Merriam Cherry Street Elementary, 1125 Cherry St.: pre-K to grade 5, 343 students (2024-25), a C in Florida's 2026 school grades. 850-767-1480.

Last checked Oct. 10, 2026. Sources: Bay District Schools, its 2026-27 academic calendar, start and end times and transportation page, the school’s website, Bay County’s school zone map, the Florida Department of Education’s 2026 school grades and the federal NCES school directory.

Merriam Cherry Street Elementary is a Bay District Schools elementary school on Cherry Street in the Cove, inside the Panama City limits. Home of the Cheetahs, its zone covers about 19% of the residential addresses inside the city limits on Bay County’s school zone maps, including the Cove, downtown and most of Millville.

Who to call

  • Front office: 850-767-1480, 1125 Cherry St., Panama City, FL 32401
  • School website: bay.k12.fl.us/o/merriamcherry
  • Which school am I zoned for? School Choice and Zoning, 850-767-4328, or the district’s School Zone and Bus Route search
  • Pre-K and VPK: the district’s early learning line, 850-767-4201
  • Buses: district Transportation, 850-767-4495; the route manager line for Merriam Cherry Street and nearby schools is 850-767-4489
Address 1125 Cherry St., Panama City, FL 32401
Phone 850-767-1480
Grades Pre-K to 5
Principal Phillip Campbell
2026 state grade C (41% of points)
Mascot Cheetahs

Principal. Phillip Campbell is the principal, according to the school’s website.

Enrollment and teachers

  • Federal count: 343 students in the 2024-25 school year, with 27 full-time-equivalent classroom teachers, according to the NCES directory. That is about 13 students per teacher.

State report card

Florida gave Merriam Cherry Street a C in its 2026 school grades, with 41% of the points possible, down from a B in 2025, according to the Florida Department of Education’s 2026 school grades file. The school’s state report card has results by student group; it is an interactive dashboard that could not be read for this page.

2026 school grade measure Result
School grade C (41% of points)
Third grade English language arts achievement 54%
English language arts achievement 45%
English language arts learning gains 43%
Math achievement 51%
Math learning gains 41%
Science achievement 27%

Florida grades schools A to F on the share of possible points earned across these measures. Achievement is the share of tested students on grade level; learning gains is the share who improved from the year before. For an elementary school, A is 62% of points or more, B is 54% to 61% and C is 41% to 53%, the state’s file says.

Attendance zone and feeder schools

Bay District Schools assigns schools by home address. We checked all 16,380 residential address points inside the city limits in Bay County’s address records against the county’s school zone maps. About 19% are zoned for Merriam Cherry Street.

Feeder schools. The district does not publish a feeder list, and each level has its own zone map. Of the city addresses zoned for Merriam Cherry Street, the maps place 94% in the zones for Jinks Middle and Bay High, and 6% in the zone for Rutherford, which serves grades 6 to 12. Confirm any address with the district’s School Zone and Bus Route search.

Calendar and bell times

From the district’s 2026-27 student calendar:

  • Monday, Oct. 12: Columbus Day, no school
  • Wednesday, Oct. 21: first-quarter report cards in the parent portal
  • Wednesday, Oct. 28: teacher planning day, no school for students
  • Wednesday, Nov. 11: Veterans Day, no school
  • Nov. 23-27: Thanksgiving break
  • Monday, Dec. 21: winter break begins; students return Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2027

Bell times. Merriam Cherry Street runs 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., and elementary schools dismiss at 11:30 a.m. on early-release days, according to the district’s 2026-27 start and end times.

More on Panama City schools

Frequently asked questions

What grades does Merriam Cherry Street Elementary serve?

Pre-K through fifth grade, according to the federal school directory. The school is at 1125 Cherry St., and its main line is 850-767-1480.

What is Merriam Cherry Street Elementary’s school grade?

Merriam Cherry Street earned a C in Florida’s 2026 school grades, with 41% of possible points, down from a B in 2025.

Which middle and high school does Merriam Cherry Street feed into?

Of the Panama City homes zoned for Merriam Cherry Street on Bay County’s zone maps, 94% are zoned for Jinks Middle and Bay High and 6% for Rutherford, which serves grades 6 to 12.

What time does Merriam Cherry Street Elementary start?

The school runs 7:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the district’s 2026-27 schedule. On early-release days, elementary schools dismiss at 11:30 a.m.