West Florida News

There were 1,399 Black students enrolled in Charlotte County schools in the 2023-24 school year, a 2% increase from the 1,372 Black students in the previous school year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Data showed that Charlotte County welcomed a total of 16,858 students during the 2023-24 school year. Among them, Black students comprised 8.3% of the student body to be the third most represented ethnicity in the county.

Among the 24 schools in Charlotte County, Port Charlotte High School recorded the highest enrollment of Black students in the 2023-24 school year, with a total of 197 students, making up 11.9% 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
Charlotte High School	8%	1,976
Port Charlotte High School	11.9%	1,659
Lemon Bay High School	1.7%	1,346
Punta Gorda Middle School	7.4%	1,072
Babcock Neighborhood School	2.5%	966
Port Charlotte Middle School	14.5%	884
East Elementary School	1.8%	800
Neil Armstrong Elementary School	13.8%	784
Deep Creek Elementary School	10.2%	767
Liberty Elementary School	8.4%	694
Meadow Park Elementary School	7.6%	669
Sallie Jones Elementary School	10.5%	658
Myakka River Elementary School	2.1%	652
L. A. Ainger Middle School	3.7%	644
Murdock Middle School	13.4%	635
Kingsway Elementary School	13.1%	587
Peace River Elementary School	14.7%	524
Vineland Elementary School	2%	502
Florida Southwestern Collegiate High School	7.9%	355
The Academy	12.1%	298
Baker/Head Start	24.8%	165
Charlotte Harbor School	14.3%	140