Eighty-five percent of third graders at Bryceville Elementary School met or exceeded reading benchmarks during the 2025-2026 school year, earning the Nassau County campus a national literacy award.

The 74, a national nonprofit newsroom covering education, named Bryceville Elementary a Bright Spot School for Excellence in Literacy. The school is one of five in Florida and one of roughly 250 nationwide selected through an analysis of about 42,000 public schools, according to the Nassau County School District.

The designation recognizes schools where third-grade reading proficiency significantly exceeds what demographic factors would predict.

Bryceville Elementary serves approximately 217 students in kindergarten through fifth grade in the rural community of Bryceville, west of Fernandina Beach. The school's 85% proficiency rate is 25 percentage points above the 60% statewide average cited in a Tallahassee Democrat column drawing on the Florida Chamber Foundation's 2026 report on third-grade reading.

Principal credits targeted instruction, teamwork

Principal Tammy Smith credited the results to a schoolwide effort built on targeted interventions, small-group instruction, progress monitoring and collaboration among teachers, support staff and interventionists.

"Our success is not the result of one program or one person," Smith said in the district's announcement. "It comes from a school community working together, being willing to adjust when students need something different, and never giving up on the belief that every child can learn."

The school also encourages families to participate through ongoing communication and schoolwide reading programs.

Bryceville library set to close Oct. 29

The award came the same week Nassau County commissioners voted 5-0 on Monday, Sept. 28, to adopt a $453.3 million budget that permanently closes the Bryceville Branch Library at 7280 Motes Road. The budget also reduces hours at the Yulee and Fernandina Beach branches, according to Florida Newsline.

Nassau County Commission Chair Alyson McCullough said at the Sept. 28 hearing that the county is "not cutting services" but "consolidating services."

The Bryceville library's last day of operation is Oct. 29.