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Desoto High School

Q: Is Desoto High School a good school?

Desoto High School ranks 1470 th of 2009 Texas high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

Public, Magnet Grades 9-12

1470^th

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 2,009 Texas High Schools

Better than 27% of Texas high schools

Summary

Desoto High School is a large public high school in Desoto, TX, serving 1,936 students in grades 9-12 as part of the Desoto Independent School District (Isd), which ranks in the 26th percentile of Texas school districts. The school has a consistent but low state ranking, typically earning a 1-star rating and falling in the 16th to 33rd percentile over the past decade, with over 60% of students qualifying for free or reduced lunch. Its graduation rate has declined from 92.6% in 2020 to 86.1% in 2024, while dropout rates have increased to 2.2%.

A standout strength is the school's exceptional performance with English Language Learners (ELL), ranking in the 81st percentile statewide in the 2025-2026 school year—a dramatic improvement from the 48th percentile two years prior. This is a stark contrast to the school's overall 1-star rating and suggests effective targeted programs. However, the school struggles significantly in Algebra I, with only 18.25% of students proficient compared to the state average of 54.03%, and it ranks in the 3rd percentile for Gifted and Talented students, indicating a need to better challenge its highest-achieving learners. Compared to nearby David W Carter High School (Dallas ISD), which serves a population with a higher percentage of economically disadvantaged students (91.16% vs. 62.76%), Desoto underperforms in nearly every academic metric—for example, Algebra I proficiency at Carter is 61.96% versus 18.25% at Desoto, and Carter ranks in the 66th percentile overall.

Desoto's per-student spending ($9,714) is lower than many peers, such as Carter ($12,462) and Uplift Hampton Prep High School ($13,909), and its student-teacher ratio of 18.3 is higher than nearby schools like Cedar Hill High School (15.1) and Uplift Hampton (13.5). While the school performs similarly to Cedar Hill and Uplift Hampton in many subjects, it is clearly outperformed by Carter and outperforms alternative schools like Winfree Academy Charter School Dallas and Premier H S - Desoto. The school's success with ELL students offers a potential blueprint for improvement, but addressing the Algebra I gap and supporting Gifted and Talented students remain critical challenges.

1,936

Students ?

18.3

Student/teacher ratio ?

$7,439

Per pupil spending ?

62.8%

Free/discounted lunch ?

600 Eagle Dr
Desoto, TX 75115-6006

(972) 230-0726

District: Desoto Independent School District (Isd)

Feeder schools for Desoto High School:

Elementary:	Cockrell Hill Elementary
	Frank D Moates Elementary
	Ruby Young Talented And Gifted Academy
	The Meadows Elementary
	More...
	Woodridge Elementary
Middle:	Curtistene S McCowan Middle
	Desoto West Middle

Racial breakdown:

African American:

71.1%

Hispanic:

23.5%

Two or more races:

2.8%

See top rated Texas high schools

Compare Desoto High School to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 26th percentile in 2016 → 27th in 2026

Worth a look

!Test scores below the Texas average (47% vs 62% meeting standards)

!Some student groups rank well below the school's overall statewide standing

!Algebra I scores 36 pts below the Texas average

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school47%

District avg48%

Texas avg62%

1,470^th of 2,009

Texas public high schools ?

Bottom 27%▲ up 1 pts since 2016

See the entire ranking list of Texas High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

701^st of 951Desoto Independent School District (Isd) among Texas districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	30.6	1470 of 2009	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	33.2	1320 of 1974	33.1%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.9	1500 of 1990	24.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	23.2	1535 of 1961	21.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	20.3	1536 of 1876	18.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	17.6	1560 of 1861	16.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	30.6	1331 of 1857	28.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.2	1324 of 1797	26.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2017	24.7	1361 of 1777	23.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2016	33.5	1304 of 1762	26.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2015	10.7	1577 of 1743	9.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2014	8.3	1612 of 1734	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2013	11.5	1515 of 1652	8.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2012	13.5	1465 of 1603	8.6%	☆☆☆☆☆
2011	35.8	1372 of 1672	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2010	37.3	1269 of 1568	19.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2009	33.7	1250 of 1539	18.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2008	22.5	1335 of 1510	11.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2007	29.0	1236 of 1497	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2006	34.3	1101 of 1430	23.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2005	42.5	1011 of 1429	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2004	48.1	931 of 1427	34.8%	★★☆☆☆

