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Sarasota County Schools, Florida

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Sarasota County Schools
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Sarasota County, Florida
District details
Superintendent:Terry Connor
# of school board members:5
Website:Link

Sarasota County Schools is aschool district inFlorida.

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Superintendent

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This information is updated as we become aware of changes. Pleasecontact us with any updates.

Terry Connor is the superintendent of Sarasota County Schools. Connor was appointed superintendent on June 14, 2023. Connor's previous career experience includes serving as the deputy superintendent and chief academic officer in theHillsborough County Public School District. He also served as a chief academic officer, assistant superintendent, and chief of secondary education in theClay County District School District; and as a principal, assistant principal, and teacher in theDuval County Public School District.[1]

Past superintendents

  • Brennan Asplen was the superintendent of Sarasota County Schools from August 10, 2020 until 2023. Asplen's previous career experience includes being the deputy superintendent forSt. Johns County School District in Florida, a principal, and a teacher.[2][3]
  • Todd Bowden was the superintendent of Sarasota County Schools from 2017 to 2019. Bowden's previous career experience includes working as the director of Sarasota Technical College, a principal, and an assistant principal.[4][5]

School board

The Sarasota County Schools school board consists of five members elected to four-year terms. Board members are elected to specific geographical districts inat-large elections.[6][7]

Elections

See also:Sarasota County Schools, Florida, elections

Elections are held on a staggered basis in the November general election.[8]

Two seats on theschool board were expected to be up for general election onNovember 5, 2024. The election was unnecessary after both races were decided in the August 20, 2024, primary. Candidates could win outright in the primary election if they were unopposed or if they received a majority of votes cast in the primary.

Ballotpedia covered school board elections in 367 school districts in 29 states in 2024. Those school districts had a total student enrollment of 12,203,404 students.Click here to read an analysis of those elections.


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Public participation in board meetings

The Sarasota County Schools school board maintains the following policy on public testimony during board meetings:[9]

School board meetings

The following articles were produced byCitizen Portal using artificial intelligence to analyze public meetings. Citizen Portal publishes articles based on the availability of meeting broadcasts, so the number of articles provided may vary by district. Although these articles are not produced or edited by Ballotpedia, they are included here as a supplemental resource for readers.

School board meeting articles (click to collapse)


District map

Budget

The following statistics were published by theNational Center for Education Statistics, which is a part of theU.S. Department of Education.[10]

Revenue, 2021-2022
SOURCEAMOUNTAMOUNT PER STUDENTPERCENT
Federal:$78,794,000$1,795 11%
Local:$536,429,000$12,220 77%
State:$80,248,000$1,828 12%
Total:$695,471,000$15,844
Expenditures, 2021-2022
TYPEAMOUNTAMOUNT PER STUDENTPERCENT
Total Expenditures:$647,813,000$14,757
Total Current Expenditures:$559,826,000$12,753
Instructional Expenditures:$337,636,000$7,691 52%
Student and Staff Support:$60,063,000$1,368 9%
Administration:$43,499,000$990 7%
Operations, Food Service, Other:$118,628,000$2,702 18%
Total Capital Outlay:$65,906,000$1,501
Construction:$37,125,000$845
Total Non El-Sec Education & Other:$18,259,000$415
Interest on Debt:$3,822,000$87


Teacher salaries

The following salary information was pulled from the district's teacher salary schedule. A salary schedule is a list of expected compensations based on variables such as position, years employed, and education level. It may not reflect actual teacher salaries in the district.

YearMinimum
2024-2025[11]$57,500
2023-2024[12]$55,000
2020-2021[13]$47,500

Academic performance

Each year, state and local education agencies use tests and other standards to assess student proficiency. Although the data below was published by theU.S. Department of Education, proficiency measurements are established by the states. As a result,proficiency levels are not comparable between different states andyear-over-year proficiency levels within a district may not be comparable because states may change their proficiency measurements.[14]

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School yearAll (%)Asian/Pacific Islander (%)Black (%)Hispanic (%)Native American (%)Two or More Races (%)White (%)
2020-20216385335270-796471
2018-20197189466170-797177
2017-20187288466260-697178
2016-20177086436060-647176
2015-20166889405770-746874
2014-20156786395760-6472
2013-20147085426265-6975
2012-20136885405960-6474
2011-20126886395960-6474
2010-20117693506875-7981

