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Superintendent cites steady gains as district misses a B by one point; foundation reports $1.2M+ in direct support
Summary
Superintendent Dr. Brewer framed Marion County Public Schools as showing broad, systemwide improvement despite a C grade under the revised scale, while the Public Education Foundation detailed over $1.2 million in grants, scholarships and partnerships that the district credited with supporting student outcomes.
Superintendent Dr. Brewer told the Marion County School Board on July 9 that the district received a C under the newly raised grading scale but is showing systemwide progress, with "for the 1st time since 2012, 100 of our district‑managed schools earned a C or higher with no D or F schools across the district." He added the district "nearly missed a B by 1 percentage point."
Dr. Brewer highlighted cohort growth as evidence of accelerating learning: the district's 3rd‑grade English language arts cohort improved from 43% to 53% by 5th grade, and he said kindergarten readiness rose from 35% to 49% for the 2023 cohort. He also emphasized math as "a significant area of opportunity" and named attendance and targeted early interventions as priorities.
"We also want to look beyond the single‑year grade and examine cohort growth," Dr. Brewer said, noting research‑based literacy instruction being scaled through a University of Florida Literacy Institute partnership and an additional paraprofessional in every kindergarten classroom funded by voter support.
The meeting also hosted an annual update from the Public Education Foundation. Megan Magamal, representing the foundation, told the board the organization invested more than $390,000 through its school‑business partnership program and more than $150,000 directly into classrooms via grants this year. She said the foundation's Take Stock in Children program served 256 students and reported markedly higher persistence and college‑going rates for participating scholars.
"Our mission is to financially and materially support Marion County Public Schools, its students, and its teachers," Magamal said, summarizing recognition programs (Golden Apple), grants, scholarships and mentoring initiatives. Chris Yancey, chair of the foundation's board of directors, praised the year as "incredibly successful and historic" and credited staff and donors for the outcomes.
The foundation announced a new Fessenden Forever scholarship, created with the Saint Bernard Foundation, to provide up to $4,000 for each graduate from Fessenden Elementary who completes Marion County Public Schools and pursues higher education; it also cited a $100,000 catalyst grant to expand teacher‑pathway programming in partnership with the College of Central Florida.
Board members expressed appreciation and asked the foundation to publicize successes; the foundation requested 16 additional mentors for Take Stock in the next 30 days. The superintendent and foundation said they will continue collaboration on literacy, attendance initiatives and teacher pipelines ahead of the 2026–27 school year.
The board is scheduled to receive further operational and budget details in upcoming work sessions.
