, on learning gains

The brief

A Hillsborough alternative school where students score 26 points below what's typical for similar communities.

Florida rates South County Career Center on learning gains, not on how many students test on grade level. Its 2025-26 School Improvement Rating is Commendable, on 68% of possible points (Commendable starts at 50%). In reading, 74% of eligible students made learning gains, and in math, 62%; 96% of students were tested. Its previous rating was Commendable, in 2024-25.

South County Career Center is listed in Hillsborough, and a district label does not verify attendance for an address: confirm the zoned campus with the district before you commit to a street.

Math11%38 points below the Florida average of 49%High-school course exams · 49 students tested · 2026 FAST
Reading37%24 points below the Florida average of 61%Grade 10 · 27 students tested · 2026 FAST
Proficiency declined earlier in the 18-year record (2009–2026), then recovered 10 points since 2021, reaching 24% in 2026.2026 FAST; 30 test records from FL state assessments and EdFacts (NCES).

What the rating is made of, each out of 10

Student Progress
8.7
25% of the rating
Academics
2.3
25% of the rating
College Readiness
5.2
30% of the rating
Resources & Environment
9.2
20% of the rating

Academics is status: the share of students testing on grade level. Florida's School Improvement Rating counts learning gains instead, and Student Progress is our school-wide proficiency trend, not Florida's measure of each student's gains.

About this school's data1 correction under review · rating: low confidence · 7 sources, 2019–2026

Every number on this page comes from a published source with a stated period. Where a source is partial, aging, an estimate, or describes a surrounding area rather than the school, that limitation is named here.

Attendance data is under correction. This existing Resources & Environment score and overall rating may still reflect an unverified attendance input.

Full Profile · 4/4 metrics

Multi-year averages used by the rating model: math 9% (multi-year average, 2009-2026) · reading/ELA 18% (multi-year average, 2009-2026).

School directory (enrollment, grades, staff, contact)
NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) · SY 2023–24 · Medium confidence
  • Source period: SY 2023–24. A newer release may be available.
MySchoolScout rating and rank
MySchoolScout ranking model · Low confidence
  • Vintage not available. Do not use this measure alone.
  • Derived as a weighted blend of the component scores shown in Academics from state assessment, EdFacts growth, and NCES resource records.
Math proficiency
State department of education · 2026 FAST · Medium confidence
  • Available for part of the eligible units; results may not represent the full area.
  • Derived from source records rather than read directly from one field.
Reading/ELA proficiency
State department of education · 2026 FAST · Medium confidence
  • Available for part of the eligible units; results may not represent the full area.
  • Derived from source records rather than read directly from one field.
Student progress (growth)
State assessments · Mixed source periods · Low confidence
  • Vintage not available. Do not use this measure alone.
  • Available for part of the eligible units; results may not represent the full area.
  • Derived as the fitted year-over-year slope of proficiency from multi-year assessment records.
Neighborhood (income, housing, education)
U.S. Census ACS 5-year estimates · ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates · Low confidence
  • Older source: ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates. Use as historical context.
  • Reported for the ZCTA for ZIP 33570; this does not measure the attendance area.
Programs (AP/IB, athletics, gifted)
CRDC via Urban Institute · SY 2021–22 · Medium confidence
  • Available for part of the eligible units; results may not represent the full area.
  • Source period: SY 2021–22. A newer release may be available.

Evidence periods: Rating mixed/unknown input periods; assessments multi-year average, 2009-2026; directory SY 2023–24

The neighborhood

Where it sits, and what the area looks like.
South County Career Center and the 20 nearest schools, each pin colored by its score.Pins are locations, not attendance boundaries. Verify the enrollment path with the district.

The area

Median income
$69,048
Median home value
$255,400
Median rent
$1,217/mo
College educated
22.4%
Homeownership
74.7%
Poverty rate
12.2%

U.S. Census ACS 5-year estimates · ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates for the ZCTA associated with school ZIP 33570; this is area context, not an attendance boundary.

