2013 School Grades: Safety Harbor Elementary Saved by 'Safety Net'

The grades are in for elementary and middle schools in Safety Harbor and across Florida.

The Florida Department of Education on Friday released statewide FCAT school grades for 2013.

(LINK: Find your school's grade here)

This is the second straight year the State Board of Education has altered the grading system with tougher standards. This year officials also implemented a "safety net" that prevents any school from dropping more than one letter grade.

Safety Harbor Elementary was one school that benefited from the padding. It dropped from an "A" to a "B" but would have fallen further if not for the safety net, state officials said.

About 550 schools in Florida and 22 in Pinellas County benefited from the safety net

In Pinellas, 51 schools saw their grades drop. Only four saw improvements.

Statewide, about 53 percent of schools earned lower grades than a year ago, state education commissioner Tony Bennett told the Tampa Bay Times. 

Eleven Pinellas schools received Fs: Azalea Middle School, Belleair Elementary, Campbell Park Elementary, Dunedin Elementary, Eisenhower Elementary, Fairmount Park Elementary, Maximo Elementary, Melrose Elementary, Pinellas Park Elementary, Imagine Charter School and Imagine Middle School.

See full details on how local schools fared in the preliminary grades posted on the Florida Department of Education website.

What do you think of the school grades and how they're compiled by the state? Post a comment below.