African American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	43.4	563 of 1086	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2025	45.9	362 of 834	56.6%	★★★☆☆
2024	34.8	642 of 1065	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2023	35.0	643 of 1069	39.9%	★★☆☆☆
2022	33.0	641 of 1031	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	28.8	721 of 1020	29.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	42.6	537 of 1024	47.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	40.1	558 of 1013	44.9%	★★☆☆☆

Asian

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2022	0.3	500 of 507	1.4%	☆☆☆☆☆

At Risk

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2022	23.0	1514 of 1837	17.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	23.0	1511 of 1829	17.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.1	1032 of 1810	43.0%	★★☆☆☆
2018	34.5	1178 of 1784	34.0%	★★☆☆☆

English Language Learner

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	66.6	224 of 1195	81.3%	★★★★☆
2025	44.6	484 of 1153	58.0%	★★★☆☆
2024	39.0	745 of 1437	48.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	43.3	605 of 1371	55.9%	★★★☆☆
2022	38.6	657 of 1278	48.6%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.9	853 of 1195	28.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	26.6	886 of 1136	22.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	28.6	845 of 1113	24.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	32.3	1374 of 1936	29.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	33.2	995 of 1504	33.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	27.3	1380 of 1880	26.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	26.6	1405 of 1891	25.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	21.0	1496 of 1841	18.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	19.9	1490 of 1815	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	35.0	1260 of 1798	29.9%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.5	1319 of 1781	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	7.3	1170 of 1206	3.0%	☆☆☆☆☆
2025	28.7	801 of 964	16.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	27.4	1008 of 1182	14.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	25.1	1018 of 1172	13.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	12.0	1089 of 1177	7.5%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	26.9	1010 of 1145	11.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	16.8	1057 of 1137	7.0%	☆☆☆☆☆

Hispanic

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	26.6	1435 of 1860	22.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	34.5	920 of 1453	36.7%	★★☆☆☆
2024	28.2	1300 of 1805	28.0%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	29.8	1296 of 1820	28.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.3	1398 of 1762	20.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	28.1	1291 of 1743	25.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	40.1	1034 of 1714	39.7%	★★☆☆☆
2018	33.6	1150 of 1691	32.0%	★★☆☆☆

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	34.8	1327 of 1937	31.5%	★★☆☆☆
2025	37.5	895 of 1513	40.8%	★★☆☆☆
2024	25.6	1459 of 1884	22.6%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	24.7	1492 of 1897	21.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	22.7	1497 of 1847	18.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	21.0	1530 of 1848	17.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	35.2	1261 of 1818	30.6%	★★☆☆☆
2018	30.6	1346 of 1794	25.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	26.0	1495 of 1954	23.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	27.7	1083 of 1515	28.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2024	19.0	1552 of 1891	17.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	18.9	1565 of 1913	18.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	18.0	1551 of 1853	16.3%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	15.0	1594 of 1840	13.4%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	25.1	1425 of 1824	21.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	24.0	1455 of 1803	19.3%	★☆☆☆☆

Multi-racial

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	16.4	626 of 713	12.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	36.5	389 of 598	34.9%	★★☆☆☆
2024	35.8	480 of 731	34.3%	★★☆☆☆
2023	18.5	583 of 677	13.9%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	23.7	523 of 664	21.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2021	16.1	519 of 588	11.7%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	20.0	512 of 604	15.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	23.2	489 of 582	16.0%	★☆☆☆☆

Native American

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2018	23.1	95 of 122	22.1%	★☆☆☆☆

Special Education

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	29.3	1189 of 1581	24.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	46.3	605 of 1299	53.4%	★★★☆☆
2024	41.7	849 of 1548	45.2%	★★☆☆☆
2023	21.6	1314 of 1478	11.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2022	36.3	882 of 1418	37.8%	★★☆☆☆
2021	30.4	1030 of 1382	25.5%	★☆☆☆☆
2019	31.0	994 of 1357	26.8%	★☆☆☆☆
2018	27.7	1053 of 1347	21.8%	★☆☆☆☆

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	Texas percentile	Rating
2026	17.7	1361 of 1584	14.1%	★☆☆☆☆
2025	48.1	649 of 1294	49.8%	★★★☆☆
2024	30.4	1133 of 1556	27.2%	★☆☆☆☆
2023	6.7	1462 of 1576	7.2%	☆☆☆☆☆
2022	1.4	1496 of 1525	1.9%	☆☆☆☆☆
2021	6.9	1415 of 1510	6.3%	☆☆☆☆☆
2019	13.4	1392 of 1526	8.8%	☆☆☆☆☆
2018	14.7	1371 of 1539	10.9%	★☆☆☆☆

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

English Language Learner (2026)81st percentile+54 vs school

African American (2026)48th percentile+21 vs school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)31st percentile+5 vs school

Female (2026)29th percentile~ school

Special Education (2026)25th percentile~ school

Male (2026)23rd percentile-3 vs school

Hispanic (2026)23rd percentile-4 vs school

Native American (2018)22nd percentile-4 vs school

At Risk (2022)18th percentile~ school

White (2026)14th percentile-13 vs school

Multi-racial (2026)12th percentile-15 vs school

Gifted and Talented (2026)3rd percentile-24 vs school

Asian (2022)1st percentile-17 vs school

By subject vs Texas (2025-2026) ?

