Enrollment
435
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Mcallen, TX
Alvarez El
Federal NCES profile for Alvarez El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 52/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 482967003326
👥 S:T ratio 33
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 56
📋 Attendance 49
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Alvarez El earns 52/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 77% of Texas schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- #8 of 31
- schools in Mcallen · Resource Index
- 52
- Resource Index · Higher
- 16.7:1
- large classes for Texas
- 96.1%
- free-lunch eligible
Alvarez El has class sizes larger than 77% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Alvarez El ranks #8 of 31 schools in Mcallen, TX.
School address
Teachers (FTE)
26.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
16.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
+14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
96.1%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+55% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Alvarez El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Alvarez El
Alvarez El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Mcallen, Texas, enrolling 435 students.
Class loads run somewhat heavier than typical: 16.7:1 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need is high: 96.1% of students qualify for free meals, 55% above the Texas average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.
With 435 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Among 1,369 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Texas schools statewide, it ranks #58, a top-tier result once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (97% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 7/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 218 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 20.5% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 34.8% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Mcallen Isd also operates Mcallen H S (2,134 students) and Memorial H S (2,021 students) alongside Alvarez El.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Alvarez El compares
Alvarez El on the metrics families compare, against Texas and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs Texas | Texas avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 16.7:1 | ▲ 14% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 96.1% | ▲ 55% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 435 | top 59% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
16.7:1
Leaner classes than 33% of US schools, heavier class loads than most.
435
Bigger than 53% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
96.1%
free-lunch eligible
- 55% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
16.7:1
students per teacher
- 14% above state mean
Top 77% in Texas - lower ratio than 23% of state schools
Between 16:1 and 20:1, squarely in the typical U.S. public-school staffing range.
Engagement
20.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,933
per pupil, district-wide
- above Texas avg of $13,644
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors2.0 FTE
Per 218 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
7
in-school suspensions + 6 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 3.0 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
Hispanic or Latino 96.6%
Two or More 2.3%
White 0.5%
African American 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 96.6% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 6.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 6.6, Alvarez El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mcallen Isd, which includes Alvarez El.
$13,933
Per student
+2%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 29.7%
State 35.5%
Federal 34.8%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Alvarez El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mcallen H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Memorial H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Rowe H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Morris Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Cathey Middle | Larger | Lower economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Alvarez El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,134
- Students per teacher
- 12.1:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 2,021
- Students per teacher
- 13.9:1
- Resource Index
- 43/100
- Enrollment
- 1,905
- Students per teacher
- 13.7:1
- Resource Index
- 47/100
- Enrollment
- 999
- Students per teacher
- 16.9:1
- Resource Index
- 36/100
- Enrollment
- 827
- Students per teacher
- 15:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
Similar other schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Texas, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~435 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Alvarez El's federal record.
- Compare Alvarez El against another school. Compare schools
- Mcallen Isd's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Alvarez El
How many students attend Alvarez El?
Alvarez El has 435 students enrolled. It is a public school in Mcallen, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Alvarez El?
The student-teacher ratio at Alvarez El is 16.7:1, which is 14% higher than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 6% higher than the national average of 15.7:1.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Alvarez El?
96.1% of students at Alvarez El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Alvarez El?
The largest demographic group at Alvarez El is Hispanic or Latino at 96.6% of enrollment, in Mcallen, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Alvarez El?
Alvarez El has a Resource Investment Index of 52/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
How does Alvarez El rank among schools in Mcallen?
By Resource Investment Index, Alvarez El ranks #8 of 31 schools in Mcallen, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Mcallen on the city page.
Is Alvarez El a good school?
Alvarez El earns 52/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes larger than 77% of Texas schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Mcallen Isd?
Besides Alvarez El, Mcallen Isd also operates Mcallen H S (2,134 students), Memorial H S (2,021 students), and Rowe H S (1,905 students). See the Mcallen Isd district page for the complete list.
Related tools
Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.