Toler Elementary

Toler Elementary is a PK-5 public school in the Garland Independent School District (Isd), serving 425 students in a community where 82% of families qualify for free or reduced lunch, and it has recently achieved a remarkable turnaround, jumping from the 23rd to the 59th percentile statewide over two years.

Toler Elementary stands out for its exceptional progress with students from low-income backgrounds, ranking in the 80th percentile statewide for this group—a 4-star rating that outpaces its overall performance. This is especially impressive when compared to nearby Shugart Elementary, which serves a similarly high-poverty population (91% free/reduced lunch) but ranks in the 23rd percentile, showing that Toler’s leadership and strategies are making a real difference. The school also excels in 3rd-grade math, with a 62.5% proficiency rate that beats both the state average (44.33%) and the district average (50.09%). However, 5th-grade science is a persistent weakness, with proficiency stuck at 8% for three years, far below the district (26%) and state (30%) averages. While Toler serves English learners and special education students well (68th and 64th percentiles), its strongest results are for African American and Hispanic students, who rank in the 77th and 71st percentiles respectively.

In contrast, the nearby Classical Center At Vial Elementary is a high-performing outlier in the district, ranking in the 91st percentile with a more affluent population (54% free/reduced lunch). This comparison highlights Toler’s achievement: it earns a 3-star rating despite facing greater economic challenges. Toler’s rapid improvement—from a 1-star to a 3-star rating—makes it a standout in the area, proving that school-level factors like culture and instruction can overcome demographic odds. For parents, this means a school that is not only rising fast but also particularly effective at supporting students from diverse backgrounds, though it still has work to do in upper-grade science.