CAPITAN ELEMENTARY

CAPITAN ELEMENTARY is an elementary school of compact scale in CAPITAN, New Mexico, overseen by CAPITAN, educateing 207 students in grades pre-K through 5. That puts it 28% smaller than the typical public school in New Mexico, which averages around 287 students.

CAPITAN comprises 3 schools with combined enrollment of 443 students; CAPITAN ELEMENTARY is among them.

For racial and ethnic makeup, CAPITAN ELEMENTARY records that the largest single group is White, at 59% of enrollment. Other groups include 36% Hispanic, 3% multiracial. That is visibly less White than the county at large, where the share is closer to 70%.

In terms of school funding signals, The school lists 18 full-time-equivalent teachers, for a student-teacher ratio near 11.7:1. The state averages around 12.9:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. An estimated 33% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, often used as a Title I proxy. Set against Lincoln County (around 85%), the school's rate is meaningfully below typical.

On a residual basis (actual vs predicted given the student mix), CAPITAN ELEMENTARY sits in the middle band of the BeatsExpectations distribution. Schools with this campus's student mix typically land near 49.4%; this one delivers 46.3%.

Around the school, census data for Lincoln County shows the typical household earns roughly $53,303 per year, roughly 32% of adults have completed at least a four-year degree, and roughly 14% of residents live below the federal poverty line. In all, Lincoln County runs 14 public schools (combined enrollment of about 2,601 students), of which CAPITAN ELEMENTARY is one.

Nearest neighbor: CAPITAN HIGH, around 0.0 miles off. Within five miles, there are 2 other public schools. On composite proficiency, CAPITAN ELEMENTARY comes 1st of 4 in the immediate cluster, above the nearby-schools average of 39.3%.

CAPITAN ELEMENTARY operates from a rural location.

Five-year trend. Over the past 7-year window, the student count showed little movement: 209 students in 2018 compared to 207 in 2025. White enrollment moved from 73% to 59% across the same window. The student-to-teacher ratio tightened from 12.9:1 in 2018 to 11.7:1 today.

On the community side, members of the CAPITAN ELEMENTARY community share and discuss enrollment questions, classroom assignments, and PTA news. Members of the school community can share what they know.