Data is important to determine how you are doing and where you need to improve. Businesses use data every day and very regularly to identify weaknesses, trends and improve upon their product or service. If you are not using data frequently and monitoring trends, you will never improve and will likely eventually fail.

Last month Argus wrote a column using data from the Florida Department of Education website about the Sarasota County School District. We received a very strong reaction once that column was published. We had people from both within and outside of education reach out to Argus out of concern for this School District we all deeply care about.

This public response led to Argus creating a new social media campaign called “Sarasota Schools Data Dig.” On Mondays and Thursdays, we are releasing data on our school district obtained directly from the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE). Many of the charts are simply screenshots from the FLDOE website. This campaign, which can be searched using #SarasotaSchoolsDataDig, is available on our Facebook page and Twitter account, both at @ArgusFoundation.   

Our very first post was a comparison of our individual school grades from 2018-2019 and 2020-2021. It reached over 22,000 people, with over 4,000 post clicks. There were 761 who liked, commented or shared the post. All of this was organic, none of it was paid. There is clearly a public desire to understand the data for our district.

This data is important for our community, to understand what is happening in our district and to hold our elected officials and administration accountable. While we remain an “A” school district, we have some disturbing numbers from 2018-2019 to 2020-2021, and we also have disturbing numbers in comparison to the state average. 

A stand-alone number that should disturb everyone is our “Grade 3 English Language Arts Achievement.” In 2020-2021, our “A” District had 68% of students at grade level reading or above. Put another way, 32% of our then-third graders, now-fourth graders, in Sarasota County were behind last year. 

There were no scores or grading in the 2019-2020 year. To receive a letter grade in the 2020-2021 school year, individual schools had to opt into receiving a grade. Only five schools opted to receive letter grades last year. However, you are still able to see the scores of the schools and grade them yourself unofficially using the grading scale. 

We hand-scored each individual school in Sarasota County, and compared the grades from 2018-2019 to 2020-2021, and discovered that Sarasota County lost over half its “A” schools. This translates to 18 schools dropping from an “A” grade. Sarasota tripled its “C” schools, increasing from 4 schools to 12 schools. We also now have 2 “F” schools.

When you examine subgroups within these scores, there are important and disturbing revelations. Comparing data from 2018-2019 to 2020-2021, Hispanics dropped a letter grade from and “A” to a “B” and Students with Disabilities went from a “C” to a “D” grade. 

We have a disturbing number that will affect us for years to come, “Grade 3 English Language Arts Achievement” for Blacks/African Americans dropped from a “C” to a “D” grade. Only 36% of Blacks/African Americans in Sarasota County were on grade level or above last year. 

Argus believes we must find a better way to support our hard-working teachers and struggling students. This issue lies squarely on the laps of those in the Landings. We must begin to talk about academics and curriculum in a more meaningful way and address the ugly numbers and not just cheer for the good ones. We must come together as a community and make sure this generation is not left behind because political rancor on both sides is taking center stage. This is an important moment for our district.

Watch for more information on #SarasotaSchoolsDataDig on The Argus Foundation Facebook page and Twitter account.

Christine Robinson is executive director for The Argus Foundation. 

Graphic courtesy The Argus Foundation

On Saturday, May 7, the Wellness Fest, hosted by the Boys & Girls Club of Sarasota and DeSoto Counties, featured dancing, art therapy, yoga, snow cones, Drago the therapy dog, a photo booth and more. “Feel Your Best at our Mental Wellness Fest” was the theme. It was planned by and for teens in collaboration with Youth MOVE Suncoast of NAMI Sarasota and Manatee Counties and sponsored by the Here4YOUth Initiative of Gulf Coast Community Foundation and Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation. 

May 7 is Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day, but it’s a topic that is appearing frequently in the national news. On May 8, “60 Minutes” aired an in-depth look at children struggling with depression, anxiety and feeling unable to cope. Demand for help, from youth and adolescents nationwide, far outweighs access to mental health treatment, and there are long waiting lists to see a clinician. Many viewers wrote to CBS about the story and said the brave young people who shared their journeys will give life-saving hope to others.

The Here4YOUth Initiative of Gulf Coast and Barancik foundations launched in 2018 because stakeholders told us one of the biggest needs in our community is access to quality mental health care for children and young adults. Since that time, youth needs have increased.

The Here4YOUth Initiative identified best-practice recommendations for Sarasota County by commissioning research reports from the University of South Florida and a national firm. Nonprofit service providers, the school district, Bayside Behavioral Health, county staff and foundations have worked together to begin to fill gaps. We have made some progress. Thanks to generous donors, NAMI Sarasota and Manatee Counties now has a Family Navigator to help with finding services, support groups and building a sustainable recovery plan. NAMI has expanded to offer Day Center services, programming for youth and families, and more Peer Specialists. They are hiring Parent Peer Specialists to come alongside parents in the child welfare system, to offer support. There are more mental health therapists in schools. First Step of Sarasota has Student Assistance Program Specialists in middle and high schools, building relationships with students to address issues right away.

The Sarasota County Commission took the innovative step of creating a Mental Health District to address overwhelming demand for quality mental health services, particularly in youth when challenges first arise. Federal American Rescue Plan Act funds have been made available to begin to address the need, but those funds expire in three years. Both research reports commissioned by the Here4YOUth Initiative point to the need for recurring, sustainable funding to provide support as early as possible to prevent crises and long-term negative outcomes.

Resources, especially when they’re informed and chosen by the people who use them, make a positive difference. Maybe for a lifetime. Students said this about the Student Assistance Program Specialists at their high schools: “Ms. P has put me in treatment and is available to me daily. I feel much more confident I can get through my senior year.” 

“She was very understanding of my behavior and things I’ve said and didn’t judge me for my past or what I’ve been through. I am very grateful that I met her.”

“I almost got into fights. Anger is my biggest issue. I took the anger management group and learned so much. Now I think before I act and go to her or reach out to an adult.”

Positive change is happening. Brave young people are sharing their experiences, eliminating the stigma around seeking help, and working together to help one another feel their best. An effective, funded Mental Health District will help bring life-saving supports to them, when they need it — making every day Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day.

Jennifer Johnston is the director of Community Leadership for Gulf Coast Community Foundation. 

Photo courtesy Gulf Coast Community Foundation.