Enrollment
689
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Port Arthur, TX
Houston El
Federal NCES profile for Houston El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 34/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 483540004003
👥 S:T ratio 44
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 0
📋 Attendance 24
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Houston El earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #7 of 11
- schools in Port Arthur · Resource Index
- 34
- Resource Index · Typical
- 14.1:1
- students per teacher
- 87.2%
- free-lunch eligible
Houston El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Houston El ranks #7 of 11 schools in Port Arthur, TX.
School address
District: Port Arthur Isd · Texas
NCES ID 483540004003 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
49.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
14.1:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-4% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
87.2%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+41% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Houston El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Houston El
Houston El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Port Arthur, Texas, enrolling 689 students.
At 14.1:1, 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 87.2% of students eligible for free meals.
Enrollment of 689 puts it in the larger third of Texas schools by headcount.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,916 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #1,242.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (78%) and African American (16%) (diversity index 37/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 689 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 30.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 20.9% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
The federal civil-rights collection also records 1 expulsion at this campus for 2021-22.
Port Arthur Isd also operates Memorial H S (2,140 students) and Jefferson Middle (857 students) alongside Houston 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 Houston El compares
Houston 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 | 14.1:1 | ▼ 4% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 87.2% | ▲ 41% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 689 | top 28% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
14.1:1
Leaner classes than 56% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
689
Bigger than 79% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
87.2%
free-lunch eligible
- 41% 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
14.1:1
students per teacher
- 4% below state mean
Top 49% in Texas - lower ratio than 51% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
30.3%
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
$13,670
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
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 689 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
8
in-school suspensions + 4 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.7 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection. Includes 1 expulsion.
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 77.9%
African American 15.8%
White 1.7%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.7%
Two or More 1.6%
Asian 1.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 77.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 36.7/100
Simpson diversity index - at 36.7, Houston El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Port Arthur Isd, which includes Houston El.
$13,670
Per student
+0%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-18%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 52.9%
State 26.2%
Federal 20.9%
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 Houston El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Memorial H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Jefferson Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Tyrrell El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Staff Sergeant Lucian Adams El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Lincoln Middle | Similar size | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Houston El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,140
- Students per teacher
- 12.7:1
- Resource Index
- 60/100
- Enrollment
- 857
- Students per teacher
- 13.6:1
- Resource Index
- 35/100
- Enrollment
- 670
- Students per teacher
- 15.6:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 644
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Resource Index
- 27/100
- Enrollment
- 619
- Students per teacher
- 11.1:1
- Resource Index
- 41/100
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 (~689 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Houston El's federal record.
- Compare Houston El against another school. Compare schools
- Port Arthur 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 Houston El
How many students attend Houston El?
Houston El has 689 students enrolled. It is a public school in Port Arthur, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Houston El?
The student-teacher ratio at Houston El is 14.1:1, which is 4% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 10% 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 Houston El?
87.2% of students at Houston El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Houston El?
The largest demographic group at Houston El is Hispanic or Latino at 77.9% of enrollment, in Port Arthur, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Houston El?
Houston El has a Resource Investment Index of 34/100 (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 Houston El rank among schools in Port Arthur?
By Resource Investment Index, Houston El ranks #7 of 11 schools in Port Arthur, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Port Arthur on the city page.
Is Houston El a good school?
Houston El earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median. 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 Port Arthur Isd?
Besides Houston El, Port Arthur Isd also operates Memorial H S (2,140 students), Jefferson Middle (857 students), and Tyrrell El (670 students). See the Port Arthur 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.