1
What do students at IDEA COLLEGE PREPARATORY PHARR actually talk about outside of class?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
848
High
DISTRICT 676 · STATE 796
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS·NCES 480021112390
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr
600 E LAS MILPAS RD, PHARR, TX 78577 · (956) 283-1515 · Hidalgo County
GRADES 06–12HIGH13-CITYCHARTERTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL848 STUDENTS
Student : Teacher
19.0:1
45 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 16.1:1 · STATE 15.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
94%
797 students
DISTRICT 83% · STATE 65%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other high schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Grade 6 | 136 | 16% |
| Grade 7 | 134 | 16% |
| Grade 8 | 129 | 15% |
| Grade 9 | 127 | 15% |
| Grade 10 | 123 | 15% |
| Grade 11 | 115 | 14% |
| Grade 12 | 84 | 10% |
Student demographics
1%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 27% · 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
57.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +14.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
39.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +18.0pp since 2020
What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 57 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 39 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are up about 14 points since 2020, while math scores are up about 18 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 20.0% | 37.0% | 20.0% | 23.0% |
| Mathematics | 10.0% | 29.0% | 40.0% | 21.0% |
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 | 57.0% | 39.0% |
| 2024-25 | 56.0% | 41.0% |
| 2023-24 | 58.0% | 40.0% |
| 2022-23 | 63.0% | 43.0% |
| 2021-22 | 58.0% | 41.0% |
| 2020-21 | 43.0% | 21.0% |
% 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
OUTPERFORMING
Top 10% of TX schools after controlling for student poverty
Actual proficiency
49.3%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
33.5%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+15.8pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 49% of students here test proficient in math and reading, well above the roughly 34% typical for Texas schools with a similar share of low-income students. BeatsExpectations ranks schools against others at the same poverty level, not by raw scores, so a school can post high scores and still fall short of its prediction, or post lower scores and still beat it. This school clears its prediction by about 16 points, placing it in Texas's top 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 IDEA College Preparatory Pharr
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr's state test result (49.3% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| IDEA College Preparatory Pharr this school | 848 | 94.0% | 49.3% |
| IDEA Riverview College Preparatory BROWNSVILLE | 813 | 94.3% | 64.0% |
| IDEA Los Encinos College Preparatory MCALLEN | 753 | 93.2% | 60.0% |
| San Elizario High School SAN ELIZARIO | 985 | 95.0% | 33.7% |
| IDEA College Prep DONNA | 823 | 95.3% | 40.9% |
| Mercedes High School MERCEDES | 903 | 92.0% | 24.6% |
Matched among Texas high 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 IDEA College Preparatory Pharr ranks
Among high schools| Measure | This school | In Texas | In Hidalgo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 49.3% | #847 of 1,385 | #30 of 56 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 39.0% | #830 of 1,425 ▼ 158 | #34 of 56 ▼ 8 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 57.0% | #710 of 1,425 ▼ 36 | #25 of 56 ▼ 2 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -5.0pp | #55 of 1,184 | #5 of 56 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 848 | #655 of 2,107 | #27 of 84 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 19.0:1 | #1,250 of 1,344 | #55 of 56 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 0.9% | #1,328 of 1,346 | #48 of 56 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 94.0% | #93 of 1,522 | #17 of 65 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +11.0% | #355 of 672 | #6 of 18 |
Ranked against other public high 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
848
+51 (+6%) vs 2020
+298% since 2010-11, when it was 213
Student : Teacher
19.0:1
was 22.1:1
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 | 848 | 44.5 | 19.0:1 | 94% (797) |
| 2023-24 | 863 | 43.4 | 19.9:1 | 94% (813) |
| 2022-23 | 771 | 48.5 | 15.9:1 | 95% (730) |
| 2020-21 | 797 | 36 | 22.1:1 | 92% (737) |
| 2017-18 | 764 | 44.7 | 17.1:1 | 93% (712) |
| 2015-16 | 676 | 37 | 18.3:1 | 98% (665) |
| 2010-11 | 213 | 12 | 17.8:1 | 91% (194) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for IDEA College Preparatory Pharr.
