Hale County schools enrolled 2,207 students classified as economically disadvantaged during the 2023-24 school year, according to the Texas Education Agency.
Of the 3,225 students enrolled in Hale County schools, 68.4% were considered economically disadvantaged. This is a 0.5% decrease from the previous school year.
Hale County enrolled the 116th highest number of students identified as economically disadvantaged among Texas counties.
A recent study by WalletHub classified Texas as one of the least-educated states in the U.S., ranking it 41st out of 50 in educational quality and student outcomes.
Underfunding is a frequently cited challenge facing Texas’ school districts. According to a 2024 report from the Texas Education Agency, per-pupil funding has not increased since 2019, despite inflation rates rising by more than 20% since then.
“As a result, many districts in our very own Central Texas region are being forced to cut back on essential programs, services, consider school closures, and adopt deficit budgets just to provide students with the education that they deserve,” Hutto ISD Trustee James Matlock stated in an interview.
| School | Number of Economically Disadvantaged Students | Total Number of Students |
|---|---|---|
| Plainview High School | 1,113 | 1,430 |
| Abernathy Elementary School | 214 | 412 |
| Petersburg School | 213 | 274 |
| Akin Elementary School | 180 | 238 |
| Hale Center High School | 118 | 173 |
| Abernathy High School | 111 | 225 |
| Carr Middle School | 100 | 174 |
| Abernathy Middle School | 80 | 170 |
| Cotton Center School | 60 | 105 |
| Hale County JJAEP | 8 | 10 |
| DAEP | 5 | 8 |
| Abernathy DAEP | 4 | 5 |
| Lockney DAEP | 1 | 1 |
