Summary:
The Kermit Independent School District (Isd) is a small, rural district in Texas serving 1,339 students across three schools: Kermit Elementary (PK-5), Kermit J H (6-8), and Kermit High School (9-12). The district faces significant academic challenges, ranking in the 6th percentile statewide, with all schools reporting high levels of economic disadvantage (60-77% Free/Reduced Lunch).
Kermit High School is the district's relative standout, earning a 2-star rating and ranking in the 29th-33rd percentile among Texas high schools. Its most notable strength is Biology, where 80.23% of students scored proficient—nearly 10 points above the state average. However, this success contrasts sharply with struggles in Algebra I (26.17% proficient) and U.S. History (49.44%). The school also boasts an exceptional 98.7% graduation rate, though low proficiency in core subjects like English I Reading (39.13%) suggests a focus on keeping students in school rather than ensuring deep academic mastery. In contrast, Kermit J H is the district's weakest link, with a steep decline from the 26th to 7th percentile in two years. Only 4.4% of 8th graders were proficient in Social Studies, and math scores are critically low.
A key takeaway is the spending-performance gap: the district spends $13,612-$15,898 per student—above the state average—yet achieves bottom-10% results, highlighting that poverty (60-77%) is a powerful external hurdle. Another interesting finding is at Kermit Elementary, where students taking the STAAR test in Spanish sometimes outperformed English test-takers (e.g., 30.77% vs. 19.48% in 5th Grade Math), suggesting the bilingual program may be a relative strength. Overall, the district shows a pattern of high graduation rates and isolated pockets of excellence (like Biology) but systemic struggles in math and social studies, especially as students move through middle school.
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