Hernando Reporter

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

Of the 24,058 students attending Hernando County schools, 58.1% were white. Hispanic students were the second largest ethnicity, making up 26% of Hernando County students.

In the previous school year, white students were also the most common ethnicity in Hernando County, representing 58.1% of the student body.

Moton Elementary School had the most even distribution of races among the county schools, including 46.8% white students, 21.8% Black students, 20.9% Hispanic students, and 9.4% multiracial students.

In the 2022-23 school year, the total number of students enrolled in public schools in the county increased by 2.7% 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
Brooksville Elementary School	White	66%	652
Brooksville Engineering Science and Technology (B.E.S.T.) a	White	51.3%	78
Central High School	White	52.2%	1,426
Challenger K-8 School of Science and Math	White	67.6%	1,477
Chocachatti Elementary School	White	60.9%	783
D. S. Parrott Middle School	White	59.3%	835
Deltona Elementary School	White	54.2%	843
Eastside Elementary School	White	59.4%	737
Endeavor Academy	White	54.6%	132
Explorer K-8	White	46.4%	1,617
Fox Chapel Middle School	White	54.9%	862
Frank W. Springstead High School	White	57.3%	1,896
Gulf Coast Academy of Science and Technology	White	67%	212
Gulf Coast Elementary School	White	62.7%	110
Hernando County Jail	Black	< 10%	< 10
Hernando Eschool Virtual Franchise	White	66.1%	62
Hernando High School	White	63.8%	1,299
John D. Floyd Elementary School	White	50.8%	948
Moton Elementary School	White	46.8%	679
Nature Coast Technical High School	White	61.2%	1,298
Pace Center for Girls	White	60.5%	43
Pine Grove Elementary School	White	58.1%	991
Powell Middle School	White	53.1%	1,004
Spring Hill Elementary School	White	50.8%	893
Suncoast Elementary School	White	54.2%	899
Weeki Wachee High School	White	66.9%	1,435
West Hernando Middle School	White	49.5%	695
Westside Elementary School	White	60.2%	523
Winding Waters K-8	White	71.1%	1,622