Summary
Jones Elementary is a PK-6 school in Midland, TX, serving 483 students within the Midland Independent School District (Isd), where nearly 78% of students qualify for free or reduced lunch, indicating a high level of economic disadvantage. The school has faced significant academic challenges, ranking in the bottom 20% of Texas elementary schools for the past decade, with a particularly severe decline to the 5th percentile from 2022 to 2024. While recent data shows a slight recovery to the 16th percentile, Jones remains one of the lowest-performing schools in its area, especially when compared to nearby schools like Scharbauer Elementary (70th percentile) and Bush Elementary (61st percentile).
A critical area of concern is 5th Grade Science, where in the 2023-2024 school year, 0% of Jones students scored proficient on the STAAR test, though this improved to 16% in 2024-2025—still far below the district and state averages. However, there is a notable bright spot: the school excels in supporting English Language Learners (ELL), ranking in the 52nd percentile for this subgroup and earning a 3-star rating, a stark contrast to its overall performance. Additionally, students taking the STAAR test in Spanish perform relatively well, with 5th-grade Science scores nearly double the state average, suggesting that the school's bilingual and ESL programs are a genuine strength.
Interestingly, Jones spends $12,267 per student, which is higher than most nearby schools, yet its academic outcomes are among the lowest. For example, Scharbauer Elementary spends $9,023 per student and ranks in the 70th percentile, highlighting potential issues with resource allocation. The school's closest neighbor, Henderson Elementary, just 0.56 miles away, has shown similar struggles in recent years, with both schools converging at very low performance levels in 3rd-grade reading. This suggests that the entire neighborhood may face systemic challenges that are difficult for any single school to overcome.
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