Enrollment
438
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Smiley, TX
Nixon Smiley El
Federal NCES profile for Nixon Smiley El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 43/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 483274003617
👥 S:T ratio 45
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 12
📋 Attendance 45
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Nixon Smiley El earns 43/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Texas median.
- #1 of 3
- public schools in Smiley · Resource Index
- 43
- Resource Index · Typical
- 13.7:1
- students per teacher
- 83.6%
- free-lunch eligible
Nixon Smiley El has class sizes near the Texas median. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Nixon Smiley El ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Smiley, TX.
School address
District: Nixon-Smiley Cisd · Texas
NCES ID 483274003617 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
32.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
13.7:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-7% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
83.6%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+35% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Nixon Smiley El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Nixon Smiley El
Nixon Smiley El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Smiley, Texas, enrolling 438 students.
At 13.7:1, 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 83.6% of students eligible for free meals.
With 438 students, its enrollment sits close to the Texas median campus size.
Its Resource Investment Index sits near the middle of the pack among 8,960 scored Texas schools.
Against 1,991 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks in the upper tier at #648.
Its student body is led by Hispanic or Latino (71%) and White (24%) (diversity index 44/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 438 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Attendance runs somewhat below the norm, with 21.9% of students chronically absent per the 2021-22 civil-rights collection.
Its district draws 22.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Nixon-Smiley Cisd also operates Nixon-Smiley H S (295 students) and Nixon-Smiley Middle (280 students) alongside Nixon Smiley 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 Nixon Smiley El compares
Nixon Smiley 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 | 13.7:1 | ▼ 7% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 83.6% | ▲ 35% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 438 | top 59% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
13.7:1
Leaner classes than 60% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
438
Bigger than 53% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
83.6%
free-lunch eligible
- 35% 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
13.7:1
students per teacher
- 7% below state mean
Top 43% in Texas - lower ratio than 57% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
21.9%
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
$14,929
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 438 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
3
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 0.7 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 0.7 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 71.0%
White 23.7%
Two or More 3.0%
African American 1.4%
Asian 0.5%
American Indian / Alaska Native 0.5%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 71.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 43.9/100
Simpson diversity index - at 43.9, Nixon Smiley El is about as mixed as the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Nixon-Smiley Cisd, which includes Nixon Smiley El.
$14,929
Per student
+9%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-10%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 54.2%
State 23.6%
Federal 22.2%
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 Nixon Smiley El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nixon-Smiley H S | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Nixon-Smiley Middle | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
| Nixon-Smiley Cisd Daep | Smaller | No free-lunch data | No ratio data |
Comparisons are relative to Nixon Smiley El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 295
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 53/100
- Enrollment
- 280
- Students per teacher
- 10.4:1
- Resource Index
- 55/100
- Enrollment
- 2
- Students per teacher
- -
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 (~438 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~13.7:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Nixon Smiley El's federal record.
- Compare Nixon Smiley El against another school. Compare schools
- Nixon-Smiley Cisd'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 Nixon Smiley El
How many students attend Nixon Smiley El?
Nixon Smiley El has 438 students enrolled. It is a public school in Smiley, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Nixon Smiley El?
The student-teacher ratio at Nixon Smiley El is 13.7:1, which is 7% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 13% 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 Nixon Smiley El?
83.6% of students at Nixon Smiley El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Nixon Smiley El?
The largest demographic group at Nixon Smiley El is Hispanic or Latino at 71.0% of enrollment, in Smiley, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Nixon Smiley El?
Nixon Smiley El has a Resource Investment Index of 43/100 (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 Nixon Smiley El rank among public schools in Smiley?
By Resource Investment Index, Nixon Smiley El ranks #1 of 3 public schools in Smiley, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all public schools in Smiley on the city page.
Is Nixon Smiley El a good school?
Nixon Smiley El earns 43/100 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 Nixon-Smiley Cisd?
Besides Nixon Smiley El, Nixon-Smiley Cisd also operates Nixon-Smiley H S (295 students), Nixon-Smiley Middle (280 students), and Nixon-Smiley Cisd Daep (2 students). See the Nixon-Smiley Cisd 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.