Summary:
La Feria, Texas, is home to two middle-level schools within the La Feria Independent School District (Isd): W B Green J H (serving grades 7-8) and Noemi Dominguez Elementary (serving grades 5-6). Both schools serve a high-poverty population, with over 80% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch, and the district itself holds a 2-star rating.
The most striking difference between the two schools is in resources and academic focus. W B Green J H spends significantly more per student ($12,821 vs. $9,839) and has a much lower student-teacher ratio (11.6:1 vs. 16.4:1) compared to Noemi Dominguez Elementary. This investment appears to fuel a standout Algebra I program at the junior high, where 85.71% of students taking the End-of-Course exam were proficient—nearly double the state average. However, this success is an outlier; grade-level math proficiency at W B Green J H is critically low, with only 23.24% of 7th graders and 28.1% of 8th graders meeting standards. Science and social studies scores are also weak, with 8th-grade social studies proficiency at just 17.01%.
At Noemi Dominguez Elementary, performance is more consistent but still below state averages. Reading proficiency ranges from 44.9% (6th grade) to 55.25% (5th grade), while math proficiency drops from 40.66% in 5th grade to 32.49% in 6th grade. The data reveals a clear "middle school slump," with performance declining sharply as students transition from elementary to junior high. For example, 5th-grade math proficiency is nearly double that of 7th-grade math. With a higher poverty rate (87.34%) and larger class sizes, Noemi Dominguez Elementary faces compounding challenges, while W B Green J H shows a troubling 1.6% dropout rate and declining 8th-grade math scores, suggesting foundational skills are not being solidified before high school.
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