Jefferson Independent School District (Isd)

The Jefferson Independent School District (Isd) in Texas serves 1,125 students across four schools—one high school, one middle school, and two elementary schools—and is ranked 666th out of 951 districts in the state, placing it in the 30th percentile with a 2-star rating, reflecting a district that faces significant challenges, particularly with high economic disadvantage rates ranging from 67.1% to 89.26%.

Among the schools, Jefferson J H stands out for its dramatic academic contrasts: while only 9.38% of 6th graders were proficient in math in 2025-2026—a 29-point gap below the state average—70% of its Algebra I students were proficient, outperforming the state by 22 points, suggesting a strong advanced math program but a struggling general curriculum. In contrast, Jefferson High School offers stability with a 97.3% graduation rate and a 0.0% dropout rate, yet its academic proficiency lags behind state averages in core subjects like Algebra I (45.33% vs. 54.03%) and English I (44.32% vs. 55.43%), indicating a focus on retention over college readiness. Jefferson Pri School has the highest economic need at 89.26% free/reduced lunch and the highest per-student spending at $16,563, while Jefferson Elementary shows early academic gaps, with 4th-grade reading proficiency at 39.73% versus the state’s 53.73%.

Key takeaways include an inverse relationship between spending and performance—the primary school spends the most but has the largest class sizes (16.5:1) and highest poverty—while the high school spends the least ($11,305 per student) but has a lower student-teacher ratio (11.1:1). A cohort effect is evident, as academic struggles compound from elementary to middle school, with 6th-grade math proficiency plummeting to 9.38%, though the high school shows slight recovery in subjects like Biology (71.26% vs. 70.51% state). Overall, the district excels in keeping students enrolled and graduating but struggles to elevate academic achievement to state standards.