Best Public Schools in Alton, TX

The city of Alton, Texas, is served by eight public schools spanning elementary through high school, predominantly within the Mission Consolidated Independent School District, with one elementary in the Sharyland Independent School District (Isd) and one middle school in the La Joya Independent School District (Isd), and the entire system faces the significant challenge of very high economic disadvantage, with an average free/reduced lunch rate of 92.3%.

The standout school is Mission Collegiate High School, which achieves exceptional academic results despite a 91.73% economically disadvantaged rate, ranking in the 89th percentile statewide with a 99% graduation rate and zero dropout rate. In stark contrast, Carl C Waitz Elementary is the most struggling school, with a 1-star rating and the lowest test scores in the city, including only 14.29% of 3rd graders proficient in math. A major red flag appears at both Alton Memorial J H and Domingo Trevino Middle, where 7th-grade math proficiency catastrophically drops to around 3%, even as advanced students achieve high scores in Algebra I, suggesting a systemic curriculum issue. Among elementary schools, Raquel Cavazos Elementary (61st percentile) significantly outperforms Carl C Waitz Elementary (14th percentile), showing that school-level leadership matters more than district policy alone.

Key metrics show per-student spending varies from $9,871 at Mission Collegiate High School to $13,743 at Domingo Trevino Middle, with no clear link to performance, and the average student-teacher ratio is 14.6:1. Most schools show a downward trend in state percentile ranks over three years, though Mission Collegiate High School remains a consistent high performer. A positive finding is that several elementary schools, including Cantu Elementary, show strong Spanish-language reading scores, indicating effective bilingual programs that support English Language Learners. Overall, parents should view the high Algebra I scores as a mirage representing a small advanced group, while the general math proficiency for most students remains a serious concern across the district.