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What's one thing RUBEN HINOJOSA EL gets right about preparing students for what comes next?
Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Enrollment
468
Elementary
DISTRICT 388 · STATE 519
SCHOOL COMMUNITY·MERCEDES ISD·NCES 483025009298
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School
500 S RIO RICO RD, MERCEDES, TX 78570 · (956) 512-2227 · Hidalgo County
GRADES PK–05ELEMENTARY21-SUBURBTITLE IREGULAR SCHOOL468 STUDENTS
B-
allk12 Grade
Scored higher than 45% of Texas public elementary schools
- C+Test scores Share of students meeting the state standard in reading, math, and other tested subjects, 2023-24 and 2024-25.
- BBeats expectations How far test scores land above or below what the share of low-income students predicts for a school in this state.
- CThree-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
13.2:1
36 FTE teachers
DISTRICT 18.5:1 · STATE 15.1:1
Free / Reduced Lunch
83%
388 students
DISTRICT 91% · 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 | 45 | 10% |
| Kindergarten | 59 | 13% |
| Grade 1 | 68 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 69 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 77 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 79 | 17% |
| Grade 5 | 71 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (59) is 17% smaller than its 5th grade class (71).
Student demographics
6%Diversity index
The chance that two students picked at random belong to different racial or ethnic groups.
DISTRICT 4% · 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
49.0%
TX avg 54.5% . +27.0pp since 2020
Mathematics
38.0%
TX avg 45.3% . +32.0pp since 2020
What this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 49 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 38 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are up about 27 points since 2020, while math scores are up about 32 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 21.0% | 28.0% | 29.0% | 22.0% |
| Mathematics | 16.0% | 22.0% | 31.0% | 31.0% |
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 | 49.0% | 38.0% |
| 2024-25 | 49.0% | 41.0% |
| 2023-24 | 43.0% | 38.0% |
| 2022-23 | 39.0% | 51.0% |
| 2021-22 | 27.0% | 25.0% |
| 2020-21 | 22.0% | 6.0% |
% 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
40.7%
composite math + reading, all grades
Predicted
38.3%
based on TX schools with similar FRL share
Beats by
+2.4pp
above demographic expectation
What this means: About 41% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 38% 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 Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School's state test result (40.7% proficient) is higher than 2 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School this school | 468 | 82.9% | 40.7% |
| Hebbronville Elementary School HEBBRONVILLE | 448 | 82.4% | 41.1% |
| Aikman Elementary School HEREFORD | 464 | 84.3% | 58.6% |
| Le Noir Elementary School DONNA | 457 | 82.1% | 39.8% |
| Lopez-Riggins Elementary School LOS FRESNOS | 467 | 84.8% | 60.3% |
| Esparza Elementary School SAN ANTONIO | 462 | 84.2% | 35.6% |
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 Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Texas | In Hidalgo County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 40.7% | #2,507 of 4,401 | #112 of 181 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 38.0% | #3,128 of 4,466 ▼ 521 | #150 of 183 ▼ 36 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #2,658 of 4,466 ▼ 36 | #115 of 183 no change |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -1.5pp | #1,041 of 3,998 | #48 of 180 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 468 | #2,849 of 4,938 | #115 of 192 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 13.2:1 | #913 of 4,622 | #11 of 185 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 5.8% | #4,286 of 4,628 | #55 of 185 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 82.9% | #1,739 of 4,789 | #148 of 190 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked steepest decline first | -34.0% | #333 of 2,838 | #16 of 128 |
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
468
-39 (-8%) vs 2020
-25% since 2010-11, when it was 620
Student : Teacher
13.2:1
was 14.9:1
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 | 468 | 35.6 | 13.2:1 | 83% (388) |
| 2023-24 | 487 | 36 | 13.5:1 | 89% (435) |
| 2022-23 | 492 | 36.6 | 13.5:1 | 92% (451) |
| 2020-21 | 507 | 34 | 14.9:1 | 91% (463) |
| 2017-18 | 709 | 43.6 | 16.3:1 | 93% (661) |
| 2015-16 | 614 | 38 | 16.2:1 | 84% (516) |
| 2010-11 | 620 | 42 | 14.8:1 | 0% (0) |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data. Rows are the federal collections on file for Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School.
