Rufus E. Payne Elementary, 6725 Hema Road: K-5, 233 students in 2024-25, a C in Florida's 2026 school grades.

Last checked Oct. 10, 2026. Sources: the school’s website, Duval County Public Schools’ school locator map, school hours page and calendar, the district’s May 28, 2026, notice on 2026-27 school changes, the Florida Department of Education’s 2026 school grades file, and the federal NCES school directory.

Rufus E. Payne Elementary is the Duval County Public Schools elementary school for kindergarten to grade 5 at 6725 Hema Road. The campus is inside Jacksonville city limits.

Who to call
Address 6725 Hema Road, Jacksonville, FL 32209
Phone 904-924-3020
Grades Kindergarten to grade 5
District Duval County Public Schools
State school number 16-1631

Principal

Principal Weisha Killette, according to the school’s staff directory.

Enrollment and teachers

  • Federal count: 233 students in the 2024-25 school year, with 12 full-time-equivalent classroom teachers, according to the NCES directory. That is about 19 students per teacher.

State report card

Florida grades every public school A to F on the share of possible points it earns on the measures in the state’s 2026 school grades file: test scores, learning gains and, for middle and high schools, acceleration and graduation. The file sets an A for elementary schools at 62% of points or more.

School year Grade
2025-26 C (42% of possible points)
2024-25 A
2023-24 C

From the state’s 2026 school grades file, the share of students scoring on grade level on the state tests in 2025-26:

  • Third-grade English language arts: 38%
  • English language arts: 40%
  • Math: 51%
  • Science: 39%

The same file lists 99.2% of the school’s students as economically disadvantaged and the school as a Title I school, which receives federal aid for schools serving low-income families.

The full report card is on the state’s Florida school report cards site. It is an interactive dashboard; the figures above come from the downloadable file.

Attendance zone and feeder schools

Check any address with the district’s school locator map. Zones do not follow city limits.

Comparing the district’s 2026-27 attendance zone maps (shares are of each zone’s area, not of students):

George Washington Carver Elementary closed for the 2026-27 school year, and its students were consolidated into Rufus E. Payne Elementary, according to the district’s May 28, 2026, notice on 2026-27 school changes.

Calendar and bell times

Classes run 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to the district’s 2026-27 school hours, the standard schedule for district elementary schools.

From the district’s 2026-27 calendar:

  • Monday, Oct. 12: no school for students (employee planning day)
  • Wednesday, Nov. 11: schools closed for Veterans Day
  • Nov. 23-27: schools closed for Thanksgiving week
  • Dec. 21 to Jan. 1, 2027: winter break
  • Monday, Jan. 4, 2027: employee planning day, no school for students
  • Monday, Jan. 18, 2027: schools closed for Martin Luther King Jr. Day
  • March 15-19, 2027: schools closed for spring break week
  • Friday, May 28, 2027: last day of school

Programs

The district’s magnet programs list shows a magnet program here: Math, Science, Pre-Engineering (STEM). For the next level, the list names Springfield Middle School and Jacksonville STEM Academy as the continuing programs. Families apply through the district’s magnet lottery, which for the 2026-27 school year ran Dec. 1, 2025, to Jan. 31, 2026; seats left after the lottery are offered through controlled open enrollment.

More on Jacksonville schools

Frequently asked questions

What grades does Rufus E. Payne Elementary serve?

Kindergarten to grade 5. It is a Duval County Public Schools elementary school at 6725 Hema Road in Jacksonville.

What is Rufus E. Payne Elementary’s school grade?

Rufus E. Payne Elementary earned a C in Florida’s 2026 school grades, with 42% of possible points. It earned an A in 2025.

Which high school does Rufus E. Payne Elementary feed into?

Most of its attendance zone is zoned for William M. Raines High; part is zoned for Jean Ribault High, according to the district’s 2026-27 zone maps.

What time does Rufus E. Payne Elementary start?

Classes run 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to the district’s 2026-27 school hours.