Best Public Schools in Zip Code 78573

Zip code 78573, serving the communities of Alton, Mission, and Palmhurst, Texas, is home to 10 schools spanning elementary through high school, with a student population that is overwhelmingly economically disadvantaged, as reflected by an average free/reduced lunch rate of 92.3%.

The standout school in the area is Mission Collegiate High School, which ranks in the 89th percentile statewide and boasts a 99% graduation rate and 0% dropout rate, despite having the lowest per-student spending ($9,871) in the zip code. In contrast, Carl C Waitz Elementary is the lowest-performing school, consistently ranking in the 14th percentile with critically low test scores. A notable rising star is Raquel Cavazos Elementary, which improved from the 49th to the 61st percentile and excels in 5th-grade math and reading. The three middle schools—Alton Memorial J H, Rafael A Cantu J H, and Domingo Trevino Middle—share a critical weakness in 7th-grade math, with proficiency rates as low as 3.11%, far below the state average of 29.41%. However, these same middle schools achieve near-perfect scores (91-100% proficient) in Algebra I, suggesting only top-tier students are accelerated into that course.

Key takeaways for parents include the "Algebra I Paradox," where middle school students taking Algebra I vastly outperform the high school's general population (55.68% proficient), and the fact that higher spending does not guarantee better results—Domingo Trevino Middle spends the most per student ($13,743) but ranks only in the 35th percentile. Additionally, bilingual education is a strength, with schools like Salinas Elementary achieving Spanish-language reading scores well above the state average. The schools are primarily part of Mission Consolidated Independent School District, with one school each in Sharyland ISD and La Joya ISD.