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If you could change one rule at CANTU EL, what would it be?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
521
Elementary
DISTRICT 435 · STATE 519
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MISSION CISD·NCES 483104005901
Cantu Elementary School
920 W MAIN AVE, ALTON, TX 78573 · (956) 323-7400 · Hidalgo County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL521 STUDENTS
B
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 58% of Texas public elementary schools
- B-Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- A-Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- C-Three-year trend Change in reading and math proficiency over the last three test years.
Grades compare a school only with schools in the same state, because every state gives its own test. How grades work · Top-graded Texas public elementary schools
Student : Teacher
17.1:1
31 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 15.9:1 · STATE 15.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
91%
475 students
DISTRICT 87% · STATE 65%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other elementary schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 104 | 20% |
| Kindergarten | 65 | 12% |
| Grade 1 | 71 | 14% |
| Grade 2 | 79 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 58 | 11% |
| Grade 4 | 74 | 14% |
| Grade 5 | 70 | 13% |
This year's kindergarten class (65) is 7% smaller than its 5th grade class (70).
Student demographics
5%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 5% · STATE 63% · US 70%
Student head counts by race/ethnicity from federal NCES enrollment data. District, state, and US figures are each group's share of all public school students in that area (US excludes territories). Very small groups may be suppressed in the source, so categories do not always sum exactly to total enrollment.
Gender split
Test scores
STAAR 2025-26 . % Meets Grade Level or AboveReading
45.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +20.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
40.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +24.0pp since 2020
What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 45 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 40 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are up about 20 points since 2020, while math scores are up about 24 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 18.0% | 27.0% | 25.0% | 30.0% |
| Mathematics | 16.0% | 24.0% | 23.0% | 37.0% |
Share of tested students at each STAAR level. Each student counts in one level, so a row adds to about 100%.
STAAR results by year
| School year | Reading | Mathematics |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 45.0% | 40.0% |
| 2024-25 | 51.0% | 44.0% |
| 2023-24 | 45.0% | 45.0% |
| 2022-23 | 47.0% | 47.0% |
| 2021-22 | 32.0% | 36.0% |
| 2020-21 | 25.0% | 16.0% |
% Meets Grade Level or Above, all students and all tested grades.
Source: STAAR. All students, all grades. See all years and grades →
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyTier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
43.6%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
34.8%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+8.8pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 44% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 35% typical for Texas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations measures results against demographically similar schools rather than by raw scores, and this school falls within the typical range, neither among Texas's top nor bottom 10%.
BeatsExpectations runs a per-state regression of proficiency on free/reduced-lunch share, then scores each school by residual. How this is calculated →
Schools most like Cantu Elementary School
Cantu Elementary School's state test result (43.6% proficient) is higher than 4 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cantu Elementary School this school | 521 | 91.2% | 43.6% |
| Rio Hondo Elementary School RIO HONDO | 527 | 90.9% | 36.9% |
| Vestal Elementary School SAN ANTONIO | 536 | 92.0% | 21.6% |
| Gillette Elementary School SAN ANTONIO | 527 | 91.5% | 33.6% |
| Betts Elementary School EDINBURG | 534 | 91.0% | 45.1% |
| Desert Wind Elementary School EL PASO | 521 | 89.8% | 40.9% |
Matched among Texas elementary schools on enrollment, the share of students from low-income families (eligible for free or reduced-price lunch), and racial and ethnic makeup. Proficient is the average share of students meeting the state standard across all of the school's state tests in 2023-24 and 2024-25, the same combined score our test-score rankings use. Online schools and schools serving specialized populations are not matched.
Where Cantu Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Texas | In Hidalgo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 43.6% | #2,136 of 4,401 | #89 of 181 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 40.0% | #2,895 of 4,466 ▼ 629 | #145 of 183 ▼ 48 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 45.0% | #3,164 of 4,466 ▼ 772 | #139 of 183 ▼ 42 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -4.5pp | #719 of 3,998 | #28 of 180 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 521 | #2,328 of 4,938 | #92 of 192 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 17.1:1 | #3,915 of 4,622 | #136 of 185 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 5.2% | #4,310 of 4,628 | #61 of 185 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 91.2% | #935 of 4,789 | #87 of 190 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +21.2% | #388 of 1,307 | #9 of 53 |
Ranked against other public elementary schools. Online schools are left out of every list, and test-score lists leave out schools that serve specialized populations. Each rank links to the full list. Arrows under a test-score rank show places moved since the prior test year, among schools tested both years.