U.S. History59%-11 vs state

Biology53%-17 vs state

English II Reading53%-7 vs state

English I Reading46%-9 vs state

Algebra I18%-36 vs state

2.7

3 ratings · 2 written reviews

5★1

4★0

3★0

2★1

1★1

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What people are saying

by a student
Monday, January 9, 2017

Horrible school. Drugs are everywhere. Teachers starting fights with students. It just horrible Close Quote

by a student
Wednesday, November 30, 2011

The principle has lost control of everything. Rather than focusing on the students, she bans nike socke, made us have 5 pep rallies in a row, and cost us to get behind onn work. Most of the teachers/counselors that don't do their work right are friends with the principle and are not disciplined or fired. Good teachers that exert their time for the students have left[Mrs.Green}. We have had for a whole six week a sub. With no teacher insight. For right now, we have a teacher witth good intentions flipflopping between classes of physics and chemistry. He is hurting both vclasses instead of one. Most of the teachers are disgruntled with the principle. I would not reccomen this school if you value an education or want to study debate, net enginneering 1 and 2, since they gave thatt teacher three classes to teach instead of 1. The assistant principle DO NOT REPLY AT ALL. RATHER EAT THEIR LUNCH THE SAME DAM DAYS INSTEAD OF CHANGING THEIR EATING HABITS TO SETTLE DISPUTES BETWEEN TEACHER AND STUDENT. THIS REVIEW WONT DO MUCH. TEACHERS HAVE SENT STUDENT TO BE EXPEELLED BUT THEIR REQUEST HAVE BEEN DENIED. Close Quote

