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SCHOOL COMMUNITY·LIFE SCHOOL·NCES 480005507849

Life School Oak Cliff

4400 S R L THORNTON FRWY, DALLAS, TX 75224 · (214) 376-8200 · Dallas County
GRADES KG–12COMBINED11-CITYCHARTERTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL1,483 STUDENTS
C-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 19% of Texas public K-12 schools
  • DTest scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
  • CBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
  • B-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 K-12 schools

Enrollment
1,483
Combined
DISTRICT 717 · STATE 485
Student : Teacher
16.8:1
88 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 17.9:1 · STATE 11.7:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
82%
1,209 students
DISTRICT 68% · STATE 65%
Community
1
0 members
Enrollment and student:teacher ratio compared against other combined schools. Free/Reduced Lunch and demographics compared against all schools.

Enrollment by grade, 2024-25

GradeStudentsShare
Kindergarten755%
Grade 1876%
Grade 2916%
Grade 31128%
Grade 4987%
Grade 51138%
Grade 61369%
Grade 714310%
Grade 81409%
Grade 915110%
Grade 101248%
Grade 111188%
Grade 12956%

This year's kindergarten class (75) is 46% smaller than its 8th grade class (140).

Student demographics
53%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 61% · STATE 63% · US 70%
White
181%
DISTRICT 9% · STATE 24% · US 43%
Hispanic
66245%
DISTRICT 44% · STATE 54% · US 30%
Black
77852%
DISTRICT 44% · STATE 13% · US 15%
Two+
242%
DISTRICT 3% · STATE 3% · US 5%
Native American
10%
DISTRICT 0% · STATE 0% · US 1%
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
Male
74650%
Female
73750%

Discussions

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Test scores

STAAR 2025-26 . % Meets Grade Level or Above
Reading
40.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +14.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
27.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +8.0pp since 2020

What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 40 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 27 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 8 points.

Performance levels, 2025-26

SubjectMasters Grade LevelMeets Grade LevelApproaches Grade LevelDid Not Meet Grade Level
Reading12.0%28.0%30.0%30.0%
Mathematics8.0%19.0%29.0%44.0%
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 yearReadingMathematics
2025-2640.0%27.0%
2024-2538.0%27.0%
2023-2438.0%22.0%
2022-2329.0%19.0%
2021-2234.0%24.0%
2020-2126.0%19.0%
% 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 · methodology
Tier
AS EXPECTED
Performing as predicted given the school's student profile
Actual proficiency
28.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.9%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
-10.1pp
below demographic expectation

What this means: About 29% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 39% 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 →

4-year change

SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25
Enrollment
1,483
-53 (-3%) vs 2020
+109% since 2000-01, when it was 708
Student : Teacher
16.8:1
was 15.4:1
Source: NCES Common Core of Data

Enrollment and staffing by year

School yearStudentsTeachers (FTE)Students per teacherFree and reduced lunch
2024-251,48388.116.8:182% (1,209)
2023-241,47885.317.3:183% (1,233)
2022-231,42696.214.8:185% (1,211)
2020-211,53610015.4:176% (1,162)
2017-181,537107.614.3:181% (1,248)
2015-161,53910714.4:179% (1,216)
2010-111,3148615.3:167% (878)
2000-017083818.6:148% (339)
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Life School Oak Cliff.

Since 2017-18: students down 4% (1,537 to 1,483); teachers down 18% (107.6 to 88.1).

About Life School Oak Cliff

Life School Oak Cliff is a high-enrollment school serving multiple grade levels in DALLAS, Texas, one of the schools in LIFE SCHOOL. The school runs kindergarten through 12 and enrolls 1,483 students. That compares with an average of about 485 students for combined schools in Texas.

LIFE SCHOOL counts 8 schools and 5,735 students, including Life School Oak Cliff.

At Life School Oak Cliff, 52% of students are Black. Other students are 45% Hispanic. That is higher than the 22% Black share among all Dallas County residents. The diversity index for Life School Oak Cliff is 53%. For US public schools as a whole it is 70%.

The student-to-teacher ratio at Life School Oak Cliff is 16.8:1, based on 88.1 full-time-equivalent teachers. Statewide, combined schools in Texas average 11.7:1. Lunch program data show 82% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price meals.

Among Texas public K-12 schools, Life School Oak Cliff outscored 19%, which works out to a C- on the allk12 Grade.

BeatsExpectations compares each school's average proficiency rate across its state test results with a prediction based on free or reduced-price lunch eligibility. For Life School Oak Cliff, the prediction is 38.9% and the result is 28.7%.

In the surrounding county, Dallas County, median household income comes to about $76,547, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 36% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 11%. The county has 771 public schools and about 459,645 students.

Clara Oliver Elementary School is about 0.7 miles from Life School Oak Cliff, the shortest distance to any other public school. Other public schools within five miles: at least 8. The nearest schools with test data average 45.8%, higher than Life School Oak Cliff's 28.7%.

The school is inside a principal city with a population of 250,000 or more, according to its NCES locale (City: Large). Federal records list Life School Oak Cliff as a charter school.

In 2020-21, Life School Oak Cliff enrolled 1,536 students. By 2024-25, that number had fallen to 1,483. The student-to-teacher ratio increased from 15.4:1 in 2020-21 to 16.8:1 in 2024-25.

Parents, students, and staff can share information on athletics, class schedules, and weather closures here. Members of the school community can share what they know.

Dallas County at a glance

View full county profile
Population
2,621,179
Census ACS
Median income
$76,547
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
36%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
11%
Below federal line
Schools in county
771
459,645 students

Quick facts

School name
Life School Oak Cliff
District
LIFE SCHOOL
Address
4400 S R L THORNTON FRWY, DALLAS, TX 75224
Phone
(214) 376-8200
County
Dallas County
Level
Combined
Grade range
KG–12
Total enrollment
1,483
Teachers (FTE)
88
Student–teacher ratio
16.8:1
Free and reduced lunch
1,209 (82%)
Locale
11-City: Large
NCES ID
480005507849
Charter school
Yes
Virtual school
No

Related schools

Other schools in LIFE SCHOOL
Other schools in DALLAS
Nearby schools

Frequently asked questions

About Life School Oak Cliff
How large is Life School Oak Cliff?
Life School Oak Cliff enrolls approximately 1,483 students in grades KG-12.
Is Life School Oak Cliff an elementary, middle, or high school?
Life School Oak Cliff is a combined-grade school covering grades KG-12.
How many teachers does Life School Oak Cliff have?
Life School Oak Cliff employs 88 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.8:1.
How diverse is Life School Oak Cliff?
Life School Oak Cliff reports a student body of 1% White, 45% Hispanic, 52% Black, 2% Two or more.
What district is Life School Oak Cliff in?
Life School Oak Cliff is part of LIFE SCHOOL.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.
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