The following table shows the percentage of district students who scored at or above the proficiency level each school year:

School yearAll (%)Asian/Pacific Islander (%)Black (%)Hispanic (%)Native American (%)Two or More Races (%)White (%)
2020-20216383365160-696370
2018-20196684415470-796672
2017-20186684395450-596572
2016-20176682375450-596772
2015-20166583355360-646571
2014-20156683365560-6472
2013-20147081416060-6476
2012-20136978405870-7476
2011-20126981385755-5975
2010-20117183456160-6477

The following table shows the graduation rate of district students each school year:

School yearAll (%)Asian/Pacific Islander (%)Black (%)Hispanic (%)Native American (%)Two or More Races (%)White (%)
2019-202092>=9585-8988>=5090-9494
2018-201989>=9570-7486>=5085-8992
2017-201890>=9575-7987>=5090-9492
2016-201786>=9570-7479>=5085-8989
2015-201685>=9575-7978>=5075-7988
2014-20157990-94637540-5980-8482
2013-20148185-8960-648160-7984
2012-20137690-945664>=5080
2011-20127880-8960-6473PS81
2010-20117180-895259>=5074


Students

YearEnrollmentYear-to-year change (%)
2023-202445,3140.5
2022-202345,0772.6
2021-202243,8962.9
2020-202142,618-2.0
2019-202043,4850.9
2018-201943,1110.5
2017-201842,9010.2
2016-201742,8101.0
2015-201642,3681.1
2014-201541,9121.2
2013-201441,3950.7
2012-201341,0960.0
2011-201241,0830.4
2010-201140,899-0.9
2009-201041,2810.5
2008-200941,070-2.3
2007-200842,013-0.4
2006-200742,1900.7
2005-200641,8901.2
2004-200541,4054.5
2003-200439,5343.7
2002-200338,0572.4
2001-200237,1474.3
2000-200135,5332.7
1999-200034,5690.0
Racial Demographics, 2023-2024
RACESarasota County Schools (%)Florida K-12 STUDENTS (%)
American Indian/Alaska Native0.20.2
Asian or Asian/Pacific Islander2.82.9
Black7.320.9
Hispanic23.337.2
Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander0.10.2
Two or More Races6.54.2
White59.934.4

Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the censushere.


Staff

As of the 2023-2024 school year, Sarasota County Schools had 2,993.47 full-time classroom teachers. The student-teacher ratio was 15.14.

Teachers, 2023-2024 school year
TYPENUMBER OF TEACHERS
Prekindergarten:17.00
Kindergarten:152.00
Elementary:1,059.00
Secondary:1,217.00
Total:2,993.47

Sarasota County Schools employed 39.00 district administrators and 147.00 school administrators as of the 2023-2024 school year.

Administrators, 2023-2024 school year
TYPENUMBER OF ADMINISTRATORS
District Administrators:39.00
District Administrative Support:66.60
School Administrators:147.00
School Administrative Support:312.60
Other staff, 2023-2024 school year
TYPENUMBER OF OTHER STAFF
Instructional Aides:732.76
Instruc. Coordinators & Supervisors:49.00
Total Guidance Counselors:125.20
Elementary Guidance Counselors:36.20
Secondary Guidance Counselors:57.80
Librarians/Media Specialists:4.00
Library/Media Support:51.60
Student Support Services:615.25
Other Support Services:1,308.34


