Sst Hill Country, San Antonio TX

Original Research by School Decision on Sst Hill Country

SST Hill Country is a charter elementary and middle school in northwest San Antonio serving pre-K through seventh grade. It is part of the School of Science and Technology Discovery network, a STEM-focused public charter district that has expanded rapidly across Texas and now operates multiple campuses with consistent A or B state accountability ratings.

The school's defining feature is its Project Lead The Way curriculum, which integrates STEM learning from kindergarten onward and deepens into dedicated STEM concentration beginning in fourth grade. For families drawn to STEM-centered instruction and project-based learning from early grades, this is the core pedagogical distinction from traditional public schools in the area.

On state testing, SST Hill Country shows uneven performance across subjects and grades. In English language arts, the school performs more solidly: fourth graders reached proficiency at a rate substantially above the midpoint, fifth graders at about two-thirds, and sixth graders at about seven-tenths. Third-grade performance in ELA was lower, at roughly three-fifths. Math proficiency is more mixed. The school reaches full proficiency in seventh-grade math—all students tested met or exceeded the standard—but earlier grades show considerably lower rates. Third grade's math performance was around two-fifths, fourth and sixth grades each around two-fifths, while fifth grade was closer to half. Science data covers only fifth grade and shows proficiency at roughly one-third. Overall proficiency across all tested subjects and grades places this school in the top quartile among Bexar County schools, a meaningful distinction, though the aggregate masks the fact that math proficiency in the elementary grades is substantially below state expectations in most years.

The enrollment is small to mid-sized for the grade band, with about six-hundred students across all grades. Just under half qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The student body is predominantly Hispanic, with a substantial white minority and smaller populations of Black and Asian students. Data on special education enrollment and English learner status was not available, so a parent may want to look into those details with the school directly.

The school sits in a newer suburban area of northwest San Antonio on West Loop 1604 North, in the growing Stone Oak corridor where housing values have remained relatively stable despite broader market pressure. The community itself is defined by rapid metropolitan growth; San Antonio as a whole has been one of the nation's fastest-growing cities, with major new residential and commercial development reshaping outer suburbs. This location reflects that pattern of suburban expansion.

Publicly reported information indicates the SST network has maintained its instructional focus on STEM and expanded capacity with new campuses, signaling stable institutional direction. For families prioritizing hands-on STEM learning from the earliest grades and comfortable with charter school governance, Hill Country offers that pathway. The strength in upper-elementary and middle-school ELA is a genuine strength. The notably lower math proficiency in grades three through six, however, is a pattern a parent may want to explore further with school leadership to understand whether intervention structures exist to support students who fall below proficiency and how the school supports acceleration for those ahead.

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Academic performance

How students perform on state tests, by grade, set against the district.

Math

Grade 340%

School 40% · district not reported

even with state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 437%

School 37% · District 42% · ▼ 5 pts below district

▼ 4 pts below state median · ▲ 4 pts above county median

Grade 546%

School 46% · district not reported

▲ 5 pts above state median · ▲ 10 pts above county median

Grade 637%

School 37% · District 49% · ▼ 12 pts below district

▲ 3 pts above state median · ▲ 6 pts above county median

Grade 7100%

School 100% · District 60% · ▲ 40 pts above district

▲ 73 pts above state median · ▲ 86 pts above county median

English language arts

Grade 359%

School 59% · District 54% · ▲ 5 pts above district

▲ 13 pts above state median · ▲ 21 pts above county median

Grade 469%

School 69% · District 58% · ▲ 11 pts above district

▲ 20 pts above state median · ▲ 27 pts above county median

Grade 569%

School 69% · district not reported

▲ 15 pts above state median · ▲ 20 pts above county median

Grade 671%

School 71% · District 69% · ▲ 2 pts above district

▲ 19 pts above state median · ▲ 27 pts above county median

Science

Grade 533%

School 33% · District 29% · ▲ 4 pts above district

▲ 10 pts above state median · ▲ 16 pts above county median

This schoolSCHOOL OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY DISCOVERY, same grade

Graduation rate (ACGR) reflects the federally published Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate for the most recent year available. We refresh this data annually at the close of each academic year in June. The federal source publishes a banded rate (for example, "90-94%") instead of an exact number for cohorts small enough to risk identifying individual students. The state distribution chart, where shown, plots every school in the state with a published rate or band; schools whose rate is federally suppressed are excluded. Where the federal source publishes a band rather than an exact rate, the school is placed within its band using a stable, ID-derived offset, so its position is consistent across visits.

Proficiency by household income

English language arts

Grade 3Lower-income48%Higher-income71%23 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income48%Higher-income84%36 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income64%Higher-income73%9 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income67%Higher-income74%7 pp gap

Grade 7Lower-income72%Higher-income68%4 pp gap

Mathematics

Grade 3Lower-income33%Higher-income47%14 pp gap

Grade 4Lower-income16%Higher-income53%37 pp gap

Grade 5Lower-income36%Higher-income53%17 pp gap

Grade 6Lower-income34%Higher-income39%5 pp gap