Schools Near Desoto High School

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				STAAR EOC Algebra I (2026)	STAAR EOC Biology (2026)	STAAR EOC English I Reading (2026)	STAAR EOC English II Reading (2026)	STAAR EOC U.S. History (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2024)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	STAAR EOC Algebra I End of Course	STAAR EOC Biology End of Course	STAAR EOC English I Reading End of Course	STAAR EOC English II Reading End of Course	STAAR EOC U.S. History End of Course	Total
Desoto High School	Public, Magnet	9-12	600 Eagle Dr	Desoto	75115	Dallas County	Desoto Independent School District (Isd)	No	Yes	(n/a)	Yes	(972) 230-0726	1,936	105	18.3	62.8%	32 (1.7%)	1,377 (71.1%)	455 (23.5%)	8 (0.4%)	9 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	55 (2.8%)	30.6	1470^th of 2009 public high schools	26.8%		33.2	1320^th of 1974 public high schools	33.1%	150	18.3	53.1	46.4	52.7	58.7	$7,439
Premier H S - Desoto	Public, Charter	9-12	929 W Belt Line Rd	Desoto	75115	Dallas County	Premier High Schools	Yes	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(972) 349-1920	72	4	18.0	65.3%	1 (1.4%)	44 (61.1%)	26 (36.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.4%)	4.5	1896^th of 2009 public high schools	5.6%		7.4	1822^nd of 1974 public high schools	7.7%	74	12.5	0.0	16.7	16.7	33.3	$13,149
Texasworks - Desoto	Public, Charter	10-12	929 W Belt Line Rd	Desoto	75115	Dallas County	Texas Works	Yes	(n/a)	(n/a)	(n/a)	(972) 316-3663	11	2	5.5		1 (9.1%)	8 (72.7%)	1 (9.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (9.1%)	0 (0.0%)								(n/a)
Desoto Alternative Education Center (Daep)	Public	6-12	204 E Belt Line Rd	Desoto	75115	Dallas County	Desoto Independent School District (Isd)	No	No	(n/a)	No	(972) 223-2242	19	7	5.5	47.4%	1 (5.3%)	14 (73.7%)	3 (15.8%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (5.3%)								(n/a)						$28,282
Iltexas Lancaster Desoto High School	Public, Charter	9-12	901 N Polk St Ste 101	Desoto	75115	Dallas County	International Leadership Of Texas (Iltexas)	Yes	No	(n/a)	Yes	(469) 786-2850	191	22	8.8	83.2%	4 (2.1%)	65 (34.0%)	113 (59.2%)	3 (1.6%)	2 (1.0%)	0 (0.0%)	4 (2.1%)	29.8	1482^nd of 2009 public high schools	26.2%		25	1516^th of 1974 public high schools	23.2%	34	32.0	52.7	35.7	47.2	65.2	$22,435
Winfree Academy Charter School Dallas	Public, Charter	9-12	2550 Beckleymeade Ave Ste 150	Dallas	75237	Dallas County	Winfree Academy Charter Schools	Yes	No	(n/a)	Yes	(469) 930-5199	245	4	55.6		5 (2.0%)	128 (52.2%)	107 (43.7%)	0 (0.0%)	2 (0.8%)	0 (0.0%)	3 (1.2%)	1.8	1984^th of 2009 public high schools	1.2%		2.5	1938^th of 1974 public high schools	1.8%	46	11.1	20.0	1.4	9.2	13.7	$7,323
Uplift Hampton Prep High School	Public, Charter	9-12	8915 S Hampton Rd	Dallas	75237	Dallas County	Uplift Education	Yes	No	(n/a)	Yes	(214) 421-1982	414	31	13.5	82.1%	1 (0.2%)	200 (48.3%)	199 (48.1%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (0.2%)	13 (3.1%)	48.4	987^th of 2009 public high schools	50.9%		34.3	1283^rd of 1974 public high schools	35.0%	296	25.0	68.4	55.3	57.8	65.7	$11,433
Cedar Hill High School	Public	9-12	1 Longhorn Blvd	Cedar Hill	75104	Dallas County	Cedar Hill Independent School District (Isd)	No	No	(n/a)	Yes	(469) 272-2000	1,974	130	15.1	59.3%	56 (2.8%)	1,321 (66.9%)	509 (25.8%)	14 (0.7%)	7 (0.4%)	3 (0.2%)	64 (3.2%)	13.6	1751^st of 2009 public high schools	12.8%		21.8	1572^nd of 1974 public high schools	20.4%	179	11.4	37.1	29.8	37.2	46.9	$8,168
David W Carter High School	Public	9-12	1819 W Wheatland Rd	Dallas	75232	Dallas County	Dallas Independent School District (Isd)	No	No	(n/a)	Yes	(214) 932-5700	1,097	70	15.7	91.2%	17 (1.5%)	625 (57.0%)	438 (39.9%)	2 (0.2%)	2 (0.2%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (1.2%)	60.1	683^rd of 2009 public high schools	66.0%		32.8	1327^th of 1974 public high schools	32.8%	644	62.0	85.6	51.8	57.2	82.7	$12,078
Mary E Smithey Pace High School	Public	9-12	502 E Freeman St	Duncanville	75116	Dallas County	Duncanville Independent School District (Isd)	No	No	(n/a)	No	(972) 708-2470	76	11	6.8	57.9%	1 (1.3%)	27 (35.5%)	45 (59.2%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	1 (1.3%)	2 (2.6%)	1.4	1999^th of 2009 public high schools	0.5%		2.2	1950^th of 1974 public high schools	1.2%	49	4.8	6.7	0.0	7.5	12.9	$17,021

Frequently Asked Questions about Desoto High School

How many students attend Desoto High School?

In the 2024-25 school year, 1,936 students attended Desoto High School.

What is the racial makeup of Desoto High School?

Students at Desoto High School are 71% African American, 24% Hispanic, 3% Two or more races, 2% White.

Is Desoto High School a good school?

Desoto High School ranks 1470^th of 2009 Texas high schools. SchoolDigger rates this school 1 star out of 5.

What schools feed into Desoto High School?

Desoto High School is fed by the following schools:

Elementary : Cockrell Hill Elementary
Elementary : Frank D Moates Elementary
Elementary : Ruby Young Talented And Gifted Academy
Elementary : The Meadows Elementary
Elementary : Woodridge Elementary
Middle : Curtistene S McCowan Middle
Middle : Desoto West Middle

What district is Desoto High School in?

Desoto Independent School District (Isd)

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Latest Texas data All new data »

2025–26 STAAR, STAAR EOC & STAAR Spanish test scoresJun 12, 2026

2021–22 through 2023–24 school spending dataJan 10, 2026

2023–24 dropout rates & graduation ratesSep 17, 2025

2024–25 STAAR EOC & STAAR Spanish test scoresJun 23, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the Texas Education Agency.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.