HANDLEY EL

Set in GARLAND, Texas, HANDLEY EL is a very small elementary-level community, run under GARLAND ISD. It enrolls 180 students across grades 3 through 5. That puts it 65% smaller than the typical public school in Texas, which averages around 519 students.

HANDLEY EL is one of 76 schools operated by GARLAND ISD, a district that instructs 53,173 students overall.

For racial and ethnic makeup, HANDLEY EL lists that the largest single group is Hispanic, at 59% of enrollment; the rest consists of 32% Black, 4% multiracial, 3% White. The wider county runs roughly 41% Hispanic, putting the school's mix noticeably more Hispanic than the area baseline.

On the resource side, On paper, HANDLEY EL has 15 full-time-equivalent teachers, translating to a class-load average of around 13.9:1. The state averages around 15.1:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. An estimated 90% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, a number frequently used as a low-income enrollment indicator. That share is above Dallas County's rate of about 77%.

Adjusting for the school's free-and-reduced-lunch share, HANDLEY EL performs roughly as the BeatsExpectations model predicts for a school with this FRL share. The predicted value is around 34.6%, the actual is 30.4%, a residual of -4.2 points.

Across the wider county, the surrounding county (Dallas County) reports that the typical household earns roughly $76,547 per year, about 36% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and roughly 11% of residents live below the federal poverty line. Across Dallas County's 771 public schools (combined enrollment of about 459,645 students), HANDLEY EL is one campus in the mix.

The closest other public school is HANDLEY STEM EL, roughly 0.0 miles away. 8 of the 8 nearest public schools sit inside a five-mile radius. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts HANDLEY EL at 5th of 7; the average score across the group is 40.3%.

The campus sits in a residential setting.

Five-year trend. HANDLEY EL's enrollment has fell 62% since 2018, when it stood at 477 (now 180). The Hispanic share of enrollment grew from 52% to 59% over that span. The student-to-teacher ratio fell from 14.0:1 in 2018 to 11.8:1 today.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around school events, parent volunteer needs, and clubs. Parents, students, alumni, and staff are welcome to weigh in.