Loving High

Loving High is a small public high school in Loving, New Mexico, serving grades 9–12 with 225 students as part of Loving Municipal Schools, a district ranked 47th of 87 in New Mexico — the 46th percentile, with 2 stars.

The school's statewide ranking has slipped noticeably in recent years. In 2022–2023, Loving High ranked 62nd of 170 schools at the 64th percentile with 3 stars — its recent peak. By 2025–2026, it had fallen to 103rd of 132, the 22nd percentile, with 1 star. For comparison, nearby Carlsbad Early College High sits in a different tier entirely, earning 4–5 stars and ranking in the 86th–92nd percentile. Carlsbad High looks more similar to Loving High in overall rank — also a 1-star school in 2025–2026, at the 17th percentile — though it enrolls 1,685 students versus Loving High's 225.

Graduation is Loving High's clearest strength. In 2024–2025, its graduation rate was 89.9%, well above New Mexico's 80.6% and close to Carlsbad High's 90.5%. That stands out given the school's economic context: 95.11% of students were eligible for free or reduced lunch in 2024–2025, compared with 21.96% at Carlsbad High and 10% at Carlsbad Early College High. Loving High also has the smallest class sizes of the three, with a student-teacher ratio of 12.7. Academically, though, there are real challenges. All-grades math was reported as under 20% in 2025–2026, below the district's 27.51% and the state's 25.54%. Science shifted from a strength — 46% in 2022–2023, above the state's 34% — to below state levels by 2025–2026. Low-income students' effectiveness rank also fell from the 74th percentile in 2022–2023 to the 33rd percentile in 2024–2025.