Manatee Review

There were 4,901 students enrolled in Hardee County schools in the 2022-23 school year, 0.8% less than the previous year, according to the Florida Department of Education.

Data showed that Hispanic students made up 61.8% of the student body, the biggest percentage in Hardee County schools, followed by 29.7% of white students, 6.1% of Black students and 1.5% of multiracial students.

Hardee Senior High School registered the highest enrollment among Hardee County's nine schools in the 2022-23 academic year, welcoming 1,403 students.

In 2022, Florida had more than 2.8 million students enrolled in a total of 4,202 schools. There were 163,558 teachers in the public schools, or roughly one teacher for every 17 students, compared to the national average of 1:16.

Private school enrollment increased by more than 51,000 students in the 2021-22 school year, which was a notable rebound after the pandemic. In total, there were 416,084 students enrolled, marking the highest enrollment in private schools reported by the Florida Department of Education in 30 years.

According to WalletHub's analysis, Florida is ranked ninth out of 50 states in terms of its public school quality and safety.

School name	Total Enrollment in 2021-22	Total Enrollment in 2022-23	% Change
Hardee Senior High School	1,390	1,403	0.9
Hardee Junior High School	1,188	1,141	-4
Wauchula Elementary School	599	616	2.8
Zolfo Springs Elementary School	595	590	-0.8
North Wauchula Elementary School	518	510	-1.5
Bowling Green Elementary School	294	302	2.7
Hilltop Elementary School	309	286	-7.4
Pioneer Career Academy	21	29	38.1
Hardee Virtual Franchise	27	24	-11.1