School facts

Compiled by Times Staff

© St. Petersburg Times, published October 29, 2000

Elementary schools

When enrolling kindergarteners, the paperwork includes a birth certificate, immunization records and a physical examination record. Call 588-6098 for the documents your prospective kindergartener will need.

Among elementary school children in public school, nearly 92 percent attend zoned schools, around 4 percent go to magnet schools and almost 4 percent are enrolled in a fundamental school. The remaining students attend a school for children with special needs or a challenge school.

This year, almost 2,500 school children are on the waiting list for elementary magnet and fundamental schools. For the school year 1999-2000, there were nearly 230 withdrawals from magnet and fundamental elementary schools.

The school bell rings at different times at different schools. Elementary school students start as early as 7:50 a.m. and as late as 9:45 a.m. Dismissal time is between 1:50 p.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Middle schools

"Encore" is the name given to focus classes in the arts and international magnet program that include art, computers, dance, instrumental or vocal music, drama and piano.

Nearly 87 percent of the sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders in Pinellas County schools go to their zoned schools. About 8 percent are enrolled in magnet schools and almost 5 percent are at fundamental schools.

Nearly 480 students are on the waiting list for admission to magnet and fundamental middle schools this year. Meanwhile, there were around 315 withdrawals from magnet and fundamental middle schools during the 1999-2000 school year.

High schools

For the school year 1999-2000, most of the school district's high school students -- about 86 percent -- went to their zoned schools. Nearly 14 percent were enrolled in a magnet program. The remaining students are enrolled in dropout prevention programs, exceptional schools, vocational or technical programs.

More than 500 students await admission to magnet high schools this school year. Almost 440 students had withdrawn from magnet schools during the previous school year.

There are almost 110,936 students enrolled in Pinellas County schools. That is a rise of around 1.4 percent (more than 1,500 students) from the previous school year. The figure represents almost 5 percent of the state's total school enrollment.

New to the school district? You can call 588-6297 to have your specific questions answered or to order a brochure and directory of schools and special programs.

Other choices

Of the known 1,645 private schools in Florida, 116 are in the Pinellas district, enrolling 17,346 students. This represents around 13% of school-age students in the county.

To get a list of accredited private schools in Pinellas County and suggestions for choosing one, call the non-public schools consulting office at the Florida Department of Education at (850) 414-1289.

For information about Catholic schools, call the Diocese of St. Petersburg at 345-3338, or the Office of Catholic Schools and Centers at 344-1611. Or you may log on to http://www.dioceseofstpete.org for a listing of Catholic schools and centers.

In April 1998, Christa Carpenter became the first home-schooled student to win the Suncoast Spelling Bee.

Interested in getting a packet? Call the school district at 588-5199 or the Pinellas Parent Education Association at 725-0512.

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