Enrollment
428
Texas · 2024-25 NCES data
Other / mixed grade configuration · Zapata, TX
Zapata South El
Federal NCES profile for Zapata South El, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 34/100.
2024-25 NCES dataOther / mixed grade configurationNCES 484671009447
👥 S:T ratio 50
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 14
📋 Attendance 0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Zapata South El earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% of Texas schools. It is also less racially and ethnically mixed than most Texas schools.
- #1 of 3
- schools in Zapata · Resource Index
- 34
- Resource Index · Typical
- 12.6:1
- small classes for Texas
- 85.7%
- free-lunch eligible
Zapata South El has class sizes smaller than 70% of Texas schools. Computed live against every Texas school reporting to NCES.
By Resource Investment Index, Zapata South El ranks #1 of 3 schools in Zapata, TX.
School address
District: Zapata County Isd · Texas
NCES ID 484671009447 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
34.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
12.6:1
vs 14.7:1 Texas avg
-14% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
85.7%
vs 61.9% Texas avg
+38% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Zapata South El compares with Texas and U.S. medians
What stands out at Zapata South El
Zapata South El is a high-poverty, mid-sized combined-grade school in Zapata, Texas, enrolling 428 students.
Class sizes run a bit leaner than typical: 12.6:1 puts it in the smaller third of Texas schools by student-teacher ratio.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 85.7% of students eligible for free meals.
With 428 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.
Among 1,892 similarly sized, similarly resourced-need Texas schools statewide, it ranks #1,362, in the lower tier once campus size and economic need are matched.
Its student body is predominantly Hispanic or Latino (100% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 0/100).
Counselor access is stretched at roughly 428 students per counselor, well above the ASCA-recommended 250:1 ceiling.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 50.0% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 27.3% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Zapata County Isd also operates Zapata H S (1,065 students) and Zapata Middle (730 students) alongside Zapata South 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 Zapata South El compares
Zapata South 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 | 12.6:1 | ▼ 14% | 14.7:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 85.7% | ▲ 38% | 61.9% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 428 | top 60% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
12.6:1
Leaner classes than 70% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
428
Bigger than 52% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
85.7%
free-lunch eligible
- 38% 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
12.6:1
students per teacher
- 14% below state mean
Top 30% in Texas - lower ratio than 70% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
50.0%
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
$12,744
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 428 students, the combined health-and-guidance staffing load for this school.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 3 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.2 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.9 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 100.0%
Largest group: Hispanic or Latino at 100.0% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 0.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 0.0, Zapata South El is less mixed than the Texas school average of 44.7.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Zapata County Isd, which includes Zapata South El.
$12,744
Per student
-7%
vs Texas
Avg $13,644
-23%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 30.5%
State 42.2%
Federal 27.3%
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 Zapata South El Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zapata H S | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Zapata Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Zapata North El | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Fidel and Andrea R Villarreal El | Similar size | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
| Benavides El | Smaller | Similar economic need | Lower S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Zapata South El's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,065
- Students per teacher
- 14.8:1
- Resource Index
- 39/100
- Enrollment
- 730
- Students per teacher
- 12.8:1
- Resource Index
- 45/100
- Enrollment
- 571
- Students per teacher
- 16.3:1
- Resource Index
- 26/100
- Enrollment
- 445
- Students per teacher
- 13.1:1
- Resource Index
- 32/100
- Enrollment
- 51
- Students per teacher
- 8.5:1
- 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 (~428 students)
Similar student-teacher ratio (~12.6:1)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Zapata South El's federal record.
- Compare Zapata South El against another school. Compare schools
- Zapata County 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 Zapata South El
How many students attend Zapata South El?
Zapata South El has 428 students enrolled. It is a public school in Zapata, TX.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Zapata South El?
The student-teacher ratio at Zapata South El is 12.6:1, which is 14% lower than the Texas average of 14.7:1 and 20% 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 Zapata South El?
85.7% of students at Zapata South El are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Texas average of 61.9%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Zapata South El?
The largest demographic group at Zapata South El is Hispanic or Latino at 100.0% of enrollment, in Zapata, TX.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Zapata South El?
Zapata South 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 Zapata South El rank among schools in Zapata?
By Resource Investment Index, Zapata South El ranks #1 of 3 schools in Zapata, TX. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all schools in Zapata on the city page.
Is Zapata South El a good school?
Zapata South El earns 34/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 70% 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 Zapata County Isd?
Besides Zapata South El, Zapata County Isd also operates Zapata H S (1,065 students), Zapata Middle (730 students), and Zapata North El (571 students). See the Zapata County 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.