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment
521
+107 (+26%) vs 2020
-33% since 1990-91, when it was 781
Student : Teacher
17.1:1
was 14.8:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data
Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 521 | 30.5 | 17.1:1 | 91% (475) |
| 2023-24 | 466 | 28.8 | 16.2:1 | 94% (438) |
| 2022-23 | 417 | 25.2 | 16.5:1 | 94% (393) |
| 2020-21 | 414 | 28 | 14.8:1 | 93% (385) |
| 2017-18 | 430 | 29.4 | 14.6:1 | 91% (392) |
| 2015-16 | 495 | 38 | 13.0:1 | 92% (454) |
| 2010-11 | 539 | 31 | 17.4:1 | 0% (0) |
| 2000-01 | 824 | 48 | 17.2:1 | 0% (0) |
| 1990-91 | 781 | 37 | 21.1:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Cantu Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students up 21% (430 to 521); teachers up 4% (29.4 to 30.5).
About Cantu Elementary School
ALTON, Texas, is home to Cantu Elementary School, a mid-sized elementary school. The school serves pre-K through 5. Enrollment is 521 students.
The 22 schools of MISSION CISD, including Cantu Elementary School, enroll 13,765 students.
Hispanic students are 97% of those enrolled at Cantu Elementary School. Next come 2% White. Its diversity index, the chance that two randomly chosen students belong to different racial or ethnic groups, is 5%.
Teacher count: 30.5 full-time equivalents. Student-to-teacher ratio: 17.1:1. Across elementary schools in Texas, the average ratio is 15.1:1. Roughly 91% of students come from households that qualify for free or reduced-price lunch.
Among Texas public elementary schools, Cantu Elementary School outscored 58%, which works out to a B on the allk12 Grade.
A school with Cantu Elementary School's lunch-eligibility share in Texas is predicted to score 34.8%. Cantu Elementary School scores 43.6%, 8.8 points above that line.
For Hidalgo County, Census Bureau data show the median household earns about $54,338 a year, 21% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and about 23% of people live in poverty. Counting Cantu Elementary School, Hidalgo County has 364 public schools.
The closest school to Cantu Elementary School is Alton Memorial Junior High School, located about 0.5 miles away. Cantu Elementary School is one of several public schools in the area, with at least 8 others within five miles. Local comparison: Cantu Elementary School ranks 4th of 9 nearby schools, at 43.6% versus a 45.6% average.
Cantu Elementary School falls in the Suburb: Large locale category, used for schools in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
Enrollment increased 26% over 4 years, reaching 521 in 2024-25. The student-to-teacher ratio went up from 14.8:1 to 17.1:1.
You can use this page to share news and ask questions about open houses, carpools, and field trips. You can also rate the school on this page.
Hidalgo County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
891,977
Census ACS
Median income
$54,338
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
21%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
23%
Below federal line
Schools in county
364
212,859 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in MISSION CISD
- Mission High SchoolHigh · 2,154 students
- Veterans Memorial High SchoolHigh · 1,737 students
- White Junior High SchoolMiddle · 831 students
- Alton Memorial Junior High SchoolMiddle · 819 students
- Mission Junior High SchoolMiddle · 711 students
- Mims Elementary SchoolElementary · 673 students
Other schools in ALTON
- Alton Memorial Junior High SchoolMiddle · 819 students
- Jessie L Jensen Elementary SchoolElementary · 615 students
- Domingo Trevino Middle SchoolMiddle · 531 students
- Raquel Cavazos Elementary SchoolElementary · 521 students
- Mission Collegiate High SchoolHigh · 399 students
- Carl C Waitz Elementary SchoolElementary · 361 students
Nearby schools
- Alton Memorial Junior High School0.5 mi · 819
- Raquel Cavazos Elementary School0.6 mi · 521
- Mission Collegiate High School0.7 mi · 399
- Alton Elementary School0.9 mi · 337
- Domingo Trevino Middle School0.9 mi · 531
- Carl C Waitz Elementary School1.0 mi · 361
Frequently asked questions
About Cantu Elementary SchoolHow large is Cantu Elementary School?
Cantu Elementary School enrolls approximately 521 students in grades PK-05.
What age range does Cantu Elementary School serve?
Cantu Elementary School serves students from grade PK through grade 05.
How many students per teacher at Cantu Elementary School?
Approximately 17.1:1 students per teacher at Cantu Elementary School.
What is the racial breakdown of students at Cantu Elementary School?
At Cantu Elementary School, the student body is approximately 2% White, 97% Hispanic, 0% Black, 0% Two or more.
What district is Cantu Elementary School in?
Cantu Elementary School is part of MISSION CISD.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.