Summary
Menchaca Elementary is a mid-sized PK-5 school in the Austin Independent School District (Isd), serving 699 students in the Manchaca, TX area, with about 44% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch. The school has historically performed in the lower-middle tier of Texas elementary schools, earning a 2-star rating from Schooldigger over the past decade, though recent data shows a slight recovery from a dip in 2024-2025, moving from the 24th to the 39th percentile statewide.
Menchaca stands out as the lowest-performing school among its AISD peers, including Williams Elementary, Boone Elementary, Kocurek Elementary, Casey Elementary, Cowan Elementary, and Baranoff Elementary. The contrast is especially stark with Baranoff, located just 1.3 miles away, which is a 4-star school at the 86th percentile. Nearby schools in the Hays Consolidated Independent School District, such as Elm Grove Elementary (92nd percentile, 5-star) and Buda Elementary, also significantly outperform Menchaca. For example, in 5th Grade Math, only 29.55% of Menchaca students were proficient, compared to 70% at Baranoff and 62.99% at Elm Grove.
Despite these challenges, there are some positive signs. Menchaca's Spanish-language STAAR scores are a relative bright spot, often exceeding district averages and sometimes outperforming its own English-language scores, suggesting the bilingual program may be effective. Recent improvements in subgroups like Male Students, English Language Learners, and Special Education Students indicate that interventions may be starting to work. However, the school's biggest hurdle is serving its economically disadvantaged students, who rank in the 9th percentile statewide. Notably, Menchaca's per-student spending ($10,370) is higher than that of high-performing Elm Grove ($9,285) and Baranoff ($9,751), suggesting the issue is not funding but how effectively resources are used to drive academic improvement.
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