The Indian River County School District achieved the highest graduation rate on the Treasure Coast in the 2024-25 school year, according to statistics just released by the Florida Department of Education, with 96 percent of seniors receiving a diploma for the third consecutive year. That makes the district one of the most consistently high-performing school systems in Florida.
Graduation rates for Black and Hispanic students – 94.8 percent and 96.7 percent, respectively – have jumped 14 percent since the 2018-2019 school year.
These are remarkable statistics for a school district that just a few years ago ranked 38th out of the state’s 67 school systems. Last year, the district moved up to fifth place and received its third straight “A” rating from the Florida Department of Education. All schools in the district got either A or B grades.
So, what sort of new math adds up to such a dramatic solution? To hear Superintendent David Moore tell it, the formula is simple – high-quality instruction plus meeting children where they are equals outstanding student performance.
“The graduation rate is the No. 1 indicator of the health of a school system,” Moore said. “We contribute the quality, the depth and the skill, the grit and determination of our teachers to meet the needs of our children and to make sure they are mastering the standards all the way from kindergarten through 12th grade. That is the primary driver for success.”
To understand how Indian River County has surpassed all other school districts on the Treasure Coast – and most districts in the state – it is instructive to look at the district’s comprehensive programming, Moore said.
“I think you would have a hard time finding a school system that offers as many extracurricular activities as we do,” he said. “That is the No. 1 drop-out prevention strategy. Whether it’s football, lacrosse, the clubs – we offer [activities] at every single level at a rate [most other districts don’t].
Look at the facilities we have – culinary arts, nursing, you name it – we have something to connect students and engage them to really become a part of the school community.”
Systematic outreach to students and their families and teaching strategies tailored to individual students and specific demographic groups also have helped fuel the district’s ascent.
Teachers in Indian River County are given an uncommon level of flexibility to be innovative and creative in the classroom, Moore added. “Teaching is not only a skill, but also an art. You have to allow educators to create what they are going to put on that canvas – which is the classroom – to bring instruction to life.”
Moore himself is another powerful factor in the district’s amazing success. It is no coincidence that rising graduation rates and the elevation of the district from 38th to fifth in the state started when he took the helm in 2020 – just 44 instructional days before schools were mandated to lock down during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We were already an organization that needed to reinvent itself. The pandemic gave us the opportunity to really embrace change,” Moore said. “If we learned anything from the pandemic it is to make sure kids don’t get behind. If you wait until they’ve failed the term at the end of nine weeks, it’s too late. Even if they get back on track, if they are four or five credits behind, it becomes difficult to graduate.”
The district considers students’ family and home circumstances as well as their individual abilities and needs.
When only 60 percent of students came back to school in fall 2020 after the pandemic lockdowns the previous spring, Moore and his team noticed that many who stayed home were not succeeding with remote and hybrid education. In response, “we immediately began going to homes and knocking on doors,” Moore told Vero Beach 32963. “We went through our safety protocols and worked to get kids back in school.”
By December 2020, the district had 24 percent more students back in school than the average district in Florida.
Home circumstances continue to be an important consideration in the quest to help all children receive an excellent education, according to Moore.
“Maybe the student is being raised by a single parent or a grandparent or foster parent. Are they missing school because they are really sick, or are the lights off because the power has been shut off? Is English the main language spoken at home?
Often it is not.
About 20 percent of students in Indian River County live in homes where English is not the primary language used in daily life. As many as 15 percent have some sort of learning disability.
“You have to understand who that kid is – addressing not just their academic needs but addressing their reality – and then be able to design a lesson for them. A lot of data goes into helping our teachers understand who’s in front of them so they can design better lessons to meet everyone’s needs.
“Creating a lesson in a classroom is not easy to do, but we made an investment from my office and the school board on down to make sure every child will receive a quality education and to differentiate instruction based on each child and their academic reality.”
The 2025 graduation rate for students with disabilities was 88 percent; for students with economic disadvantages, it was 94 percent.
“Our graduates walk across the stage because thousands of people walk beside them, including families, educators, bus drivers, food service workers, support teams and volunteers,” Moore said. “We remain committed to providing every student in Indian River County with the opportunity to reach their full potential.”
