West Texas News

The majority of students in Hale County school districts were Hispanic in the 2023-24 school year, according to the Texas Education Agency.

Of the 8,197 students attending Hale County schools, 67.4% were Hispanic. White students comprised the second-largest ethnic group in the county, making up 28.4% of the student body.

In the previous school year, Hispanic students were also the most represented group in Hale County school districts, comprising 66.9% of the student body.

Plainview ISD and Shallowater ISD had the most diverse student body in the county, including white, American Indian, Black, Asian, Hispanic, Pacific Islander, and multiracial students.

In the 2023-24 school year, the total number of students enrolled in the county dropped 4.9% compared to the previous year.

The main offices of all districts mentioned in the story are located in cities associated with Hale County.

Texas is found to be one of the least educated states in the U.S. A study from WalletHub ranked Texas 41st out of 50 states in terms of the quality of the educational system and how successful students were.

More than 5.4 million students are enrolled in public schools across Texas. Nearly one million of them live in rural areas where options for local public schools are few and far between.

Education in Texas is often a hot button issue, especially as test scores lag behind other states.

“The problems commonly cited are flaws in the school financing system, relatively low teacher salary, poor test performance by students…dropouts from traditional schools in favor of charter schools…gun violence, and mental health issues,” claimed the Texas Almanac.

District	Most prevalent ethnic group	Percent of Total Student Body	Total enrollment
Abernathy ISD	Hispanic	52.1%	812
Cotton Center ISD	Hispanic	49.5%	105
Hale Center ISD	Hispanic	77.5%	586
Lockney ISD	Hispanic	81.2%	404
Petersburg ISD	Hispanic	68.6%	274
Plainview ISD	Hispanic	82.7%	4,277
Shallowater ISD	White	66.1%	1,739