New Mexico · NCES CCD 2024-25

Best School Districts in New Mexico

Top 50 districts ranked by average school quality score, based on student-teacher ratios, counselor access, gifted programs, and attendance.

50
Districts ranked
286,170
Students enrolled
40/100
Avg quality score
C+
Top grade

The ranking in one line

Estancia Municipal Schools in Estancia leads New Mexico's districts with an average school quality score of 62/100 across 4 schools.

62/100
top district score (grade C+)
4
schools in Estancia Municipal Schools
539
students in the top district
40/100
average across the top 50
# District GradeAvg Quality
1 Estancia Municipal Schools Estancia C+ 62
2 West Las Vegas Public Schools Las Vegas C- 52.1
3 Lovington Municipal Schools Lovington C- 50.2
4 Cuba Independent Schools Cuba D 49.3
5 Dexter Consolidated Schools Dexter D 49
6 Las Vegas City Public Schools Las Vegas D 48.2
7 Los Alamos Public Schools Los Alamos D 46.4
8 Grants-Cibola County Schools Grants D 45.8
9 Carlsbad Municipal Schools Carlsbad D 44.8
10 Cobre Consolidated Schools Bayard D 44.5
11 Eunice Municipal Schools Eunice D 44.3
12 Rio Rancho Public Schools Rio Rancho D 43.7
13 Santa Fe Public Schools Santa Fe D 43.5
14 Texico Municipal Schools Texico D 43.3
15 Pecos Independent Schools Pecos D 43.3
16 Hatch Valley Public Schools Hatch D 41.2
17 Albuquerque Public Schools Albuquerque D 40.9
18 Zuni Public Schools Zuni D 40.5
19 Portales Municipal Schools Portales D 40.3
20 Santa Rosa Consolidated Schools Santa Rosa D 40.2
21 Gadsden Independent Schools Anthony F 39.9
22 Tularosa Municipal Schools Tularosa F 39.5
23 Central Consolidated Schools Shiprock F 39.2
24 Dulce Independent Schools Dulce F 39
25 Aztec Municipal Schools Aztec F 38.9
26 Socorro Consolidated Schools Socorro F 38.7
27 Artesia Public Schools Artesia F 38.5
28 Alamogordo Public Schools Alamogordo F 38.1
29 Clovis Municipal Schools Clovis F 37.9
30 Pojoaque Valley Public Schools Santa Fe F 37.8
31 Belen Consolidated Schools Belen F 37.7
32 Farmington Municipal Schools Farmington F 37
33 Jal Public Schools Jal F 36.3
34 Espanola Public Schools Espanola F 36.3
35 Las Cruces Public Schools Las Cruces F 36.2
36 Bernalillo Public Schools Bernalillo F 36.2
37 Ruidoso Municipal Schools Ruidoso F 36
38 Loving Municipal Schools Loving F 36
39 Bloomfield Schools Bloomfield F 35.6
40 Raton Public Schools Raton F 34.7
41 Deming Public Schools Deming F 34
42 Los Lunas Public Schools Los Lunas F 33.3
43 Moriarty-Edgewood School District Moriarty F 33.3
44 Roswell Independent Schools Roswell F 33.2
45 Gallup-Mckinley Cty Schools Gallup F 32.4
46 Silver Consolidated Schools Silver City F 32.3
47 Hobbs Municipal Schools Hobbs F 31.6
48 Taos Municipal Schools Taos F 31.4
49 Tucumcari Public Schools Tucumcari F 28.3
50 T or C Municipal Schools T or C F 28

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best school districts in New Mexico?

The top-ranked district in New Mexico is Estancia Municipal Schools in Estancia with 539 students across 4 schools. Average quality score: 62/100. Rankings are based on average school quality scores from NCES data.

How are district rankings calculated?

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES data: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be ranked.

How many school districts are in New Mexico?

New Mexico has 50+ school districts serving 305,112 students. The statewide average student-teacher ratio is 14.4:1.

Methodology

Districts are ranked by the average quality score of their schools. Quality scores (0-100) are computed from NCES Common Core of Data (CCD) 2024-25 metrics: student-teacher ratio, school counselor availability, gifted program access, and chronic absenteeism rates. Districts must have at least 500 students and 2+ schools to be included. This measures school-level resources, not test scores. Higher average scores indicate districts where schools generally have smaller classes, better counselor access, and lower absenteeism.