Since 2017-18: students down 34% (709 to 468); teachers down 18% (43.6 to 35.6).
About Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School is a mid-sized elementary school in MERCEDES, Texas. It enrolls 468 students in 2024-25. The grades offered are pre-K through 5.
MERCEDES ISD is responsible for 11 schools, Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School included, with 4,207 students in all.
The share of Hispanic students at Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School is 97%. The next largest groups are 2% White. Measured by the diversity index, the student body scores 6%.
The school has 35.6 full-time-equivalent teachers and a ratio of 13.2 students per teacher. Elementary schools in Texas average 15.1:1, 1.9 more students per teacher than here. Of all students at Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School, 83% are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch. The figure for public schools in Hidalgo County is close, at 85%.
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School holds a B- allk12 Grade, placing it above 45% of Texas public elementary schools.
Based on its free or reduced-price lunch share, the BeatsExpectations model predicts an average proficiency rate across its state test results of 38.3% for Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School. The school posts 40.7%, 2.4 points above the prediction.
In Hidalgo County, median household income comes to about $54,338, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 21% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 23%. The county's public schools total 364, with about 212,859 students.
Sgt Manuel Chacon Middle School, about 0.3 miles away, is the closest public school. A five-mile radius around the school includes at least 8 other public schools. Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School places 1st of 5 on proficiency among the closest schools that report scores.
NCES describes the area around Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School as Suburb: Large, meaning in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
The school shrank from 507 students in 2020-21 to 468 in 2024-25. The student-to-teacher ratio dropped from 14.9:1 in 2020-21 to 13.2:1 in 2024-25.
The allk12 page for Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School lets the school community talk about athletics, class schedules, and weather closures. You can also rate the school on this page.
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 MERCEDES ISD
- Mercedes High SchoolHigh · 903 students
- Sgt Manuel Chacon Middle SchoolMiddle · 518 students
- Travis Elementary SchoolElementary · 478 students
- Taylor Elementary SchoolElementary · 406 students
- John F Kennedy Elementary SchoolElementary · 399 students
- Sgt William G Harrell Middle SchoolMiddle · 390 students
Other schools in MERCEDES
- Mercedes High SchoolHigh · 903 students
- South Texas ISD Science AcademyHigh · 840 students
- South Texas ISD Health ProfessionsHigh · 781 students
- Sgt Manuel Chacon Middle SchoolMiddle · 518 students
- Travis Elementary SchoolElementary · 478 students
- Taylor Elementary SchoolElementary · 406 students
Other Ruben Hinojosa Elementary schools
One other US public school is named Ruben Hinojosa Elementary. Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School is the 2nd largest of the 2.
- Ruben Hinojosa Elementary SchoolMISSION, TX · 472 students
Nearby schools
- Sgt Manuel Chacon Middle School0.3 mi · 518
- Mercedes Academic Academy0.3 mi · 100
- Mercedes High School0.7 mi · 903
- Triumph Public High Schools-Mercedes0.8 mi · 109
- John F Kennedy Elementary School1.3 mi · 399
- Mercedes Early College Academy1.3 mi · 355
Frequently asked questions
About Ruben Hinojosa Elementary SchoolWhat is the total enrollment at Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School?
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School enrolls approximately 468 students in grades PK-05.
What grades does Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School serve?
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School serves grades PK-05.
How many teachers does Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School have?
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School employs 36 FTE teachers, for a student-to-teacher ratio of 13.2:1.
How diverse is Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School?
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School reports a student body of 2% White, 97% Hispanic, 0% Asian.
Who oversees Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School?
Ruben Hinojosa Elementary School is overseen by MERCEDES ISD in Hidalgo County.
Data sourceSchool profile facts are sourced from the NCES. Community content is posted by allk12 members.