Summary:
Zip code 77412, encompassing the Altair, Texas area, is home to a single high school, Rice High School, which serves grades 9 through 12 as part of the Rice Consolidated Independent School District.
Rice High School presents a compelling paradox for parents. On one hand, it excels at student retention, boasting a near-perfect graduation rate of 98.7% and a 0.0% dropout rate for the 2023-2024 school year. This is a significant achievement, especially considering that 70.4% of its 348 students are economically disadvantaged. The school also invests heavily in its students, with a low student-teacher ratio of 13.5:1 and a spending per student of $13,300. On the other hand, academic proficiency on state standardized tests is a major concern. For the 2025-2026 school year, only 13.25% of students were proficient in Algebra I, compared to the state average of 54.03%. Proficiency in Biology (34.78%), English I Reading (40.38%), English II Reading (39.24%), and U.S. History (51.47%) also fell well below state averages. This has resulted in a low state ranking of 1689 out of 2009 high schools (16th percentile), a ranking that has been declining over the past three years.
The key takeaway for parents is that Rice High School is a school of two distinct realities. It provides a supportive environment that successfully graduates nearly all of its students, a clear strength. However, the data strongly indicates that many graduates may not be meeting grade-level academic standards, particularly in mathematics. While the school's relative strengths appear to be in English and U.S. History, the critically low Algebra I scores point to a need for targeted academic intervention. Parents should weigh the school's exceptional graduation support against its significant academic challenges when making their educational decisions.
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