Summary
Anson Elementary in Anson, TX, is a PK-5 public school serving 360 students in the Anson Independent School District (Isd), located in a small, rural community where about 64% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch. While the school benefits from a low student-to-teacher ratio of 11.1:1 and per-student spending of $9,714—slightly above the state average—its academic performance has declined sharply, ranking in the 5th percentile statewide in 2025-2026, its lowest point in a decade. This places it well behind nearby schools like Hawley Elementary (32nd percentile) and Oliver Elementary (34th percentile), despite Oliver having a higher poverty rate of 75.3%.
A key concern is a dramatic drop in math proficiency, which is the main driver of the school's low ranking. In 2025-2026, only 10% of 3rd graders, 20.3% of 4th graders, and 26.8% of 5th graders were proficient in math—roughly half the rate of Hawley Elementary and less than a third of the state average. In contrast, reading performance is a relative bright spot, with 53.7% of 5th graders proficient, nearly matching the state average of 58.5%. This "tale of two subjects" suggests that while reading instruction shows promise, math instruction needs urgent attention.
Another puzzling trend is the collapse of the Gifted and Talented program, which fell from the 80th percentile statewide in 2022-2023 to the 6th percentile in 2025-2026, possibly due to changes in identification or staffing. Additionally, 5th graders consistently outperform younger students, especially in reading—70% were proficient in 2024-2025 versus 38% of 3rd graders—hinting at an effective upper-grade team or intervention program worth replicating. Despite having more resources per student than some higher-performing neighbors, Anson's results point to inefficiencies in how those resources are used, rather than a lack of funding.
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