Since 2017-18: students up 11% (764 to 848); teachers unchanged (44.7 to 44.5).
About IDEA College Preparatory Pharr
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is a medium-sized high school in IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, located in PHARR, Texas. Grades offered run from 6 through 12, with 848 students enrolled.
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is one school in IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS, a system of 125 schools with 79,430 students.
The large majority of students at IDEA College Preparatory Pharr, 100%, are Hispanic. IDEA College Preparatory Pharr has a diversity index of 1%, compared with 70% for all US public school students.
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr counts 44.5 full-time-equivalent teachers, about 19.0 students for each one. Among high schools in Texas, the typical ratio is 15.1:1. About 94% of enrolled students meet the income rules for free or reduced-price lunch. The average for public schools in Hidalgo County is 85%.
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr posts an average proficiency rate on state tests of 49.3%. Schools with its free or reduced-price lunch share in Texas are predicted to post 33.5%, so the school is 15.8 points ahead and in the state's top 10%.
In the county around the school, Hidalgo County, median household income is about $54,338, about 21% of adults have at least a bachelor's degree, and the poverty rate is about 23%. A total of 364 public schools operate in Hidalgo County, serving about 212,859 students.
The school nearest to IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is IDEA Academy Pharr, at a distance of less than a tenth of a mile. Within five miles of IDEA College Preparatory Pharr, there are at least 8 other public schools. The average proficiency across nearby scored schools is 54.8%; IDEA College Preparatory Pharr's is 49.3%, ranking 6th of 9.
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is coded as City: Small in federal locale data. Federal records list IDEA College Preparatory Pharr as a charter school.
From 2020-21 to 2024-25, IDEA College Preparatory Pharr went from 797 students to 848. Its ratio of students to teachers was 22.1:1 in 2020-21, and 19.0:1 in 2024-25.
Posts about school safety, transportation, and start times are welcome on this page. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
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 IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS
- IDEA Montopolis College PreparatoryHigh · 835 students
- IDEA College PrepHigh · 823 students
- IDEA McAllen College PreparatoryHigh · 820 students
- IDEA Riverview College PreparatoryHigh · 813 students
- IDEA College Preparatory MissionHigh · 798 students
- IDEA Edinburg College PreparatoryHigh · 795 students
Other schools in PHARR
- Psja North Early College High SchoolHigh · 2,166 students
- Vanguard RembrandtCombined · 1,978 students
- Psja Southwest Early College High SchoolHigh · 1,588 students
- Vanguard Van GoghCombined · 1,048 students
- Lyndon B Johnson Middle SchoolMiddle · 1,006 students
- Dr William Long Elementary SchoolElementary · 767 students
Nearby schools
- IDEA Academy Pharr0.0 mi · 717
- Jc Kelly Elementary School0.3 mi · 260
- Hidalgo Park Elementary School0.6 mi · 239
- Cesar Chavez Elementary School1.2 mi · 403
- Berta S Palacios Elementary School1.2 mi · 470
- Carmen Anaya Elementary School1.3 mi · 429
Frequently asked questions
About IDEA College Preparatory PharrHow large is IDEA College Preparatory Pharr?
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr enrolls approximately 848 students in grades 06-12.
Is IDEA College Preparatory Pharr an elementary, middle, or high school?
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is a high school covering grades 06-12.
How many students per teacher at IDEA College Preparatory Pharr?
Approximately 19.0:1 students per teacher at IDEA College Preparatory Pharr.
What is the racial breakdown of students at IDEA College Preparatory Pharr?
At IDEA College Preparatory Pharr, the student body is approximately 0% White, 100% Hispanic, 0% Black.
Is IDEA College Preparatory Pharr public or private?
IDEA College Preparatory Pharr is a public K-12 school operated as a charter, overseen by IDEA PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.