Community prompt from u/allk12. Replies below.
Rutherford Elementary School
- B-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.
- FThree-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
Enrollment by grade, 2024-25
| Grade | Students | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-K | 94 | 12% |
| Kindergarten | 109 | 14% |
| Grade 1 | 119 | 15% |
| Grade 2 | 124 | 15% |
| Grade 3 | 125 | 16% |
| Grade 4 | 112 | 14% |
| Grade 5 | 120 | 15% |
This year's kindergarten class (109) is 9% smaller than its 5th grade class (120).
Test scores
STAAR 2025-26 . % Meets Grade Level or AboveWhat this means: On the STAAR, Texas's statewide test, about 49 of every 100 students at this school read at grade level and about 43 of 100 do math at grade level. Across all Texas schools, those numbers are about 55 and 45. Reading scores are down about 2 points since 2020, while math scores are down about 13 points.
Performance levels, 2025-26
| Subject | Masters Grade Level | Meets Grade Level | Approaches Grade Level | Did Not Meet Grade Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 24.0% | 25.0% | 22.0% | 29.0% |
| Mathematics | 16.0% | 27.0% | 22.0% | 35.0% |
STAAR results by year
| School year | Reading | Mathematics |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-26 | 49.0% | 43.0% |
| 2024-25 | 52.0% | 42.0% |
| 2023-24 | 49.0% | 47.0% |
| 2022-23 | 58.0% | 66.0% |
| 2021-22 | 65.0% | 61.0% |
| 2020-21 | 51.0% | 56.0% |
BeatsExpectations
Demographically-adjusted score · methodologyWhat this means: About 43% of students here test proficient in math and reading, compared with the roughly 40% 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%.
Schools most like Rutherford Elementary School
Rutherford Elementary School's state test result (43.2% proficient) is higher than 5 of the 5 schools below with a result.
| School | Students | Low-income | Proficient |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rutherford Elementary School this school | 803 | 78.2% | 43.2% |
| Royal Elementary School BROOKSHIRE | 760 | 75.9% | 30.2% |
| Trinity Basin Preparatory - Mesquite MESQUITE | 800 | 75.6% | 35.6% |
| H T Jones Elementary School HEMPSTEAD | 720 | 79.6% | 35.8% |
| Travis Elementary School BAYTOWN | 709 | 77.9% | 32.7% |
| Margaret S McWhirter Elementary School WEBSTER | 810 | 75.7% | 42.5% |
Where Rutherford Elementary School ranks
Among elementary schools| Measure | This school | In Texas | In Dallas County |
|---|---|---|---|
| State test proficiency ranked highest first | 43.2% | #2,189 of 4,401 | #150 of 421 |
| Math proficiency ranked highest first | 43.0% | #2,530 of 4,466 ▼ 55 | #214 of 429 ▲ 4 |
| Reading proficiency ranked highest first | 49.0% | #2,660 of 4,466 ▼ 390 | #195 of 429 ▼ 27 |
| 3-year test score change ranked biggest drop first | -16.0pp | #138 of 3,998 | #18 of 399 |
| Enrollment ranked largest first | 803 | #437 of 4,938 | #27 of 448 |
| Students per teacher ranked fewest first | 15.7:1 | #3,023 of 4,622 | #280 of 432 |
| Diversity index ranked most diverse first | 49.7% | #2,450 of 4,628 | #183 of 433 |
| Free and reduced lunch ranked highest share first | 78.2% | #2,077 of 4,789 | #294 of 437 |
| Enrollment change since 2017-18 ranked fastest growth first | +69.4% | #55 of 1,307 | #6 of 118 |
4-year change
SY 2020-21 vs SY 2024-25Enrollment and staffing by year
| School year | Students | Teachers (FTE) | Students per teacher | Free and reduced lunch |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-25 | 803 | 51.3 | 15.7:1 | 78% (628) |
| 2023-24 | 748 | 49 | 15.3:1 | 81% (607) |
| 2022-23 | 729 | 45.2 | 16.1:1 | 78% (569) |
| 2020-21 | 662 | 44 | 15.1:1 | 77% (511) |
| 2017-18 | 474 | 29 | 16.3:1 | 76% (359) |
| 2015-16 | 500 | 31 | 16.1:1 | 68% (341) |
| 2010-11 | 494 | 29 | 17.0:1 | 62% (305) |
| 2000-01 | 729 | 39 | 18.7:1 | 22% (162) |
| 1990-91 | 964 | 41 | 23.5:1 | N/A |
Since 2017-18: students up 69% (474 to 803); teachers up 77% (29 to 51.3).
About Rutherford Elementary School
Rutherford Elementary School is a large elementary school in Texas, with an address in MESQUITE. It educates 803 students in pre-K through 5. The school's enrollment is 55% above the 519 average for elementary schools in Texas.
MESQUITE ISD serves 37,930 students across 51 schools.
Rutherford Elementary School's enrollment is 68% Hispanic. Other groups include 16% Black, 10% White, and 4% multiracial. By comparison, Dallas County residents are about 41% Hispanic. By the diversity index, Rutherford Elementary School comes in at 50%.
The school reports 51.3 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to about 15.7 students per teacher. Elementary schools in Texas average about 15.1:1, a similar figure. The free or reduced-price lunch share, often used to gauge student poverty, is 78%. Across public schools in Dallas County, the average is about the same, 77%.
Measured against Texas public elementary schools, Rutherford Elementary School receives a B-. The grade weighs proficiency most heavily, then how results compare with what the school's low-income share predicts, then the three-year change.
Schools in Texas with a similar free or reduced-price lunch share are predicted to score about 40.3%. Rutherford Elementary School scores 43.2%.
Dallas County has about 2,621,179 residents, and median household income is about $76,547, a bachelor's degree or higher is held by about 36% of adults, and the poverty rate is about 11%. Federal data list 771 public schools in Dallas County, with a combined enrollment of about 459,645.
The school nearest to Rutherford Elementary School is Smith Elementary School, at a distance of about 0.7 miles. Counting only straight-line distance, at least 8 other public schools are within five miles. Among the 9 closest schools with test data, this one included, Rutherford Elementary School ranks 2nd on average proficiency.
The school's setting, by NCES definition, is Suburb: Large: in a suburban area outside a principal city, within an urbanized area with a population of 250,000 or more.
Enrollment was 662 in 2020-21 and 803 in 2024-25, a gain of 141 students.
Posts about school safety, transportation, and start times are welcome on this page. Questions from prospective families are welcome too.
Dallas County at a glance
View full county profileQuick facts
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4 other US public schools in 5 states are named Rutherford Elementary. Rutherford Elementary School is the largest of the 5.
- RUTHERFORD ELEMENTARYSTILLWATER, MN · 573 students
- Rutherford ElementaryLouisville, KY · 476 students
- Rutherford Elementary SchoolHarrisburg, PA · 461 students
- Rutherford ElementaryRutherford, TN · 282 students
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