Enrollment
478
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Balch Springs, TX
Mackey El
Federal NCES profile for Mackey El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 37/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 483039010601
👥 S:T ratio 53
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 4
📋 Attendance 19
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Mackey El earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 79% of Texas schools.
- #4 of 5
- schools in Balch Springs · Resource Index
- 37
- Resource Index · Typical
- 11.7:1
- small classes for Texas
- 84.5%
- free-lunch eligible
Mackey El has class sizes smaller than 79% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Mackey El ranks #4 of 5 schools in Balch Springs, TX.
School address
District: Mesquite Isd · Texas
NCES ID 483039010601 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
41.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
11.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-20% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
84.5%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+37% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Mackey El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Mackey El
Mackey El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Balch Springs, Texas, enrolling 478 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 11.7:1 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 84.5% of students eligible for free meals.
With 478 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 2,110 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #1,222.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (56%) and African American (37%) (diversity index 55/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 478 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 32.2% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Mesquite Isd also operates Horn H S (2,757 students) and Mesquite H S (2,294 students) alongside Mackey 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 Mackey El compares
Mackey 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 | 11.7:1 | ▼ 20% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 84.5% | ▲ 37% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 478 | top 53% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
11.7:1
Leaner classes than 78% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
478
Bigger than 59% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
84.5%
free-lunch eligible
- 37% 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
11.7:1
students per teacher
- 20% below state mean
Top 21% in Texas - lower ratio than 79% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
32.2%
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
$11,612
per pupil, district-wide
- below Texas avg of $13,644
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Per 478 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
27
in-school suspensions + 2 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 5.6 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.1 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 55.9%
African American 37.4%
White 3.1%
Two or More 2.5%
Asian 0.4%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 0.2%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 55.9% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 54.6/100
Simpson diversity index - at 54.6, Mackey El is more mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Mesquite Isd, which includes Mackey El.
$11,612
Per student
-15%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-30%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 30.4%
State 54.7%
Federal 14.9%
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 Mackey El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Horn H S | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Mesquite H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| North Mesquite H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| West Mesquite H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Vroonland - Vanguard H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Mackey El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 2,757
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
- Enrollment
- 2,294
- Students per teacher
- 13.4:1
- Resource Index
- 40/100
- Enrollment
- 2,099
- Students per teacher
- 13.8:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 1,997
- Students per teacher
- 13.5:1
- Resource Index
- 46/100
- Enrollment
- 1,605
- Students per teacher
- 20.8:1
- 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 (~478 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~11.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Mackey El's federal record.
- Compare Mackey El against another school. Compare schools
- Mesquite 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 Mackey El
How many students attend Mackey El?
Mackey El has 478 students enrolled. It is a public school in Balch Springs, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Mackey El?
The student-teacher ratio at Mackey El is 11.7:1, which is 20% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 25% 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 Mackey El?
84.5% of students at Mackey El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Mackey El?
The largest demographic group at Mackey El is Hispanic or Latino at 55.9% of enrollment, in Balch Springs, TX. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 54.6/100.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Mackey El?
Mackey El has a Resource Investment Index of 37/100 (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 Mackey El rank among schools in Balch Springs?
By Resource Investment Index, Mackey El ranks #4 of 5 schools in Balch Springs, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Balch Springs on the city page.
Is Mackey El a good school?
Mackey El earns 37/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 79% of 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 Mesquite Isd?
Besides Mackey El, Mesquite Isd also operates Horn H S (2,757 students), Mesquite H S (2,294 students), and North Mesquite H S (2,099 students). See the Mesquite 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.