PALESTINE J H

Set in PALESTINE, Texas, PALESTINE J H is an intimate middle school, part of PALESTINE ISD. It enrolls 456 students across grades 7 through 8. By comparison, Texas's public schools average about 643 students each, so PALESTINE J H sits 29% smaller than that benchmark.

PALESTINE ISD comprises 6 schools with combined enrollment of 3,186 students; PALESTINE J H is among them.

In terms of who attends, PALESTINE J H logs that the largest single group is Hispanic at 44%, but no single group is in the majority. The remainder reads as 28% White, 23% Black, 3% multiracial. That is noticeably more Hispanic than the county at large, where the share is closer to 20%.

Looking at the economic backdrop, PALESTINE J H lists 36 full-time-equivalent teachers, putting the student-to-teacher ratio at about 12.8:1. The state averages around 14.4:1, so this campus is tighter than the state norm typical. About 80% of enrolled students meet the income threshold for free or reduced-price lunch, a commonly cited indicator of low-income enrollment. That share is above Anderson County's rate of about 68%.

After controlling for student poverty, PALESTINE J H tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 38.9% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 39.1%.

In the surrounding community, community-level numbers for Anderson County indicate median household income runs about $62,068, 15% of adults hold a bachelor's degree or higher, and the poverty rate sits near 14%. Across Anderson County's 26 public schools (combined enrollment of about 8,071 students), PALESTINE J H is one campus in the mix.

Nearest neighbor: PALESTINE H S, around 0.1 miles off. Counting just inside five miles, 8 other public schools cluster around PALESTINE J H. Among the 6 schools in that immediate cluster with test data (this one included), PALESTINE J H ranks 4th on composite proficiency, below the local average of 41.7%.

The school occupies a town-based site.

Over the past 7-year window. Looking back 7 years, enrollment at PALESTINE J H has fell 10%, going from 504 students in 2018 to 456 in 2025. Class-load math has loosened: from 10.8:1 in 2018 to 12.8:1 in 2025.

In the discussion threads here, the page collects discussion, questions, and updates around open house dates, ride-share offers, and field-trip permission slips. Contributors range from current parents to recent graduates and teachers.