Cactus Elementary

Cactus Elementary is a PK-4 school in Cactus, Texas, serving 487 students in a small, rural community where over 94% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, indicating significant economic challenges. The school is part of the Dumas Independent School District (Isd), which ranks in the 60th percentile statewide, but Cactus Elementary itself has historically underperformed, ranking in the 14th percentile as of 2025-2026—a slight improvement from the 3rd percentile in 2023-2024 but still in the bottom tier of Texas elementary schools.

Academic performance at Cactus Elementary lags far behind nearby schools. For example, in 4th grade math, only 37.2% of Cactus students are proficient, compared to 73.2% at Dumas North Elementary (11.9 miles away) and 58.6% district-wide. Reading scores are similarly low, with 3rd graders at 28.4% proficiency versus the district average of 52.7%. Even Sunray Elementary (10.5 miles away, in the Sunray Collegiate Independent School District (Isd)) outperforms Cactus, ranking in the 51st percentile. This stark contrast highlights a "two-tier" system within the Dumas ISD, where Cactus Elementary struggles despite comparable per-student spending ($11,572) to Sunray ($11,234).

There is a bright spot: Special Education students at Cactus Elementary rank in the 55th percentile, a dramatic improvement from the 1st percentile two years ago, suggesting targeted interventions are working. However, the school faces an uphill battle due to the extreme concentration of poverty, which is much higher than at neighboring schools like Dumas South Elementary (69.5% economically disadvantaged) or Dumas North (68.2%). While the recent upward trend is encouraging, Cactus Elementary must sustain this progress for several years to close the enormous gap with its peers.