Getting around

Walk Score
3
Car-Dependent
Bike Score
26
Somewhat Bikeable
County reported crime
771/100K
Reported Part-1 offenses (violent + property + arson) per 100,000 county residents, counting every city police department, sheriff's office and county police department that reported a full year to the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting program. Shown only where those agencies cover at least 80% of the county's residents. Not a school safety rating.

Walk, transit and bike scores byWalk Score

FBI Uniform Crime Reporting · 2025 · county context, not school-level safety or attendance eligibility. Source details

Programs and who goes here

What the campus offers, and who it enrolls.

Programs

Advanced STEM courses
2 of 5
Algebra II, Advanced Math, Calculus, Chemistry, Physics · CRDC via Urban Institute · SY 2021–22

Who goes here

Free or reduced lunch
68.4%
Students qualifying for federal meal assistance. Shown separately, never in the score.

NCES Common Core of Data (CCD).

Compare nearby

Grade-compatible schools using the same rating model.
Public-school ratings. Grade-compatible district peers, best rated first.
  1. 7.0Compare →
  2. 6.7Compare →
  3. South County Career Centerthis school
    6.2
  4. 5.5Compare →
No grade-compatible school using the same rating model is available within 5 miles, so these are three recorded peers in Hillsborough, best rated first.Public-school ratings. Same-district campuses. A district label is not attendance eligibility; verify the enrollment path with the district.

Distance is proximity only; it is not attendance eligibility.

Charter · enrollment unverified: Potential charter option; enrollment requirements have not been verified.

Enrollment path unverified: Potential public school; its attendance or application path has not been classified.

The record

What is on file, and where each number came from.

Questions families ask

What grades does South County Career Center serve?

South County Career Center serves students in grades Pre-K through 12th.

How many students attend South County Career Center?

South County Career Center has an enrollment of approximately 158 students.

What is the student-teacher ratio at South County Career Center?

The student-teacher ratio at South County Career Center is 12.2:1. A lower ratio generally means more individual attention per student. The national average is approximately 16:1 for public schools.

How does South County Career Center rank in FL?

South County Career Center ranks #2,148 of 3,811 schools in FL.

What is South County Career Center's MySchoolScout rating?

South County Career Center has a current MySchoolScout rating of 6.2 out of 10. This score combines the level-appropriate components shown in the rating breakdown and leans on how many students test on grade level; equity data is shown separately for context. Florida rates South County Career Center on learning gains instead: its 2025-26 School Improvement Rating is Commendable, on 68% of possible points (Commendable starts at 50%).

What are the test scores at South County Career Center?

Based on loaded state assessment records, South County Career Center has 9% math proficiency (multi-year average, 2009-2026) and 18% reading/ELA proficiency (multi-year average, 2009-2026).

Is South County Career Center a charter school?

No, South County Career Center is not a charter school. It is an alternative public school.

Is South County Career Center a Title I school?

No, South County Career Center is not currently a Title I school.

What does the Free & Reduced Lunch percentage mean for South County Career Center?

68.4% of students at South County Career Center qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. This is a commonly used indicator of economic need and provides important context when interpreting test scores.

School facts

Grades
Pre-K – 12th
Enrollment
158
Student-teacher ratio
12.2:1
Teachers (FTE)
13
Type
Alternative
Title I
No
Florida School Improvement Rating
Commendable (2025-26, on learning gains)
Setting
Fringe Rural
County
Hillsborough County
4-year graduation
50–54%
Federal four-year cohort rate, class of 2023 (EdFacts). Counts students who need more than four years, common where students arrive mid-year and behind on credits, as not graduating.
Rank in district
#130 of 290
Schools in district
305
District spending per student
$10,590
NCES F-33 · FY 2023 · This annual source is three years behind the current year.
District child poverty rate
13.2%
Census SAIPE · 2024
Area population (ZIP 33570)
33,676
Area average commute
32.5 min
Area median age
36.7

NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) (SY 2023–24).

Related reading

Data from NCES Common Core of Data, Florida Dept. of Education, and U.S. Census ACS for the 2023–24 school year. Rankings computed by MySchoolScout. See all data sources.