Summary:
This analysis examines seven elementary schools in Dallas, TX, zip code 75232, serving predominantly high-poverty communities, with an average free/reduced lunch rate of 92.6%.
The standout school in the area is Mark Twain School For The Talented And Gifted, which consistently ranks in the top 25% of Texas elementary schools and boasts exceptional test scores, such as 100% of 8th graders proficient in Reading. In stark contrast, Uplift Wisdom Prep PS is the lowest-performing school, ranking in the bottom 10% statewide with a 0-star rating and very low proficiency rates, like only 4.46% of 5th graders proficient in Science. The remaining Dallas Independent School District (ISD) schools show a wide range of outcomes, from the struggling Birdie Alexander Elementary and Adelle Turner Elementary to the improving Umphrey Lee Elementary, which jumped from the 15th to the 75th percentile. T.G. Terry Elementary and Martin Weiss Elementary fall in the middle, with the latter having the highest free/reduced lunch rate at 98.36%.
Key findings reveal that spending per student does not guarantee success, as the highest-spending schools, Mark Twain ($15,351) and Birdie Alexander ($15,042), represent the best and worst performers. Science is a universal weakness across the zip code, with many schools showing 0% proficiency in 5th Grade Science, and even Mark Twain only reaching 47.22%. The average state ranking for the seven schools is the 42.4th percentile, below the state median, and the average student-teacher ratio is 14.4:1, though Uplift Wisdom Prep PS has a much higher ratio of 22.7:1. Overall, the area offers a mix of high-performing and struggling schools, with significant year-over-year volatility in rankings, making it essential for parents to look beyond a single year's data.
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