Enrollment
372
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Brownsville, TX
Garden Park El
Federal NCES profile for Garden Park El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 44/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 481168000653
👥 S:T ratio 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 63
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Garden Park El earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- #12 of 50
- schools in Brownsville · Resource Index
- 44
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.8:1
- students per teacher
- 78.9%
- free-lunch eligible
Garden Park El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Garden Park El ranks #12 of 50 schools in Brownsville, TX.
School address
District: Brownsville Isd · Texas
NCES ID 481168000653 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
27.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.8:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-6% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
78.9%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+27% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Garden Park El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Garden Park El
Garden Park El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Brownsville, Texas, enrolling 372 students.
At 13.8:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Texas median, within a few percentage points of the 14.7:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 78.9% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 372 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,538 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #578.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (99% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 2/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 186 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 41.9% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 30.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Brownsville Isd also operates Veterans Memorial Early College H S (2,216 students) and Rivera Early College H S (2,150 students) alongside Garden Park 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 Garden Park El compares
Garden Park 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 | 13.8:1 | ▼ 6% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 78.9% | ▲ 27% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 372 | top 67% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.8:1
Leaner classes than 59% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
372
Bigger than 43% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
78.9%
free-lunch eligible
- 27% above the Texas average of 61.9%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
13.8:1
students per teacher
- 6% below state mean
Top 45% in Texas - lower ratio than 55% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
41.9%
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
$14,009
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 186 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
0
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.0 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.8 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 99.2%
White 0.5%
Two or More 0.3%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 99.2% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 1.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 1.6, Garden Park El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Brownsville Isd, which includes Garden Park El.
$14,009
Per student
+3%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 13.9%
State 55.9%
Federal 30.3%
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 Garden Park El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Veterans Memorial Early College H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Rivera Early College H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Hanna Early College H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Lopez Early College H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Pace Early College H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Garden Park El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,216
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 2,150
- Students per teacher
- 15.2:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 2,039
- Students per teacher
- 14:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 1,739
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,621
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
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 (~372 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.8:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Garden Park El's federal record.
- Compare Garden Park El against another school. Compare schools
- Brownsville 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 Garden Park El
How many students attend Garden Park El?
Garden Park El has 372 students enrolled. It is a public school in Brownsville, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Garden Park El?
The student-teacher ratio at Garden Park El is 13.8:1, which is 6% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 12% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Garden Park El?
78.9% of students at Garden Park El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Garden Park El?
The largest demographic group at Garden Park El is Hispanic or Latino at 99.2% of enrollment, in Brownsville, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Garden Park El?
Garden Park El has a Resource Investment Index of 44/100 (typical 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 Garden Park El rank among schools in Brownsville?
By Resource Investment Index, Garden Park El ranks #12 of 50 schools in Brownsville, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Brownsville on the city page.
Is Garden Park El a good school?
Garden Park El earns 44/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. 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 Brownsville Isd?
Besides Garden Park El, Brownsville Isd also operates Veterans Memorial Early College H S (2,216 students), Rivera Early College H S (2,150 students), and Hanna Early College H S (2,039 students). See the Brownsville 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.