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If you could change one rule at NIXON SMILEY EL, what would it be?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
438
Elementary
DISTRICT 203 · STATE 519
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·NIXON-SMILEY CISD·NCES 483274003617
Nixon Smiley Elementary School
500 ANGLIN ST, SMILEY, TX 78159 · (830) 582-1536 · Gonzales County
GRADES PK–04ELEMENTARY43-RURALTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL438 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 53% 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.
- B+Beats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- DThree-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
13.3:1
33 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 8.0:1 · STATE 15.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
80%
352 students
DISTRICT 78% · 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 | 93 | 21% |
| Kindergarten | 61 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 64 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 16% |
| Grade 3 | 80 | 18% |
| Grade 4 | 71 | 16% |
This year's kindergarten class (61) is 14% smaller than its 4th grade class (71).
Student demographics
44%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 42% · 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
School pathway
Students here typically continue to
Based on grade levels within NIXON-SMILEY CISD. Attendance zones can vary; confirm enrollment with the district.
Test scores
STAAR 2025-26 . % Meets Grade Level or AboveReading
47.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +31.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
36.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +6.0pp since 2020
What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 47 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 36 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are up about 31 points since 2020, while math scores are up about 6 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 21.0% | 26.0% | 25.0% | 28.0% |
| Mathematics | 17.0% | 19.0% | 20.0% | 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 year | Reading | Mathematics |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 47.0% | 36.0% |
| 2024-25 | 52.0% | 37.0% |
| 2023-24 | 45.0% | 43.0% |
| 2022-23 | 39.0% | 57.0% |
| 2021-22 | 53.0% | 35.0% |
| 2020-21 | 16.0% | 30.0% |
% 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
44.1%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
39.4%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+4.7pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 44% 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 →
Schools most like Nixon Smiley Elementary School
Nixon Smiley Elementary School's state test result (44.1% proficient) is higher than 3 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nixon Smiley Elementary School this school | 438 | 80.4% | 44.1% |
| J R Phillips Elementary School KAUFMAN | 466 | 80.9% | 37.9% |
| Gonzales Elementary School ODESSA | 424 | 80.4% | 26.9% |
| Washington Elementary School BIG SPRING | 489 | 79.8% | 48.4% |
| Fannin Elementary School SAN ANGELO | 436 | 81.0% | 22.7% |
| Rice Elementary School RICE | 444 | 81.5% | 46.4% |
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 Nixon Smiley Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Texas |
|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 44.1% | #2,068 of 4,401 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 36.0% | #3,366 of 4,466 ▼ 285 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 47.0% | #2,917 of 4,466 ▼ 644 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -6.5pp | #570 of 3,998 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 438 | #3,148 of 4,938 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.3:1 | #993 of 4,622 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 43.8% | #2,858 of 4,628 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 80.4% | #1,933 of 4,789 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -3.1% | #2,604 of 2,838 |
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
438
+7 (+2%) vs 2020
+12% since 1990-91, when it was 391
Student : Teacher
13.3:1
was 13.9:1
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 | 438 | 33 | 13.3:1 | 80% (352) |
| 2023-24 | 434 | 32 | 13.6:1 | 84% (366) |
| 2022-23 | 458 | 32.2 | 14.2:1 | 86% (396) |
| 2020-21 | 431 | 31 | 13.9:1 | 87% (374) |
| 2017-18 | 452 | 27 | 16.7:1 | 89% (401) |
| 2015-16 | 468 | 24 | 19.5:1 | 87% (407) |
| 2010-11 | 416 | 23 | 18.1:1 | 90% (373) |
| 2000-01 | 385 | 26 | 14.8:1 | 71% (274) |
| 1990-91 | 391 | 31 | 12.6:1 | N/A |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Nixon Smiley Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 3% (452 to 438); teachers up 22% (27 to 33).
About Nixon Smiley Elementary School
Located in SMILEY, Texas, Nixon Smiley Elementary School is a small elementary school. The grade span is pre-K through 4, and enrollment is 438 students.
NIXON-SMILEY CISD includes 5 schools. Together they enroll 1,016 students.
A majority of students at Nixon Smiley Elementary School, 71%, are Hispanic. The remaining shares are 24% White and 3% multiracial. Gonzales County as a whole is about 51% Hispanic, so the school's share is higher. By the diversity index, Nixon Smiley Elementary School comes in at 44%.
Federal records show a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.3:1 at Nixon Smiley Elementary School, with 33 full-time-equivalent teachers. Among elementary schools in Texas, the typical ratio is 15.1:1. The count of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch equals 80% of enrollment.
Nixon Smiley Elementary School is graded B- by allk12, scoring above 53% of Texas public elementary schools once test results, poverty-adjusted performance, and the recent trend are combined.
Based on student poverty, the model expects 39.4% at Nixon Smiley Elementary School; the school's average proficiency rate on state tests is 44.1%.
In Gonzales County (population about 19,851), median household income is about $58,672, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 12% of adults, and the share of residents below the poverty line is 15%. Nixon Smiley Elementary School is one of 15 public schools in Gonzales County, which together enroll about 3,908 students.
Nixon-Smiley Pace is the nearest neighboring public school, about 0.4 miles away. Counting only straight-line distance, 2 other public schools are within five miles. On proficiency, Nixon Smiley Elementary School is behind the 47.2% nearby average, ranking 3rd of 6.
Under the NCES locale system, Nixon Smiley Elementary School is Rural: Remote.
Compared with 2020-21, when it had 431 students, enrollment in 2024-25 was about the same at 438.
The Nixon Smiley Elementary School community page is open for posts about enrollment questions, class placement, and PTA news. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.
Gonzales County at a glance
View full county profilePopulation
19,851
Census ACS
Median income
$58,672
Household, ACS
Bachelor's+
12%
Adults 25+
Poverty rate
15%
Below federal line
Schools in county
15
3,908 students
Quick facts
Related schools
Other schools in NIXON-SMILEY CISD
- Nixon-Smiley High SchoolHigh · 295 students
- Nixon-Smiley Middle SchoolMiddle · 280 students
- Nixon-Smiley Cisd DAEPCombined · 2 students
- Nixon-Smiley PaceHigh · 1 students
Other schools in SMILEY
- Nixon-Smiley Cisd DAEPCombined · 2 students
- Nixon-Smiley PaceHigh · 1 students
- New Alternative SchoolElementary
- Runge DAEPElementary
Nearby schools
- Nixon-Smiley Pace0.4 mi · 1
- Nixon-Smiley Cisd DAEP0.4 mi · 2
- Nixon-Smiley High School7.8 mi · 295
- Nixon-Smiley Middle School7.8 mi · 280
- Westhoff Elementary School11.4 mi · 85
- Gonzales Pri Academy19.1 mi · 157
Frequently asked questions
About Nixon Smiley Elementary SchoolHow large is Nixon Smiley Elementary School?
Nixon Smiley Elementary School enrolls approximately 438 students in grades PK-04.
What grades does Nixon Smiley Elementary School serve?
Nixon Smiley Elementary School serves grades PK-04.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Nixon Smiley Elementary School?
The student-to-teacher ratio at Nixon Smiley Elementary School is approximately 13.3:1 (33 FTE teachers).
What is the racial breakdown of students at Nixon Smiley Elementary School?
At Nixon Smiley Elementary School, the student body is approximately 24% White, 71% Hispanic, 1% Black, 0% Asian, 3% Two or more.
Is Nixon Smiley Elementary School public or private?
Nixon Smiley Elementary School is a public K-12 school, overseen by NIXON-SMILEY CISD.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.