The top reported proficiency rate is 48% in English language arts. The lowest is 19% in Science.
Original Research by School Decision on Palm El
Palm Elementary sits on Dixie Drive in the 78744 zip code, a working-class corridor in southeast Austin that sits well outside the city's walkable, tech-corridor neighborhoods. The surrounding area is car-dependent, and housing values in this zip code have declined over the past year, falling noticeably below both the Texas statewide median and the national median. Rents have also softened. For a family weighing a move, this corner of Austin represents a more affordable entry point into the city compared to the central and northwest neighborhoods that typically command premium prices, though mortgage costs remain meaningful relative to typical household incomes.
The school serves pre-kindergarten through fifth grade as a regular Austin ISD public elementary. The student body is overwhelmingly Hispanic, with a very small share of Black, white, and multiracial students. The vast majority of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, which signals a high-poverty community. Specific data on English learner counts and students with IEPs were not available in what was provided. The grade-band structure means there is no graduation rate to report, which is expected for an elementary school.
The STAAR results from the most recent school year present a mixed picture that warrants honest attention. Texas uses three performance tiers: approaches grade level, meets grade level, and masters grade level. At the approaches tier, roughly seven in ten students across all tested subjects cleared the bar, which is a reasonable baseline. In ELA, approaches-level performance is stronger than in math. At the meets-grade-level tier, about half of students in ELA cleared that standard, while math sits somewhat lower. Masters-level performance, the top tier, is low across both subjects, particularly in math. Science proficiency at the tested fifth-grade level is low, with only about one in five students meeting or exceeding expectations on the English-language STAAR.
The grade-level breakdowns add texture. In third-grade ELA, tested primarily in Spanish, fewer than one in four students reached proficiency, which is a soft result that a parent may want to ask the school about directly. Third-grade math on the English STAAR was considerably stronger, with well over half of students reaching proficiency. Fourth-grade ELA on the English STAAR landed around half, and fifth-grade ELA on the Spanish STAAR was the strongest single-grade reading result in the data. Fifth-grade math, however, was the weakest math result, with fewer than one in three students reaching proficiency. Only one year of data was available, so no trend line can be drawn.
The school holds a proficiency index that places it above the midpoint among districts in Travis County, which is modestly encouraging context, though the comparison set includes a wide range of district types and sizes across the county.
On the district side, Austin ISD is navigating a period of real structural change. Voters passed a large bond package a few years ago, and completed rebuilds are already opening across the district, with facility modernization still underway. In late 2024, voters also approved a property tax rate increase to address a budget deficit and fund staff pay, which affects homeowners directly. Most consequentially for families: in late 2025 the board approved a consolidation plan that closes ten schools before the 2026-27 school year, reassigning a substantial number of students and eliminating a large number of empty seats. Publicly reported sources confirm that Palm Elementary was explicitly named as a school that will remain open under that plan, which matters for families who want stability. Several dual-language programs are being relocated as part of the consolidation, and the district also approved two dozen state-mandated turnaround plans alongside the closures, reflecting ongoing state accountability pressure across parts of the system.
Program details specific to Palm Elementary were not available in the data provided. The school's own website would be the right place to look for language programs, enrichment offerings, and how the campus is responding to the district's turnaround requirements.
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