Schools

Sarasota County Schools operates 65 schools. They are listed below in alphabetical order.
List of schools
SCHOOL NAMENUMBER OF STUDENTSGRADES
Alta Vista Elementary School473PK-5
Ashton Elementary School982PK-5
Atwater Elementary853PK-5
Bay Haven School Of Basics Plus578KG-5
Booker High School1,3959-12
Booker Middle School9616-8
Brentwood Elementary School562PK-5
Brookside Middle School7036-8
Children First30PK-PK
College Preparatory Academy At Wellen Park252KG-6
Community Haven For Adults And Children With Disabilities5PK-PK
Cranberry Elementary School779PK-5
Dreamers Academy440KG-4
Emma E. Booker Elementary School435PK-5
Englewood Elementary School555PK-5
Ese Special Programs7PK-12
Fruitville Elementary School747PK-5
Garden Elementary School509PK-5
Glenallen Elementary School760PK-5
Gocio Elementary School636PK-5
Gulf Gate Elementary School624PK-5
Heron Creek Middle School9096-8
Imagine School At North Port1,177KG-12
Imagine School At Palmer Ranch476PK-8
Island Village Montessori School546KG-8
K-8 At Clark And Lorriane0
Lakeview Elementary School728PK-5
Lamarque Elementary School1,076PK-5
Laurel Nokomis School1,402PK-8
Mcintosh Middle School7616-8
North Port High School2,5779-12
Oak Park School221KG-12
Phillippi Shores Elementary School709PK-5
Pine View School1,6742-12
Pinnacle Academy Inc.0PK-PK
Riverview High School2,6819-12
Sarasota Academy Of The Arts176KG-8
Sarasota County Acceleration Academies949-12
Sarasota High School2,5099-12
Sarasota Middle School1,3086-8
Sarasota Military Academy1,0996-12
Sarasota School Of Arts/Sciences7496-8
Sarasota Suncoast Academy817KG-8
Sarasota Virtual Academy (Virtual Franchise)23KG-12
Sarasota Virtual Instruction Program89KG-12
Sky Academy Englewood3316-8
Sky Academy Venice2816-8
Southside Elementary School681PK-5
State College Of Fla Collegiate School-Venice2379-12
Student Leadership Academy3306-8
Suncoast Polytechnical High School5669-12
Suncoast School For Innovative Studies103KG-5
Suncoast Technical College012-12
Tatum Ridge Elementary School833PK-5
Taylor Ranch Elementary School882PK-5
The Florida Center For Child And Family Development9PK-PK
Toledo Blade Elementary School800PK-5
Triad1156-12
Tuttle Elementary School690PK-5
Venice Elementary School631PK-5
Venice Middle School7246-8
Venice Senior High School2,5629-12
Wellen Park High School0
Wilkinson Elementary School436PK-5
Woodland Middle School1,0166-8

Contact information

Sarasota County Schools logo 2.png
Sarasota County Schools
1960 Landings Blvd.
Sarasota, FL 34231
Phone: 941-927-9000


About school boards

Education legislation in Florida

Bills are monitored byBillTrack50 and sorted by action history.

See also

FloridaSchool Board ElectionsNews and Analysis
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External links

Footnotes

  1. Sarasota County Schools, "MR. TERRENCE CONNOR NAMED SUPERINTENDENT OF SARASOTA COUNTY SCHOOLS," June 14, 2023
  2. Herald-Tribune, "Sarasota Superintendent to be sworn in Monday," August 10, 2020
  3. The Palm Beach Post, "Meet the finalists for Sarasota schools superintendent," October 8, 2016
  4. Sarasota County Schools, "Superintendent's Bio," accessed November 8, 2019
  5. Sarasota Magazine, "Superintendent Accepts School Board Exit Plan," November 12, 2019
  6. Sarasota County Schools, "School Board," accessed May 7, 2021
  7. The Florida Times-Union, "Sarasota School Board race shows Sarasota divided," August 30, 2018
  8. Online Sunshine, "The 2020 Florida Statutes: 1001.35 - Term of office," accessed April 27, 2021
  9. Sarasota County Schools, "Board Policy: 2.22 - Board Meetings," accessed April 22, 2025
  10. National Center for Education Statistics, "Elementary/Secondary Information System," accessed October 6, 2025
  11. Sarasota County Schools, "2024-25 Teacher Salary Schedule," accessed April 22, 2025
  12. Sarasota County Schools, "2023-24 Teacher Salary Schedule," accessed February 6, 2024
  13. Sarasota County Schools, "2020-21 Teacher Salary Schedule," accessed May 7, 2021
  14. U.S. Department of Education, Washington, DC: EDFacts, "State Assessments in Reading/Language Arts and Mathematics- School Year 2018-19 EDFacts Data Documentation," accessed February 25, 2021
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