Original Research by School Decision on Texans Can Academy - Garland
Texans Can Academy—Garland is an alternative charter high school serving grades nine through twelve in northeast Dallas County. The school enrolls a small group of students, drawing a population that is overwhelmingly Hispanic and economically disadvantaged; a substantial majority qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The racial composition is heavily skewed toward one group, with only a small scattering of white and black students and very few students of other backgrounds.
The school operates under the Texans Can Academies charter system but carries the designation of an alternative school, which typically signals that it serves students whose needs or circumstances fall outside the traditional comprehensive high school model. Students may come to this setting for a variety of reasons: credit recovery, behavioral or attendance issues, pregnancy or parenting status, involvement with the juvenile justice system, or other nontraditional pathways to graduation. Alternative schools often allow for flexible scheduling, accelerated completion, or smaller learning environments.
State testing data was not available for this school. The school's results are suppressed, a reporting status that typically applies to schools with very small test-taking populations where individual results could be identified or where the school's charter status, alternative mission, or enrollment composition falls outside standard accountability frameworks. This means a parent seeking academic performance metrics tied to state standardized tests cannot evaluate the school's student outcomes this way. A parent may want to contact the school directly to understand what academic measures it does track, how students progress toward graduation, and what support systems exist for students working toward diplomas.
The school sits on Arapaho Road in Garland, a mature, built-out city in northeast Dallas County that mixes residential neighborhoods, commercial corridors, and green space. Garland's housing stock ranges from mid-century ranch homes to newer two-story planned-community builds, with older tree-lined streets in central and southern sections and more recent growth in the north near Firewheel. The area is largely car-oriented and structured around major thoroughfares, though downtown Garland offers a walkable core anchored by the city square, which serves as a civic gathering space. The broader region is anchored by manufacturing, distribution, and professional services; Garland is one of the largest manufacturing centers in Texas, and the city itself, Kraft Heinz, and Sherwin-Williams are major employers. The regional housing market has experienced modest appreciation and rental increases remain moderate, with housing costs slightly below the Texas state benchmark.
Because this is a small alternative school, enrollment composition and program design likely differ markedly from typical comprehensive high schools. The school serves roughly similar numbers of ninth and tenth graders, with fewer in eleventh and smallest numbers in twelfth grade—a pattern common in alternative settings where some students complete in fewer years, move on earlier, or cycle out. No data on special education enrollment, English learner status, attendance, discipline, or specific course and program offerings was available, so a parent should ask the school directly about these dimensions. Likewise, graduation data was not provided, which is typical for alternative schools in some accountability contexts. Understanding the school's completion rates, post-secondary outcomes, and how it measures student success beyond state testing would be essential for families considering enrollment.
See more original research from School Decision →